Couple delivers goods across the island

Dennis Neves peeked into one of the containers Monday morning while loading the 60 box lunches from the Waipouli Deli &Restaurant.

“Wow! Hash!” he said. “People are going to eat good, today!”

Dennis and his wife, Kaui, do the deliveries of these box lunches on Mondays and Fridays.

“We’re just the delivery people,” Dennis said. “Waipouli Deli creates 60 lunches a day under a Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Securities Act grant. We do the deliveries twice a week. She has other people coming in on Tuesdays, a church on Wednesdays to deliver to the homeless community at Lydgate Park, and on Thursdays.”

Dennis said the Waipouli Deli deliveries have been taking place for about three weeks, having been added to their schedule that included the delivery of produce twice a week from the Kukulu Kumuhana O Anahola, a nonprofit whose vision is “a thriving Hawaiian community — encouraging the arts, both cultural and modern, utilizing new technologies to enhance the old and establishing and managing a healthy and sustainable way of living.

“KKOA started a garden to help the Anahola children develop life skills and build self-esteem,” Dennis said. “We started delivering produce from this garden to Kilauea, twice a week, on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”

He said the people they deliver to are very appreciative of what they receive.

“We were able to put a collage together with the KKOA logo,” said Kaui. “They’re smiling and happy with the gifts they received. This collage was put up at Waipouli Deli where Mina Ikehara, the daughter of Sachiko Ikehara, said they’ve been doing very well with take-out orders since the deliveries started.”

Completing the week of deliveries, Kaui helps at the St. Catherine’s Church in Kapa‘a on Wednesday for meals.

“She’s there from early in the morning with produce,” Dennis said. “St. Catherine’s does meals only on Wednesdays, and families from Kapa‘a to Kalaheo sign up for the meals.”

The couple’s full plate is supplemented with volunteering and service that included Kaui helping with Ka Hale Pono and the Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank during the Food distribution that took place, Friday at the Anahola Clubhouse.

“Dennis is at the golf course, today,” she said.

They also dropped off a huge box of assorted grocery and food when Erik Burton and Emilia Knudsen reopened the Kaua‘i Community Pantry that served up more than 80 “mouths” on its reopening in The Kaua‘i Store on Aug. 10.

Dennis Neves also serves on the Hawaiian Homes Commission.

“With the full schedule of deliveries, my attention to the Hawaiian Home Lands, I still have time for golf,” he said, rolling off with the load of hot meals.

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Dennis Fujimoto, staff writer and photographer, can be reached at 245-0453 or dfujimoto@thegardenisland.com.