LIHU‘E — Tisha Remegio of the Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i was relieved last week when cold-storage units started going out to food pantries.
“We waited a long time for these units to be delivered,” Remegio said. “And, we’ve got several more units we’re waiting on to be delivered.”
The cold-storage units were delivered to Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i agency partners — The Kapa‘a Missionary Church and St. Raphael Church Koloa food-pantry programs — through two grants totaling $45,000 from the County of Kaua‘i.
The first grant of $25,000 from the county Office of Economic Development is geared to support geographic gaps in cold food-storage capacity. Other organizations scheduled to have cold-storage units delivered include Holy Cross Church in Kalaheo and ‘Ele‘ele Baptist Church.
“Throughout this pandemic, we have seen significant impediments for our food banks and pantries procuring and distributing local foods, especially locally sourced proteins,” said Nalani Brun, OED director.
“The County of Kaua‘i is happy to have provided a grant to the Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i to help close geographic gaps for emergency-food distribution. Mahalo to our amazing community partners for helping to build food security into our neighborhoods.”
Michelle Panoke of the Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i said the Kapa‘a Missionary Church services an unduplicated 250 to 300 families a month through its offerings of hot-meal service and community boxes.
“The ability to store and distribute an adequate amount of food during a disaster is key to making sure that we can address the needs of the community during emergencies,” said Wes Perreira, Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i manager. “We are extremely thankful for Niki Kunioka-Volz and Nalani Brun’s support and partnership. We will undoubtedly be in better shape for the next disaster.”
St. Raphael Church operates its food distribution once a month, on the third Thursday from 4:30 p.m. through the efforts headed by volunteers Benny and Malou Tapucol. The result is about 100 families a month receiving unduplicated service, Panoke said.
“But no one goes hungry,” Panoke said. “If they run out of food or need help with food, they can call the church, who will find something to help them.”
The second grant of $20,000 from the county supports the “Increasing Local Protein Access Program” that enables Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i to assist the community in two areas — first, by purchasing locally sourced meats from ranchers across the island, keeping the money on Kaua‘i and, secondly, by providing access to these important foods directly to Kaua‘i residents facing food insecurity.
“We are so happy that through the county’s
support of this program we will be supporting our local economy and providing nutritious protein to our Kaua‘i community,” said Perreira. “We believe this to be a win-win project for the rancher trying to sustain this important resource on Kaua‘i and also for those who face hunger.” Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i says hunger on Kaua‘i is at its highest level in nearly a century. Statewide, the unemployment rate remains among the highest in the country. One in every six Kaua‘i residents continues to struggle with hunger this year, including more than 4,700 children who are now among the hardest-hit populations in the entire United States. According to Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger-relief organization, Hawai‘i is projected to experience the second-highest rate of child food insecurity in the nation this year.
