Finding food for our evacuation shelters wasn’t easy, but these leaders were up for the challenge.

Pastor Eric Anderson of Church of the Holy Cross was one of the first to answer the call when we asked our community to help us provide food for Sacred Heart Shelter. Led by a few culinary whizzes, the Holy Cross congregation assisted us in feeding residents of both our lava shelters. Using donated kitchen space at Cafe 100, the Holy Cross volunteers prepared enough food for all residents at both SHS and Hale Iki Family Shelter. Since that first week, Holy Cross provided Thursday night dinner for several weeks, including on Thanksgiving. Sometimes Pastor Eric even brought his guitar for rock n’ roll sing-a-longs!

Holy Cross joined the ranks of Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Connect Point Church, Hilo United Methodist Church, and Christ Lutheran Church, as well as Interfaith Communities in Action, as partners we could count on to donate resources and manpower to make sure evacuees received hot, nutritious, dinners.

An Exceptional Commitment

When Sandra Baker of Strato’s Pizza in Honomu heard we were asking for volunteers to cook meals for kūpuna at Sacred Heart Shelter, she immediately stepped up to the plate. For the past several months, she has cooked meals for us at cost—meaning we only pay for the supplies used, and the labor is on the house. Sandra and her employees have even gone a step further, by delivering the meals all the way from Honomu to Pāhoa! Their commitment to helping our community heal is truly extraordinary.

Community support sustains our work, and we’re honored to work alongside such giving organizations and individuals. It is because of support from people like Sandra, Eric, and you, that we are able to continue serving the most vulnerable in our community. Mahalo nui loa for joining us on our mission to end homelessness in Hawai’i.

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