LIHUE — Malama Koloa and Malama O Kaneiolouma were the recipients of the first grants of the ABC Stores Kauai Charitable Fund. ABC Stores Kauai Charitable Fund is a component fund of the Hawaii Community Foundation, which made the announcement Wednesday.
LIHUE — Malama Koloa and Malama O Kaneiolouma were the recipients of the first grants of the ABC Stores Kauai Charitable Fund.
ABC Stores Kauai Charitable Fund is a component fund of the Hawaii Community Foundation, which made the announcement Wednesday.
“As we met with the community, we saw how special Kauai was and felt it would be appropriate to support the needs on Kauai,” says Paul Kosasa, president of ABC Stores, in a HCF release. “Our first two grants honor and celebrate the cultural history of the island. We are pleased to have been able to support Malama Koloa and Malama O Kaneiolouma.”
The Kosasa family established the ABC Stores Kauai Charitable Fund with $300,000 to benefit the Kapaa, Koloa and Poipu communities in perpetuity.
Kosasa also serves as Chairman of the Board of Governors for the Hawaii Community Foundation.
“Paul sets the ultimate example of corporate philanthropy and community leadership in Hawaii,” said Darcie Yukimura, senior philanthropic services officer for Kauai of the HCF. “We are grateful to him, his family and the ABC Store Ohana for establishing this important resource for Kauai’s nonprofit organizations.”
The Hawaii Community Foundation is the leading philanthropic institution in the state with 97 years of community service. It is a steward of more than 650 funds, including more than 170 scholarship funds created by donors who desire to transform lives and improve communities.
More than $45 million in grants and contracts were distributed statewide by the Hawaii Community Foundation in 2012. The Foundation also serves as a resource on community issues and trends in the nonprofit sector.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
