LIHU‘E — When Manu Kai employees at the U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands near Kekaha received Big Save gift cards as Christmas presents from their employer, several of them decided to donate them to Kaua‘i Food
LIHU‘E — When Manu Kai employees at the U.S. Navy Pacific Missile Range Facility at Barking Sands near Kekaha received Big Save gift cards as Christmas presents from their employer, several of them decided to donate them to Kaua‘i Food Bank, states a Manu Kai press release.
Word spread of the acts of kindness before Christmas last year, and within a week other Manu Kai employees had contributed $1,140 in gift cards and cash donations, a figure to be matched by Manu Kai and the O‘ahu-based parent company, Akimeka Technologies, the press release states.
Manu Kai is the primary support contractor for PMRF, performing base and range operations services.
When Jim Eken, Manu Kai program manager, heard about the initial employee donations, he gave his OK for a company-wide announcement inviting other personnel to join in.
“Manu Kai’s Judy Lynch kicked off this initiative to make a holiday difference through the spirit of giving,” said Eken in the release.
“The Manu Kai team was proud to support Judy but, most importantly, support the Kaua‘i community,” Eken said.
The Manu Kai donations were presented to Kaua‘i Food Bank Executive Director Judy Lenthall and Kelvin Moniz, development officer, just before Christmas.
The food bank officials expressed gratitude, the release states, as requests for food had increased 50 percent in 2009.
Lenthal said the food bank lost funding it counted on for several years used to supplement its food stock to help feed those in need on Kaua‘i. This donation, Lenthal said, would be a start to replacing those necessary funds, the release states.
Phil Kahue, president of Akimeka Technologies, who partnered with ITT Systems Corporation to form Manu Kai Joint Venture, approached the Manu Kai board of directors about a possible matching donation.
“The Manu Kai board of directors was so touched by the heartfelt gesture of our employees that we heartily agreed to provide a matching contribution,” said Kahue.
“With the struggling economy, it is a testament of the goodwill of our Kaua‘i employees to want to help their neighbors.”
Presentation of the corporate donation will take place later this month, the release states.
