LIHUE — The Kauai County Council acknowledged and recognized Saturday as the Hawaii Foodbank Kaua‘i Food Drive Day, and the mission of raising funds for fresh produce and improving access to healthy food for the most vulnerable in the community.
A County Council Certificate was presented during a special ceremony at the Kapena 40th reunion concert at Vidinha Stadium, and a special award from the U.S. Army National Guard recognizing the partnership it has with the Hawaii Foodbank Kauai in providing food relief for military families were the dressing to the nearly $12,000 collected. Also, more than 4,000 pounds of food donations collected from many different collection sites on the island.
“Combined with a generous matching gift from First Hawaiian Bank, this makes it possible for the Hawaii Foodbank Kauai to help provide food for more than 64,000 meals,” said Tisha Remigio of the Hawaii Foodbank Kauai.
“This community support is invaluable as we strive to address food insecurity on the island. We are grateful for the partnership and the recognition of our work.”
Of note, during the Food Drive Day, Safeway Lihue Store Director Lesah Merritt added a unique twist to Food Drive Day by offering customers the chance to donate by purchasing Coke floats and participating in a rice drive.
“I don’t know what my credit limit is, but it must be getting pretty close,” a motorized scooter-bound shopper said as he dropped some bags of rice into the collection bin at the Safeway store. “But I had to do this.”
Hawai‘i Foodbank Kauai Director Wes Perreira spent his Saturday at collection sites around the island, and was wrapping up the day’s contributions while other members enjoyed the last second push at the Kapena 40th reunion concert.
“Food Drive Day is a special day as we really get to witness what we can accomplish when we all come together on a big scale,” Perreira said.
“As we work together to end hunger on the Garden Island, you can really feel the aloha — from our volunteers’ hard work and passion to the big smiles on donors’ faces as they drop off their donations, and ultimately, to knowing how many of our neighbors will have a good meal on their table because of this collective work. We really do feel lucky to be a part of this community.”
