LIHU‘E — Ace Hardware and Ben Franklin went the extra mile to help the Kaua‘i United Way, said Lori Almarza of the KUW. The managers and staff of the Ace/Ben Franklin store located on Rice Street recently turned over a
LIHU‘E — Ace Hardware and Ben Franklin went the extra mile to help the Kaua‘i United Way, said Lori Almarza of the KUW.
The managers and staff of the Ace/Ben Franklin store located on Rice Street recently turned over a check for more than $6,000 to the KUW representing proceeds from a cookbook produced and sold by the store’s staff.
“The employees of Ace Hardware/Ben Franklin Stores were sure that the Kaua‘i United Way Annual Campaign would struggle in this time of economic crisis and wanted to do something about it,” Almarza said in an e-mail. “So, they wrote a book — a cookbook of actual recipes by the employees themselves.”
Almarza said the store’s staff had it printed and have sold copies for $10 each with all the proceeds to benefit the critical social service work of the KUW. This amounted to more than $6,000.
“Kaua‘i United Way has pushed to close to 90 percent of its goal with the help of this fundraiser and numerous others,” Almarza said. “The generosity of a few generous corporate citizens and thousands of working people who pledged a few dollars each paycheck has pushed the KUW close to its goal, a remarkable accomplishment.”
Almarza said the goal was actually raised in anticipation of increased need on Kaua‘i, but with so many former payroll-deduction donors out of work, it appears the KUW will fall a little short this year after more than a decade of achieving increased goals.
Kaua‘i United Way is a non-profit, volunteer-driven organization dedicated to serving the social needs of Kaua‘i since 1943, its Web site states.
There are 27 participating agencies which benefit from the Kaua‘i United Way, including the American Red Cross, the Boy Scouts of America, the Boys & Girls Clubs, Catholic Charities, Child & Family Service, Easter Seals Hawai‘i, Friends of the Children’s Justice Center, Friends of the Drug Court, Friendship House, Girl Scout Council of Hawai‘i, Hale Kipa, Hale ‘Opio Kaua‘i, Hawai‘i Children’s Theater, Hawai‘i Literacy-Kaua‘i Adult Literacy Program, Hina Mauka, Kaua‘i Economic Opportunity – Homeless Program, Mediation, Kaua‘i Habitat for Humanity, Kaua‘i Hospice, Leadership Kaua‘i, Legal Aid Society of Hawai‘i, Malama Pono, Mental Health Kokua, People Attentive to Children (PATCH), The Salvation Army, the YMCA of Kaua‘i and the YWCA of Kaua‘i.
For more information, call 245-2043, or visit its Web site at www.kauaiunitedway.org.
