Food donations sought for Lai Opua Blitz Build

Habitat for Humanity West Hawaii is making a plea for help in feeding the hundreds of volunteers participating in next month’s 10-day Lai Opua Blitz Build.

Roughly 300 people daily are expected to lend a hand or hammer during the construction of the five family homes for low-income families between Sept. 12 and 22 at the Villages at Lai Opua, a Department of Hawaiian Home Lands subdivision near Kealakehe High School. They will be performing a variety of tasks, including construction, painting, parking, safety, medical aid, registration and hospitality.

An important component is food to keep those volunteers fueled, said Erin Stephens, AmeriCorps VISTA volunteer.

Donations are crucial. Food and beverage items for daily breakfast, lunch and two snack breaks will be required. Interested donors are being asked to contribute enough food for at least 50 people — the number of volunteers anticipated to be working daily on each house. However, any donation would be greatly appreciated, whether its providing coffee for one day or even donating extra fruit from a farm, Stephens said.

Easy-to-handle, already-made lunch items, such as sandwiches, pizzas and salads, are needed the most, she said.

To date, Habitat for Humanity West Hawaii has roughly 20 percent of the food needed, thanks to four resorts, two restaurants, one coffee shop and two groups that have committed to donating, Stephens said. Still, more donations are needed to make the community building event a success and commitments should be sent immediately via email to vista@habitatwesthawaii.org, she added.

Interested donors, who are not in the hospitality or restaurant industry will be asked to prepare and cook their food in a certified kitchen, and a facility in Kona has been donated for such use, Stephens said.

All food and beverage donations are tax-deductible. Donors will be placed in a mahalo ad, which will run after the blitz, and will also be allowed to drop off any banners or signage to be placed on site during the event, she said.

Habitat for Humanity West Hawaii is a locally run affiliate of Habitat for Humanity International, a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian
housing organization. The five prepackaged, but modified, homes are being built in an effort to increase affordable housing in Kona.

This build is also in celebration of the organization’s 10th anniversary in West Hawaii. The homes are being constructed on parcels available to five approved Native Hawaiian beneficiaries on a 99-year, $1 annual site lease.

“These are five deserving, hard-working families that will be homeowners for the first time in their lives,” Stephens said. “They are called partner families because they will be working on site alongside the volunteers to build their home.”

The build is also the first time in Habitat for Humanity West Hawaii’s history that it has built homes in Kona. Prior to the DHHL parcels, the cost of land led the organization to build out-of-town. It has build homes in Ocean View, Kawaihae, Captain Cook and Waimea.

“Churches, Kealakehe High School, contractors, health centers, restaurants and residents are all coming together in the biggest community event Kona has ever seen. Approximately 100 people from the mainland who are a part of Blitz, a national volunteer group, are also participating,” Stephens said. “It will be such a wonderful event to help our ohana. It is a hand up, not a handout. We encourage everyone to come out and see the real power of a community coming together.”

For more information, call Stephens at 331-8010.