October 2010
*This year we began tutoring at two public schools after school: 5
tutors went to Hahaione School through December, and two of us will
continue to go to Hokulani School. for the rest of the school year.
We tutor after school once a week and help elementary children of
various ages, with the goal of improving their achievement and trying to
make their after school learning a fun experience. We will
also help with the Hokulani Family Fair in March.
* This will be our 10th Keiki Halloween Carnival with Waikiki Community
Center: We had 16 Interactors participate on Halloween afternoon
after school, painting faces, telling stories, and playing simple games
with prizes for all (Go Fish, Bowling, Pumpkin Beanbag Toss) for
approximately 40 children at the community center. The keiki
ranged from infant to pre-school age, and many come from hotel worker
families who may or may not be able to provide a Halloween experience
for their children. We go in costume and, in addition to the
above, just run around and have fun with them on the playground!
Our goal for this project has always been to provide a safe Halloween
experience for very young children who may not have the opportunity,
since many parents work late.
December 2010
This year our Interact Club again adopted a KHON Lokahi family.
This year it was a special needs family of two—a single mom with a4 year
old autistic son. We had e a speaker, the grand mother of an
autistic child herself, at our meeting to tell us about autism , in
general, and the varying levels of this challenge. She recommended
appropriate toys. We baked brownies to raise funds at a Waikiki
Rotary Club meeting—and we thank them for their generosity in matching
what we make, in support of this project through the years.
Interact members met at Walmart on the first day of our winter holiday,
to shop and create tall Christmas bags of gifts for each family member.
We try very hard to come up with what the family needs from the wish
list that KHON provides us, and MORE! We go to the website during
our meeting and price out the wish list items , so that we can stay
within our budget. Our goal for this activity is to participate in
a community-wide program that allows us to share the spirit of Christmas
with challenged families who may otherwise not be able to provide a
holiday experience for their children.
February 2011
We were excited to return to Shriner’s Hospital this Valentine’s Day,
now that they completed their construction! . One of our
Interactors is a beneficiary of the procedures they provide, and she
gave us a little history of what the Shriner’s organization is all about
and the population they serve. The hospital limits us to 15
visitors and 12 were able to attend this year. We took games for varying
age levels (we’re never quite sure what age or how many will be there),
play doh, coloring books, beading kits for jewelry, and nail polish and
make-up for manicures and mini-facials for older girls. We
also took treats to share. Their new rec. room is wonderful, with a pool
table and snooker table that helped us enjoy ourselves with the older
patients. We helped with art projects for the younger children.
One of us brought a guitar, and several members took requests and sang
just about everything requested—from Katy Perry to Bruno Mars!
We have been doing this for 6 years (with an interruption of the last 2
years while the facilities were being renovated.) Our goal is to
bring Valentine’s cheer TO those children who are confined to the
hospital and are either post-op or awaiting procedures. Although
several of the patients did not speak any English, music, games, treats,
and smiles are the international language of Valentine’s Day.
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April 2011
On Good Friday, we will again host an Easter Party for the Hana Like
families of PACT, (our 10th) with an egg hunt and coloring and
crafts. We hold this on the Great Lawn of our campus and serve a
luncheon to about 30-40 people. Both attending members
and others who want to help out will hard boil a dozen eggs and/or
provide the coloring kits for this activity. We will fill and hide
plastic eggs, do face painting and bubble blowing, and play other simple
games. Sometimes we just run around the lawn blowing bubbles
with the toddlers! We will prepare and provide lunch, and COSTCO
sends us a gift certificate to help with purchase of food and the other
items we’ll need for a luncheon, as well as the basket and trinkets for
the egg hunt. Through the years, our goal for this has shifted.
We originally started out with just moms and keiki from an abused Women
and Children’s shelter. The past 5 years have been through PACT (
Parents and Children Together) and when that program had funding cuts,
we have also worked with Hana Like families. Because our tradition
is to hold this on Good Friday, when many have a holiday, we now have
moms and dads and children of all ages. Many of these young
families are new to the islands and some do not have Easter traditions
of their own. So, this a fun way to share customs and cultures.
We are already planning to participate in a new adventure with our
sponsoring Waikiki Rotary Club: visiting the President Gene Gelfo’s
restaurant and applying the 4 way test to his establishment, completing
an evaluation for him!
We feel that the La Pietra –Waikiki
Rotary Interact lives up to the Rotarian 4 Way
Test:
- Is it the TRUTH? Our Interact Club looks truthfully
at the circumstances and lives of children in our Honolulu
community, and we try to improve on their reality by sharing the
benefits of ours.
- Is it FAIR to all concerned? While we recognize the many
advantages in our own lives, we also realize that life ISN’T always
fair, and the lives of children with challenges of many kinds often
require others to step in and help.
- Will it build GOODWILL and BETTER FRIENDSHIPS? Every
activity we focus on builds both good will, friendship… and
understanding: of the diversity in our community, the needs of young
families, and the goodwill bonds we share with others, some we see
year after year!
- Will it be BENEFICIAL to all concerned? We
have no doubt that we bring some benefit—if only brief-- to the
youngest of the Honolulu community with our little projects.
But we all agree that WE are the ones to benefit the most from our
shared experiences!
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