OHA donates $125,000 to Goodwill

The Office of Hawaiian Affairs gave Goodwill Industries of Hawaii a $125,000 grant for the Ola I Ka Hana Youth Program, which helps Native Hawaiian middle and high school students in Hawaii County.

The OHA funding will fund services for 60 youth in East and West Hawaii, a news release said.

Youth mentors will address student life, social, educational and employment challenges; provide tutoring and homework support during and after school; and provide basic math and reading skills training.

"Goodwill Industries of Hawaii is honored to be the recipient of this grant, which will enable us to expand our range and scope of services for Native Hawaiians and contribute to the academic readiness of Native Hawaiian youth," Bettye Williams, Goodwill Hawaii County operations director, said in a news release.

For more information on the program, call Williams at 961-0307.

In other grant news:

» The U.S. Department of Education awarded the University of Hawaii at Hilo a $500,000 grant to help Native Hawaiians pursue careers in health and medi­cine.

The money will support programs offering mentoring and enrichment to children in kindergarten through grade 12. The money will also pay for tutorials, field trips, internships and research for college students.

Na Pua Noeau Executive Director Dr. David Sing said UH-Hilo is joining institutions such as the UH School of Medicine to address health problems of Native Hawaiians. Na Pua Noeau is a program for gifted Native Hawaiian K-12 students.

» The Locations Foundation gave $25,000 to Palolo Elementary School to help create a new science laboratory and gardens.

The gardens will include a rain forest, an urban garden, a peace garden and a garden with a variety of medicinal plants.

The Locations Foundation is the nonprofit entity of real estate firm Prudential Locations LLC.

» Hawaii Medical Service Association and Healthways Hawaii made a $10,000 donation to Lanakila Meals on Wheels.

The money will help the nonprofit provide meals and visits to about 1,200 senior citizens, Lanakila Meals on Wheels said in a news release.

HMSA employees earned more than $8,300 for donation to charity by using Healthways’ Well-Being Connect online tool to manage and maintain their well-being for the final quarter of the year.

Employees chose Lanakila Meals on Wheels as the recipient, and Healthways kicked in money to make the donation a round $10,000.

» The East-West Center has been awarded $173,000 in funding to study how key climate information spreads across different sectors and countries in the Pacific.

With $148,000 in funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and $25,000 from the Department of Interior’s Pacific Islands Climate Science Center, researchers will collect data to analyze the flow of information on climate and fresh water in Hawaii and the U.S.-affiliated Pacific islands.

"Due to the large amount of distance between Pacific islands and their diverse cultures, environments and economies, collaboration and communication about climate knowledge and fragile water resources across the region is essential," said East-West Center environmental researcher Victoria Keener, the project’s principal investigator.

» The Hawaii Branch of the International Dyslexia Association received four grants totaling $80,000 in support of its Odyssey and Public Awareness Projects.

Grants were made by the Atherton Family Foundation, the Hawaii Pizza Hut Literacy Fund of the Hawai‘i Community Foundation, the Thomas J. Long Foundation and the Samuel N. and Mary Castle Foundation.

Money will help the association offer training to teachers who work with children with dyslexia and provide public awareness workshops, publications, and information and referral services.