KAPA‘A — The Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i partnered with Hanalei’s St. William Church’s food pantry program Saturday to distribute 200 food packages on a first-come, first-served basis at St. Catherine Church in Kapa‘a.
“We’re the same church,” said Sam Knepper of the St. William program. “It’s just a different campus.”
Wes Perreira, the Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i manager, said the St. William program takes place every Saturday, with Knepper and his team of volunteers that includes several members of the Rotary Club of Hanalei Bay.
“Can you do this at Knepper’s age?” Perreira asked. “He and his volunteers do this every week. Our job today is to enhance his distribution with added products, and to see how much more we can do to help his distribution. We’re lucky to have funds from the Kaua‘i United Way to help us with this.”
The “enhanced” food distribution included a case of 10 ready-to-eat meals, eggs, rice, fresh oranges, round onions, bread, assorted snack items, and a bag of assorted nonperishable foods.
Clients lined up early for the drive-thru distribution that was only slowed by the no-pre-registration basis of distribution. Additional clients included the St. Catherine outreach, whose needs were secured by a volunteer helping at the food stations.
“This is a lot of food,” said John Montemayor of the Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i. “Each family gets a case of these MREs. That’s 10 meals!”
In addition to the process of securing their food, clients leaving the campus could stop by an additional station that offered clothing items, including clean, gently-used footwear, and other rummage.
“This is all for free,” said Carolyn Knepper. “They can stop here and get anything they need — if we have it — after they pick up their food needs. If they need it, it’s theirs.”
The Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i’s effort was part of September being Feeding America’s Hunger Action Month.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
