PAL Kaua‘i, KIFB deliver holiday food

KEKAHA — Permanently Affordable Living Kaua‘i and Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank partnered on Wednesday to deliver a box of holiday food to formerly houseless tenants at Kauhale O Kekaha.

“We wanted to do something special for our tenants,” said PAL Kaua‘i Associate Executive Director Taylor Kaluahine Lani. “Transitioning back into housing is a challenging process and many don’t have the financial means to buy special meals for the holidays. We are grateful for this partnership with the KIFB to bring them some holiday aloha.”

PAL Kaua‘i is a nonprofit that builds, rehabilitates and manages affordable housing across Kaua‘i. The Kauhale O Kekaha project is focused on providing service-enriched rental housing to formerly houseless families. To accomplish the goal, PAL Kaua‘i take referrals from organizations who serve those in the Homeless Management Information System.

The 2023 Point-In-Time Count located 488 houseless people on Kaua‘i, a 10 percent increase from the previous year.

“The holidays can be an especially difficult time for formerly houseless families,” said Programs Director Crystal Caday-Bargayo. “There is a lot of pressure to spend beyond your means to make these holiday meals. These PAL: communities are an extension of my ‘ohana, and I am grateful to be of service.”

PAL Kaua‘i’s Beyond Housing Program provides service enrichment to its tenants to improve their quality of life and lead them to self-sufficiency. Through case management, workshops and referrals to social services, tenants develop their life skills in areas, such as financial literacy and planning, entrepreneurship and small business management.

To date, PAL Kaua‘i has brought 11 families out of homelessness and given them a new home.

“I am so grateful to live here” a PAL Kaua‘i tenant said after receiving the holiday box of food. “Crystal is really helping us. Happy Thanksgiving, and thanks so much for the food.”