• David Sayre

The Salvation Army responds to Puna Lava Flow - Update #4

Hilo, Hawaii, HI [May 8, 2018] – Emergency Disaster Services [EDS] personnel and volunteers from The Salvation Army are responding to the current lava flow in Leilani Estates with meal service, hydration, and emotional and spiritual care at the shelters in Pahoa. 

With today’s additional evacuation in the Lanipuna area of Leilani Estates, the need has grown for additional large volume meal donations from local restaurants and certified kitchens [due to health safety food preparation standards] for meal service at shelters. To donate large volume meals, local restaurants and certified kitchens may contact The Salvation Army at (808) 756-0306. Please note, smaller, home-prepared foods and meals, cannot be accepted for meal service at shelters due to health safety food preparation standards. 

In addition, volunteers are needed to help sort through expected clothing donations at The Salvation Army’s thrift stores in Honokaa, Hilo and Kailua-Kona. For additional details and to sign up to volunteer, visit hawaii.salvationarmy.org and click on the “volunteer” option button on the main page. Current volunteer opportunities can be viewed by entering a local zip code by island.

“Starting Thursday, our Hawaii Island thrift stores will begin accepting in-kind donations of clothing that will benefit those impacted by the current Puna lava flow,” said Lt. Micheal Stack, Emergency Disaster Services Coordinator for The Salvation Army – Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division. “Clothing voucher recipients will be able to select any clothing items they need at our thrift stores using the vouchers being offered this week in Pahoa at the Recovery Information Assistance Center [RIAC] in Pahoa at Sacred Heart Church and any future disaster RIACs that are established.”

We’re also pleased to announced the following contributions to The Salvation Army’s EDS efforts in Hawaii:

• Central Pacific Bank Foundation - $20,000 

• Enterprise, Alamo & National Car Rental Hawaii - $5,000

• Hawaiian Airlines - $50,000 

Previous partnerships have been announced including: 

• First Hawaiian Bank - Aloha for Hawaii Fund to support The Salvation Army’s relief efforts for the Kilauea Volcano Eruption on the Big Island and recovery efforts for flooding on Kauai and in East Oahu. Donations can now be made at any of First Hawaiian Bank’s 61 branches located in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan. 

• Foodland - "Aloha for Puna & Pahoa" Disaster Relief (The Salvation Army). Customers will be able to make monetary donations at all Foodland and Sack N Save stores in Hawaii in $5, $10 or $20 amounts beginning May 9. Donations will go towards The Salvation Army’s EDS efforts. 

• HiLife – Kokua Collection – A percentage of the proceeds from various HiLife clothing items in their Kokua Collection will be donated to Salvation Army Hawaiian and Pacific Islands division to assist with their relief efforts to victims of recent devastating floods on O'ahu and Kauai as well as erupting volcano on Hawaii island. For details, visit https://hilifehawaii.com/collections/kokua

During emergencies, the best way the public can help is to provide monetary donations which allows the delivery of the exact relief supplies a community needs. Plus, The Salvation Army uses one-hundred percent of all donations designated ‘disaster relief’ in support of disaster operations.” 

Those wishing to donate food and bottled water should contact Food Basket, Hawaii Island’s Food Bank. They are located at 40 Holomua St. in Hilo and 73-4161 Uluwini Pl. in Kailua-Kona or call (808) 933-6030.

The public is encouraged to support the emergency disaster services efforts via monetary donations at www.hawaii.salvationarmy.org. One-hundred percent of the donated funds will support The Salvation Army’s emergency disaster services in Hawaii. 

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About The Salvation Army Disaster Services 

The Salvation Army is uniquely positioned to serve those impacted by disasters, however long it takes, because they are there before, during, and after impact. Beyond serving immediate physical needs, they also meet the emotional and spiritual needs that are unique to catastrophic events. The Salvation Army: 

  

• Delivers disaster relief to an average of 382,000 people annually.

• Serves every ZIP code in the United States and touches almost 25 million lives a year.

• Has served survivors of every major national disaster since 1900.

• Remains in communities until needs are met and beyond.

About The Salvation Army – Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division

The Salvation Army – Hawaiian & Pacific Islands Division covers the state of Hawaii and the Pacific Islands including Guam, Republic of the Marshall Islands and The Federated States of Micronesia. The Division offers a wide variety of programs throughout the islands including: adult day health services; affordable senior housing; at-risk youth services and housing; camp & conference center; family stores; food distribution and feeding programs; homeless services; The Kroc Center – Hawaii’s largest community center; preschools & day care services; social services – emergency assistance; substance abuse treatment; and work therapy & rehabilitation services. For more information, call 808-988-2136, visit hawaii.salvationarmy.org, or follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.