Folks, if you've enjoyed shoulder the sky, I hope you'll take a moment to give this a read.
I live on Oahu, in Hawaii, and between March 9 to March 23, two Kona low storm systems slammed into the islands. Oahu's North Shore got hit particularly hard. Residents had to be rescued by bulldozer; the town of Haleiwa was completely cut off by floodwaters. It's a testament to the strength of the community and the first responders on the ground that no one died. I got lucky, only a few possessions of mine got damaged, but I have friends up there who have lost everything.
I was up in Waialua this weekend assisting with clean-up and supply distribution, and while a lot of places are donating materials, the need is just so great- we ran out of diapers larger than a size 3 within the first hour. If you have a few bucks to spare, please consider donating to one of the following organizations who are doing good work on Oahu and the other islands to help communities recover.
Aloha United Way supports disaster response and recovery efforts for individuals and families, as well as nonprofit organizations serving on the front lines.
The Hawaii Agricultural Foundation has launched a relief effort with the Hawaii Farm Bureau Federation to support farmers impacted by the Kona low storms and provide resources for recovery and rebuilding.
The Hawaii Food Bank is holding emergency food distributions for flood-impacted residents across Oahu.
The Hawaii Workers Center prioritizes support for those considered part of Hawaii's working poor, including recent immigrants, low-wage workers, and survivors of labor trafficking.
The Hawaiian Council is matching every donation, dollar for dollar, up to $100,000, doubling the resources available for relief and recovery efforts.
You can find more information about the storms and more places to donate at Hawaii News Now and Honolulu Civil Beat. Mahalo nui!
(Also, as a thank you, if you donate and send me a screenshot of the receipt, I'll write you a lil Star Wars something of your choosing! Minimum 100 words per dollar, but probably longer if I feel inspired- y'all know my word count problems by now.)
