It seems like a lifetime ago, and also just yesterday, when many of our San Francisco Bay Area kama‘aina and friends started calling, texting and emailing, asking how they could help, what they could do to kōkua. We were glad that the Hawai‘i Chamber of Commerce of Northern California (HCCNC) could serve as a place for people to reach out and share, since so many were affected by the devastating fires either having friends or family in Maui or having deep personal connections to the island and memories of Maui.
As an organization, we were grateful that we could direct this outpouring of care and desire to help to the Maui Strong Fund organized by the Hawai‘i Community Foundation. Through the Maui Strong Fund, over $100 million has been granted to support housing, social and economic recovery and restoration of natural, historical and cultural resources. This year, at our annual Gala, the HCCNC Kūlia I Ka Nu‘u (Strive for the Summit) award was given to the Hawai‘i Community Foundation for its Maui Strong Fund, and we were honored to have its CEO, Micah Kāne, join our celebration in San Francisco to receive the award. The rebuilding and healing continues and we hope you will join us in sharing your aloha with Lahaina on this one-year anniversary. Please continue to support Maui through the Maui Strong Fund (www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org/maui-strong). We are one Hawai‘i bonded by our mutual aloha.
Mahalo, Hawai‘i Chamber of Commerce of Northern California
