Generations Hawaii

"The highest form of charity, wrote the great philosopher Maimonides, is to give of yourself. No one exemplifies this more than these five volunteers who, despite their busy schedules, always make time to do good."

Jim Nabors

Longtime Hawaii resident Jim Nabors, 75, donates his time and talent each year to “A Merry Christmas with Friends and Nabors,” the Hawaii Theatre show that brings many generations together, including Jimmy Borges, Karen Keawehawaii, Emma Veary, and talented children from the Diamond Head Theatre Shooting Stars and the Nuuanu YMCA’s hula halau (school).

The show was launched in 1997 as a fund-raiser for the Hawaii Theatre and the Honolulu Symphony (the latter of which is no longer involved). According to Nabors, best known for his role as Gomer Pyle, USMC in the 1960s television series of the same name, “Hawaii Theatre President Sarah Richards and Michael Tiknis, then president of the Honolulu Symphony, approached me individually to do a show. As I was and am still a supporter of both entities, I thought that doing a Christmas show with the Symphony at the Hawaii Theatre would be a great project. And it certainly has been for me!”

In 1986, the nonprofit Hawaii Theatre Center was formed to save the Hawaii Theatre from the wrecking ball. Opened in 1922, the 1,400-seat, state-of-the art, multipurpose performance center is listed on both the State and National Registers of Historic Places.

Supporting such a worthy cause and being involved with so many gifted people each year brings a smile to Nabors’ face. “It’s gratifying to be a part of such an incredible group of people — from the cast to the entire staff it requires to put these shows together,” he says. “But the most rewarding thing for me is to see how the children and young adults who have been part of these shows over the years have grown and matured into such wonderful people. It’s so fulfilling to provide a professional production venue that young performers can be a part of.”

Reminiscing about past shows, nothing stands out more in Nabors’ mind than the year the electricity went out just before the finale. He recalls, “I continued performing because the show must go on, regardless of the circumstances. I can’t tell you how much I appreciated the theatre staff — most of whom were volunteers themselves — staying and shining their flashlights onstage to provide whatever light they could and the audience hanging in there with me and the show until the lights finally went back on. A spirit of giving pervaded the theatre that night, both on and off the stage.” — E.J. Sierra

Call 791-1305 to find out how you can kokua (help) the Hawaii Theatre (www.hawaiitheatre.com). It is continually seeking volunteer docents, ushers, clerical workers and special event helpers.

Carole Kai

In the 1970s and ’80s, Carole Kai headlined shows at popular Honolulu nightspots such as the Polynesian Palace, the Garden Bar at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and the Main Showroom at the Outrigger Waikiki on the Beach. The vivacious Kai also made commercials for Serta Mattress, Redken Cosmetics and other notable companies, and she’s currently the hostess of “Hawaii Stars,” the popular local version of “American Idol.”

Over the years, when she hasn’t been appearing before live audiences or TV cameras, Kai, 61, has fulfilled her passion for community service. In 1974, she started the Carole Kai Bed Race — that zany event where corporate teams pushed flamboyantly decorated beds down Kalakaua Avenue as a benefit for the Variety School of Hawaii, which educates children with learning disabilities.

Kai gave up her involvement with the Bed Race in 1994. A decade later, she started the Great Aloha Run (GAR) with Dr. Jack Scaff, and founded Carole Kai Charities, Inc., the beneficiary of that annual 8.15-mile race. Since its inception, GAR has raised $6.5 million for more than 100 nonprofit organizations, including the Hawaii High School Sports Association, Catholic Charities Hawaii and the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Last October, Hawaiian Telcom signed on as the title sponsor of the event, which is now known as the Hawaiian Telcom Great Aloha Run. More than 4,000 volunteers donate countless hours to ensure its success, and Kai says there’s always a need for “a lot of people to give a new spin, a youthful look and new ideas” to the event.

She gives an example of what inspires her to stay involved: “James Felipe had done the race seven years in a row. He had developed cancer but still planned to run in 2004, the 20th year of the race, and had gotten his entire family to participate with him. I visited him in the hospital and got close to him. About a month before the event… he didn’t make it.” Touched by Felipe’s courage and commitment, Kai dedicated the 20th-anniversary event to him.

It’s clear she lives by the motto she shares in her welcoming message on the race’s Web site: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.” — Donald Chun

It’s not too late to volunteer for this year’s Hawaiian Telcom Great Aloha Run and Family Fitness Expo (www.greataloharun.com), set for February 17-20. Help is always needed for setup, cleanup and other tasks. Call 528-7388.

Leslie Wilcox

A popular song describes Christmas as the “Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” but for many families in Hawaii, that isn’t the case.

So in 1985 KHON-TV newscaster Leslie Wilcox and social worker Mariellen Jones founded the Lokahi (Unity) Giving Project as a small grassroots effort to collect household goods and educational toys for needy families and provide them with a bit of holiday cheer.

They’ve spearheaded the charitable drive ever since. The original intent wasn’t to have people go out and buy new things, explains Wilcox, 51. Rather, it was to encourage them to clean out their garages and closets and donate things in good condition that needy families could use.

She points out that the Lokahi Giving Project is not a hand-out service; most recipients have just run into some tough times and “they need a hand up. We didn’t ask anyone to go out and spend money, but as the project has grown we’ve found people want to buy new things and give cash.”

From Thanksgiving through Christmas Day, Wilcox profiles a different Lokahi recipient each weekday during KHON’s morning show. The 90-second segments are aired again during the station’s 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. news broadcasts.

One story last year spotlighted a young woman whose husband shook their three-month-old son, injuring 75 percent of the boy’s brain. The father was incarcerated and the mother was left with limited means to support herself and her severely disabled son.

“She asked for a musical toy for him,” Wilcox recalls. “Although he has impaired hearing, he still likes to listen to music. She didn’t ask for anything for herself, but she mentioned how her son is attending a special-needs school, so she is going to be able to go back to college. Immediately, we had five donors saying they’d pay her tuition.”

Thanks to the efforts of Wilcox, Jones and the Salvation Army, the Lokahi Giving Project received more than $1 million in donations and assisted more than 1,000 underprivileged families last year.

“For awhile in my career, I thought my reports on hunger and poverty would have an impact in the community,” Wilcox says. “But I see more of an impact with what I’m doing at Lokahi. There’s not a lot of lip service. We just do it, and I notice a difference right away.” — Corinne Ann Knutson
Monetary donations can be made to the Lokahi Emergency Assistance Fund of the Lokahi Giving Project (www.khon2.com) throughout the year. It subsidizes rent and utility expenses for families who have suffered unexpected hardships. Call 591-4298.

John Fink

During a Big Brothers Big Sisters (BBBS) of Honolulu donor recognition dinner last November, a young mother recalled how her 10-year-old son got into serious trouble after her husband passed away.

He began fighting in school and disrupting his class. At home, he couldn’t focus on homework and continually argued with her.

Concerned, the mother contacted BBBS, through which her son met a caring male mentor. Last year, with his mentor of eight years in the audience, the boy graduated from high school. Said the mother, “He turned my son into a man.”

John Fink, 50, vice president and general manager of KHNL/KFVE television, also knows how BBBS can dramatically change kids’ lives. A national nonprofit organization with 500 affiliates in 50 states, BBBS celebrated its 100th anniversary last year. Its “big brothers” and “big sisters” provide friendship and support for children from single-parent homes, helping them mature into responsible adults. More than 700 children participate in the BBBS of Honolulu’s program.

Fink’s sister Margaret introduced him to BBBS 25 years ago, and he became a big brother to a teenager named Josh. Once a week for two years, they met for movies, lunch, beach outings and University of Hawaii sports events. Fink also was an enthusiastic spectator at Josh’s soccer games.

Their BBBS relationship ended when Josh’s mother remarried, bringing a second parent back into their household. Being a big brother, however, taught Fink valuable lessons in patience, responsibility and accountability. He likes to think he was an important role model for Josh during a critical time in his life.

Now a father of three, Fink still is a dedicated volunteer for BBBS; he has been a member of its board for almost 20 years and also serves on two of its fund-raising committees.

He notes, “If you don’t do these types of programs and kids go down the wrong road, we as a society all end up suffering through increased problems whether it’s through crime or drugs or just having an unhappy person out there. If we can avoid that, it’s a worthwhile endeavor. It’s necessary for people to give back to the community. I’ve always believed you should try to do that however you can, in big ways or small.” — Robert Shikina

To become a volunteer for Big Brothers Big Sisters (www.bigshonolulu.org), call 521-3811 extension 228. The organization needs mentors, site leaders, and volunteers to organize and implement special events such as its Gourmet Affair benefit dinner at the Hilton Hawaiian Village’s Coral Ballroom on April 15.

Linda Chu Takayama

A former prisoner of war, a disabled woman on welfare, a single mother of four — the Hawaii Foodbank was there to give them and countless others a boost when they needed it.

According to Linda Chu Takayama, the Foodbank’s board chair, feeding those in need goes far beyond taking care of their physical well-being. She says, “It also means that somebody cares enough to make sure they aren’t going to be hungry anymore, which is probably as important as the food itself.”

Takayama, 56, served as Hawaii’s Insurance Commissioner from 1991 to 1994. Practicing law full time at her own firm and organizing food drives and benefit golf tournaments for the Foodbank now enrich her life.

In 1983, a Good Samaritan named John White opened a small warehouse on Sand Island that became the Hawaii Foodbank’s first headquarters. With equipment donated from local companies, he and a single driver distributed 500,000 pounds of food to 20 charities that year.

Today the Foodbank moves more than 8 million pounds of food — from canned goods and dairy products to fresh produce and rice — to 260 agencies serving Hawaii’s needy on Oahu alone.

Takayama believes helping the needy provides valuable rewards on a personal level especially for retired seniors who need exercise, both physical and mental, in order to stay alert and healthy.

“Volunteering is one way to do both, especially after you are no longer on the job,” she says. “It also helps you expand your network of friends.”

Of the many stories she’s heard about how the Foodbank has changed people’s lives, one stands out in her mind. It concerns a prominent person in the commu- nity who’s a dedicated Foodbank volunteer.

Says Takayama, “When she was younger, starting out and on her own, she found herself in a situation with nothing to eat. Someone gave her a can of soup. She cried, not because she finally had food to eat, but because it meant that someone really cared about her.”

The Foodbank has touched people from many different backgrounds in a similar way. “Clearly, our efforts feed the body and the soul,” Takayama says. “We need to do both to keep the aloha in our community.” — Diana Nomura

The Hawaii Foodbank (www.hawaiifoodbank.org) seeks help for its food drives; annual banquet; and other fund-raising events, including Great Chefs, where, for a donation to the Foodbank, you can sample specialties by top local chefs, and Check Out Hunger, which solicits donations at supermarkets as customers pay for their groceries. Call 836-3600.

How You Can Get Involved

• Research the causes or issues im-portant to you. Look for a group that deals with issues about which you feel strongly. Alternatively, you may want to find a cause close to home; rally your neighbors to clean up that vacant lot on the corner, patrol the neighborhood or paint an elderly neighbor’s house.

• Consider the skills you have to offer. If you enjoy outdoor work, have a knack for teaching or just enjoy interacting with people, you may want to look for volunteer work that would incorporate these aspects of your personality.

• Consider volunteering as a family. When a family volunteers to work together the experience can bring them closer and teach young children the value of giving their time and effort.

• Would you like to learn something new? Consider seeking a volunteer opportunity involving training in an unfamiliar skill. Many nonprofits seek out people who are willing to learn, especially if the needs they serve are specialized or unique.

• Don’t over-commit your schedule. Make sure the volunteer hours you want to give fit into your life so that you don’t frustrate your family, exhaust yourself or shortchange the organization you’re trying to help.

• Nonprofits may have questions, too. While most nonprofits are eager to find volunteer help, they must fulfill specific needs and requirements. They need volunteers with certain skills, are truly committed to doing the work and have interests matching those of the nonprofit.

• I never thought of that! Look for volunteer opportunities that may not have crossed your mind: day care centers, Neighborhood Watch, pub-lic schools, colleges, halfway houses, community theaters and more.

• Give voice to your heart through your giving and volunteering! Bringing your sense of humor and an enthusiastic spirit to volunteer service is a priceless gift to others. What you’ll get back will be immeasurable!

• Virtual volunteering? Some organi-zations now offer the opportunity to do volunteer work over the computer such as giving free legal advice, typing a college term paper for a person with a disability or simply keeping in touch with a shut-in who has e-mail.

• Be a year-round volunteer! We all tend to think more of those in need during the holidays, but volunteering is welcome and necessary all year.

Courtesy of Volunteer Hawaii, a virtual volunteer center that links your interests with available opportunities and organizations throughout the state. This information was adapted from the Independent Sector, Give Five brochure. For more information about how you can get involved, call 536-1951 and ask for the Volunteer Hawaii administrator, e-mail volunteerhawaii@auw.org or check out the Web site www.volunteerhawaii.org. In addition, the Retired And Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) recruits and refers volunteers who are aged 55 and older to more than 40 nonprofit organizations on Oahu. Call 536-6543 or check out http://oahursvp@helpinghandshawaii.org.

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