Pandemic of Love is amazing
Aloha. This is a follow up to the story in TGI from Monday, July 20, “This ‘Pandemic’ Contagious, Too.” As one of the 14 volunteers involved with the local chapter of Pandemic of Love, I would like to explain how this simple, amazing program works. If I am a person who is having difficulty, due to Covid-19, paying my bills or a buying medicine or diapers or if I need a ride to the doctor or my lawn needs mowing or any other immediate need, I can fill out a simple form (“Get Help”) on our website at pandemicofovekaui.com. And people who wish to contribute to an individual or family can specify their donation when they fill out the “Give Help” form on the same website. The donor can indicate that they are willing to give $75, for example, to a family to help with gas money or the water bill, money towards rent or has a service to offer. Our job as Match Makers is to look at the list of people in need and match them with someone from our list of donors. It is a one to one process of connecting people in our Kaua`i community. Once we have introduced our matches to one another via email, the magic happens. The donor and recipient connect and complete the transaction of love, whether it be money, an offer of services or even a home visit. We at Pandemic of Love are simply conduits of Aloha. The results are amazing. The sense of loneliness and helplessness can be washed away when you get a message from a person who is offering help. We are here to let each other know that we care, we want to help and none of us is truly alone.
Sue Buckley, Kapa‘a
No high-rises ever
About 18 months ago I was one of the volunteers at the lighthouse. I would answer questions from the visitors, and if asked take their pictures with their camera. I would also ask them questions as to why they select the island of Kaua‘i to visit. The general answer would often be: “We are visiting Kaua‘i because it is what we expected to see. It is rural, the residents are very friendly, and there are no high-rises.”
In a quiet moment at the lighthouse a gentleman in his 50s came up to me and asked me: “Why did I choose Kaua‘i?” My answer was: “Kaua‘i is the most beautiful of the islands and it is rural and there are no high-rises.” This gentleman replied: “I’m sorry, as you are going to have one high-rise soon.” I replied: “I sure hope not.”
The issue of having a high-rise on the island should not exist, as at least 80% of the residents are strongly opposed to having a high-rise so we should be safe, But we aren’t. It appears that such a thing may have been made, and that one thing is the mayor, to my knowledge, may have selected building Planning Commission members who will approve the proposal to allow a high-rise to be approved.
This has been done in advance, and the mayor and members of the County Council must know what is going on but are not speaking out. The mayor can say that he was also opposed to having a high-rise, but he was not going to counteract the building Planning Commission. What an out! Mayor and councilmembers, you should stop it now!
Mayor and councilmembers, whom do you represent?
It just takes a few men and women to destroy what over 80% of what we islanders value. Hopefully this can be stopped.
Joe Frisinger, Princeville
Coco Palms ain’t coming back
Coco Palms hasn’t been mentioned in the news lately, but I drive past it going to and from work, and I wonder when someone will say “enough is enough” and accept the fact that no developer with any amount of money is going to come in and make everything like it was.
Forget it. That time has passed, and it ain’t coming back.
How many times have I heard from previous owners that “we’re ready to go” even though they didn’t have the permits or the actual funds. Besides that they’re ready.
I’d much rather see a grove of actual coco palms than the broken-down, concrete skeleton of a hotel whose time of death was a long time ago.
Someone make the call, please.
Joe Pellegrino, Lihu‘e
