PUHI — The Child and Family Service Ohana Fun Fest was old out at 300 people, but more than that took advantage of sunny, if windy, conditions on Sunday to enjoy event at the Puhi park open field.
“We’re celebrating families,” said Dory Farias of the CFS Hale Hoomalu in Kapaa. “Hale Opio Kauai, celebrating its 50th anniversary is here today. They’re having an End of Summer Bash later before school starts. We’re going to be there, too.”
Novelyn Hinazumi, the director of Kauai Programs at Child and Family Service, said the idea behind the Ohana Fun Fest is to raise awareness of the more than 50 services statewide that are available from CFS and its community partners, in a non-intimidating environment.
On Kauai, CFS offers more than 16 programs on Kauai that strengthen families by caring for keiki, empowering youth, healing from trauma, strengthening families and honoring kupuna.
Some of these community partners included the Fentanyl Task Force, E Ala Hou, Catholic Charities, Hale Opio, Project Vision, the Garden Island Federal Credit Union, HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union, Permanently Affordable Living Housing, Life’s Bridges, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Hawaii, and more.
Vendors, each representing a segment of CFS services, and community partners presented their information with an orientation to family activities that had a prize attached to it. That resulted in families with arms overflowing with premiums, or lugging wagons or strollers overflowing with premiums.
Broken down into sections representing resources, food, a recreation area with keiki rides and bounce houses, families filled the special “eating area” tents as a respite from all the activity.
The Ohana Fun Fest was funded by the State of Hawaii Department of Health, Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division, Department of Human Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Head Start, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, Kauai United Way, and more.
