Nash is 3-year old boy who just started receiving Early Intervention services due to him being a late referral. He is being evaluated by the Department of Education to determine his eligibility for special education preschool services.
His mother is a single parent who has the entire burden of trying to support Nash financially, love and nurture him and provide for his every need. She works many hours.
Nash could benefit from a gift card to help address his delays in multiple areas of development.
And then, there is Beth.
She is living in a run down garage/house with her mother and her boyfriend. Beth doesn’t have a relationship with her father and doesn’t get along with her mom’s boyfriend. Her mom is working a lot and is hard to get a hold of.
Other than her brother who has recently gone to youth challenge, she feels like she’s on her own. Without the support at home, Beth hasn’t been successful in school and has dropped out because she got behind and was too overwhelmed to catch up. Beth is now pursuing her GED and wants to go to college.
Beth needs bedding and housing items so she can cook.
They are two of the many who will receive help from The Garden Island/Zonta Christmas Fund, which is supported by the community.
New this year, the Hale Uluwehi Kauai Fund announced that it will provide a dollar-for-dollar match for donations of $100 or greater. It will match the total up to $5,000 and, if there’s great success, will consider adjusting that figure higher.
Here’s how the program works:
Families apply for assistance through social service agencies, which in turn connect with the Zonta Club of Kauai. It uses donations to buy gift certificates for those in need. The certificates can be used for gifts and groceries.
The Garden Island shares daily stories about those who could use assistance this holiday season. While the names are not real, the situations described are. Hundreds of families, keiki to kupuna, benefit from the fund.
Each donated dollar is accounted for and carefully recorded.
There are no administrators collecting salaries. There are no hidden costs.
If you hold a fundraiser for the Christmas Fund, let us know and we’ll spread the word. Anyone making a donation of $50 or more may have his or her picture presenting the check published in TGI.
The Garden Island/Zonta Christmas Fund was established in the early 1980s when Jean Holmes was editor of TGI.
It has been led for the past two decades by Yoshiko “Dimples” Kano. The 92-year-old is so dedicated to this program, she declines to give up the volunteer post and keep at this, when she could be relaxing at home.
Only monetary donations are accepted. Checks, payable to Zonta Club of Kauai Foundation, can be mailed to P.O. Box 3032, Lihue, HI 96766. For more information, call 822-4517.
And remember, donations of at least $100 or more will be matched by the Hale Uluwehi Kauai Fund, so your gift is basically doubled.
