Could Oprah Winfrey have inspired the creation of a local nonprofit? The answer, surprisingly, is yes.
It all began in the fall of 1993. A blind Bakersfield College professor named Chuck Wall heard a news story on the radio that said, "We have another random act of senseless violence to report."
In a split second he had an idea. "I just took out the word ‘violence’ and stuck in the word ‘kindness,’" Wall said. What if people created random acts of kindness instead of violence? "All of a sudden I had a great phrase that turned a negative into a positive."
Wall arrived on campus and challenged his human relations class to commit one random act of senseless kindness a day. The students were initially puzzled but came back in two weeks with amazing stories of what happened.
Soon they were printing bumper stickers that said, "Today, I will commit one random act of senseless KINDNESS … Will you?" It led to his writing a book called "Kindness: Changing Our World."
Five months later Wall was on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," and the phrase became known around the globe. Millions of people were inspired, including the Rotary Club of Honolulu, which created a Random Acts of Aloha Committee in 1997 to help tourists who were victims of crime or other adversities.
Three years later the committee became an independent nonprofit organization named the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii. Its mission is to deal with visitors who are victims of crime or adversity and to turn their experience into a more positive one, so they could leave with an upbeat memory of Hawaii.
Seven million tourists visit Hawaii each year, and for a small number, tragedy strikes. Many of these tourists would return home to tell their friends how horrible Hawaii was, and this could hurt our economy.
"We can’t change what has happened," says Executive Director Jessica Rich, "but we can certainly step in and lend a hand."
Many visitors think shoes are a safe, and put money, credit cards and car keys in them on the beach. They return from a swim to find the contents gone. One man dug a hole in the sand, put his valuables in it and drew an arrow to it. When he returned, it was gone. Some leave thousands of dollars on the beach unattended.
An 18-year-old woman left her purse on her towel with all the money for her wedding in it. It was stolen and she was really upset. "The police called us," Rich says. "We can’t replace what they lost. We’re not an insurance company, but we were able to get her an ocean-view hotel room and meal vouchers. She was very pleased that someone came to her rescue."
Many tourists leave their valuables in the car. More than 300 visitors a year on Oahu are shocked to find their cameras, tickets and cash are gone when they return from lunch. "Some of them are saying, ‘I hate Hawaii,’ when we first show up. Later they have turned around, and they end up with a positive feeling about the people of Hawaii."
The Visitor Aloha Society is called in by the police, hospitals, hotels and rental car agencies. They provide hotel rooms, transportation, meal vouchers, clothes, entertainment, legal assistance and help replacing lost passports to about 2,000 visitors in need a year.
To put that in perspective, the great majority of visitors to the islands have a positive, uneventful time here. The Visitor Aloha Society is there for that tiny fraction that isn’t so fortunate.
The Visitor Aloha Society has two full-time staff, five part-time staffers and about 80 volunteers. The Hawaii Tourism Authority is one contributor, but thousands in the community also donate.
"Members of the visitor industry provide the hotel rooms, airfares and meals, out of their kindness and concern for our visitors," says former Visitor Aloha Society board Chairman Dr. Terry Wade. It goes a long way to preserving Hawaii’s reputation.
"The majority of people we help are just amazed that Hawaii has an organization that just shows up when they need it," Rich says, "like a best friend who is there when you most need them."
Wade tells the volunteers during training sessions that visitors who come to Hawaii and are victims of crime and other adversities suffer losses. The biggest loss, however, is the expectation of visiting paradise and receiving aloha.
"We cannot replace their property, and we certainly cannot bring back loved ones," Wade says. "But we can extend the aloha spirit to them, and we thereby hope to restore what I consider the most important gift we can offer to people in this troubled world."
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Bob Sigall, author of the “Companies We Keep” books, looks through his collection of old photos to tell stories each Friday of Hawaii people, places and companies. Email him at Sigall@Yahoo.com.
