Our strong island roots place the needs of our kama‘āina at the forefront of our mission to be Hawai‘i’s flagship carrier. That’s why earlier this week we were honored to play a role in supporting two local nonprofits working tirelessly to provide disaster relief in Hanalei on Kaua‘i and Puna on the Island of Hawai‘i.

Group Shot
(L to R) Brad Matheny, managing director of cargo operations at Hawaiian Airlines, Brent Overbeek, senior vice president of network planning and revenue management of Hawaiian Airlines, Peter Ingram, president and CEO of Hawaiian Airlines, Steven Ai, president and CEO of City Mill, Brandee Menino, CEO of Hope Services Hawai‘i, Stephen Spears, executive director of Kaua‘i Habitat for Humanity, staff with Hawaiian Airlines accounting team who donated school supplies.

 

As part of Hawaiian’s launch of all-cargo service between Daniel K. Inouye International Airport (HNL), Līhu‘e Airport (LIH) and Hilo International Airport (ITO), our ‘ohana partnered with City Mill – another longtime kama‘āina company – to secure and ship over 2,600 pounds of donated goods aboard our new fleet of ATR-72 aircraft. The cargo included:

  • 1,020 pounds of construction tools flown to Līhu‘e to be used by Kaua‘i Habitat for Humanity in repairing homes for low-income residents affected by last April’s devastating storms
  • 1,815 pounds of furniture transported to Hilo for 20 micro-houses built by Hope Services to shelter families affected by the ongoing Kīlauea volcano lava flow
ATR72 Being Loaded with Donations
Our new ATR72 turboprop freighter being loaded with boxes of donated materials

 

Habitat for Humanity Kaua‘i staff received the donated tools at LIH this week so crews could continue rebuilding impacted areas of the island’s North Shore. The gifted materials add to Hawaiian’s earlier $25,000 donation to the organization after torrential storms displaced residents earlier this spring.

“This donation really enables us to help out the families on the North Shore of Kaua‘i whose homes were damaged in the floods,” said Stephen Spears, executive director of Kaua‘i Habitat for Humanity. “Now they’ll receive the tools they need to make long-term repairs and assist with our island’s disaster relief efforts.”

HBH1
Habitat for Humanity received their donations this week, including ladders, hammers and other construction tools to assist in repairing North Shore homes

 

On the Island of Hawai‘i, Hawaiian’s shipment of furniture was picked up at ITO on Wednesday by volunteers at Hope Services Hawai‘i. Desks, tables and stands, among other items, will furnish the micro-housing units built for Puna families who were forced to evacuate their homes.

“Hawaiian Airlines has been very generous in helping to bring these supplies that are desperately needed in our community,” shared Brandee Menino, CEO of HOPE Services Hawai‘i. ”People are still displaced in our community and it’s going to be a long recovery. We appreciate the support that continues to come our way.”

Need to ship something from Island to Island? You can try out our new all-cargo service by visiting hawaiianaircargo.com or stopping by the Hawaiian Airlines cargo facility at any major Hawai‘i airport.