On August 8th, 2023, wildfires broke out across Maui. The largest and most devastating fire occurred in Lahaina. My husband and I had a trip to Maui scheduled to celebrate our 15 yr anniversary and turning 45 mere days later. Before boarding the plane, we called our hotel, rental car agency and tour company to see if we should still come. All of them assured us it was fine and that we were welcome.

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As we prepared to leave, I remembered a friend had a brother living in Maui. I reached out to her to see if he was okay and she informed me that they had lost everything. Since we were only taking carry on luggage, I offered to bring supplies to him and his family. I also tapped into another connection, Stew Shepard, a substitute bus driver in our school district who had once lived in Hawaii. He and his wife run a local nonprofit that provides socks and underwear to those in need. I reached out to see if we could bring underwear to people in Maui and Stew graciously opened the doors. 

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We departed for Maui with 150lbs of supplies. The Drawer donated 354 pair or 118 bundles of new underwear and we dropped them off along with some duffle bags and toothpaste/toothbrush kits (purchased with a donations from friends) at the Veteran's War Memorial. After this, we went on to enjoy our vacation in South Maui, North Shore, East Maui and Up Country.

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During this time exploring the island, and idea was born. After talking with those impacted by the wildfires, I realized that coping/grief bags (which we call Care Kits) used in our local elementary may be helpful for students and families displaced and affected across Maui. 

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Upon returning home, I connected with Mageen Caines, a colleague, friend and overall amazing human. I shared our experience and my idea about the Care Kits. She was extremely supportive and we began brainstorming ideas and thus Giving Hearts was born. Mageen reached out to her contacts in Emergency Management in Hawaii and I contacted elementary schools in Maui. With their encouragement, this idea moved one step closer to reality. 

 

The next step in this journey is to operationalize the acquisition and distribution of the Care Kits.

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Currently, we are in the fundraising phase of the project. The goal is to raise enough funding to provide at least 200 Care Kits to school mental health staff across Maui. Ideally, these would be delivered in mid to late October so staff have the resources needed as we head into the holiday season. 

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If you have any questions or would like to contribute, don't hesitate to reach out.

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Thank you for supporting this work!

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Bianca Virnig