The East Kaua‘i Lions Club partnered with King Kaumuali‘i Elementary School to distribute more than 1,000 spaghetti plates on Sunday at the school.
“Randy Francisco, past president for the Kaua‘i Filipino Chamber of Commerce, was one of the early customers,” said EK Lion Janice Bond. “He tasted the plate and said this was one of the best he’s had. He left us a generous tip.”
The community partnership produced plates that included spaghetti with meat sauce, corn, garlic bread and a small bottle of water that could either be enjoyed to-go or sit-down in the school’s cafeteria. The sit-down customers were treated to special performances by King Kaumuali‘i student dancers.
“This is for the kids,” said one drive-thru customer, who happens to be a Rotarian. “There’s a lot of kids out there that can use this, so that’s why I’m getting 23 orders instead of just one, or two. The kids are waiting.”
Another drive-thru customer said she was using the plates to supplement her offering (the chicken papaya smelled really good) to kupuna she feeds every Sunday.
“This reminds me a lot of the Pastors, Police and Platters we used to do during the pandemic,” said Kaua‘i Police Department Chief Todd Raybuck, who is an EK Lion. “Hearing their stories and just being able to greet the people is a great way to connect with the community.”
The value of the spaghetti plate extended beyond the tasty plates, providing an opportunity for people from families to community leaders to gather and talk in the cafeteria.
EK Lion and Past District Governor Roy Nishida attributed success of the Sunday event to the many hands which made the spaghetti taste that much better. School Principal Jason Yoshida and the school’s staff prepared the meals inside the cafeteria, as well as purchasing their share of meal tickets.
“Wailua Meat Company donated more than 200 pounds of meat for the sauce, and Kaua‘i Kookie Company prepared the garlic bread and gave us a really good price,” Nishida said.
“The East Kaua‘i Lions President Elect Crystal Bargayo paid for all the paper goods, and the club took care of the corn and water. And we cannot forget the individual Lions who each did their own part to help this event move smoothly,” said Nishida.
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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 808-245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.
