MANA — Judy Lynch, an artist who works at Manu Kai, dipped into her cache of artwork to motivate the final push for a food drive. “She did a lot of the work herself,” said Tim O’Brien, Manu Kai business
MANA — Judy Lynch, an artist who works at Manu Kai, dipped into her cache of artwork to motivate the final push for a food drive.
“She did a lot of the work herself,” said Tim O’Brien, Manu Kai business manager. “She gets the credit for doing this drive and getting people motivated to contribute.”
The contribution from Manu Kai, located on the Pacific Missile Range Facility at Mana, amounted to $1,517, surpassing its contribution last year of $1,140 in cash and Big Save gift cards.
“We still had a few gift cards turned in after the holidays so the total is actually a few dollars more,” Lynch said.
This is the second year PMRF contractor Manu Kai has announced its decision to match the holiday food donation drive by Manu Kai employees to benefit the Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank, a Manu Kai news release states.
With the $1,517 employee contribution, and the matching funds from the Manu Kai Joint Venture made up of Ke‘aki Technologies and ITT Systems Corp., the total surpassed the $3,000 mark.
“We were just a couple of dollars short of our Holiday Food and Fund Drive before we got the call,” said Kelvin Moniz, KIFB operations manager. “This is just what we needed to put us over the top of our $40,000 goal. Our food weight goal was 40,000 pounds, and that was surpassed with the contribution from the students at the Elsie Wilcox Elementary School, the King Kaumuali‘i Elementary School Student Council, and the off-road motorcycle enthusiasts.”
Manu Kai employees at PMRF were asking if they could donate their Big Save gift cards to KIFB before the holiday decorations went up, Lynch said in the release.
Lynch approached Jim Eken, the Manu Kai project manager, for permission to conduct the drive again this year.
“Just like last year, Manu Kai’s Judy Lynch kicked off this initiative to make a holiday difference through the spirit of giving in the community we live in,” Eken said. “Again, the Manu Kai Team was proud to support Judy, and most importantly, support the Kaua‘i community.”
Phil Kahue, president of Honolulu-based Ke‘aki Technologies, approached the Manu Kai Joint Venture Board of Directors about matching the Mana employees’ donation for the second year.
“After last year’s successful fundraising campaign, the Manu Kai Board approved this year’s effort without hesitation, and again, our employees came through,” Kahue said in the release.
Judy Lenthall, KIFB executive director, was thrilled when she learned of the Manu Kai contribution, just days before the deadline for the Holiday Food and Fund Drive.
“The generosity of our community to those in need never ceases to amaze me,” she said. “Unprecedented demand continues to challenge the community, and without the kokua of our friends, families, neighbors and businesses, we would not have been able to respond to the record-breaking 100,000 emergency food requests we had during 2010.”
Moniz said that despite making the holiday goals, and collecting approximately 52,000 pounds of food, there are still empty shelves at the KIFB Nawiliwili facility.
“Demand has really gone up,” Moniz said. “Between 2008 and now, the demand has risen about 75 percent. We still need help.”
Of this amount, Moniz said the need for food affects the two extreme ends of the population spectrum — the young families trying to get a start, and the seniors who are on fixed income.
But Moniz is quick to acknowledge the efforts and generosity of the local community in alleviating the need for food from those who are otherwise unable to afford it.
“Our current drive is just phenomenal,” Moniz said. “We owe this to the generosity of everyone for being able to make this happen.”
With shelves still bare, Moniz said KIFB will focus on the Spring Food and Fund Drive which will be announced in February.
Visit www.kauaifoodbank.org or call 246-3809 to contribute toward helping others who can’t afford food.
