UPDATE: BENEFIT CONCERT RAISES NEARLY $1M FOR MAUI COMMUNITY MEMBERS
The Maui Ola live broadcast telethon is available on mele.com and social media platforms
HONOLULU – In the 24 hours since the broadcast of “Maui Ola: A Benefit Concert for Maui,” donation portals, including Maui United Way, Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, Hawaiʻi People’s Fund and the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, received nearly $1M in donations toward Maui aid, and donations continue to grow. Members and organizations of the media, entertainment and cultural communities contributed their in-kind contributions to direct all funds to aid the Valley Isle.
“It was overwhelming to see so many come together to support Maui,” said Maui Kumu Hula, Hōkūlani Holt-Padilla. “We in the hula community have a particular kuleana to ground our expressions in our sense of place and community. Maui Ola became an opportunity to amplify what we hold dear as a means of supporting our families in need.”
The Maui Ola event and broadcast was the result of an unprecedented collaboration between Hawaiʻi’s local media outlets, including mele.com, local TV stations––KGMB, KHNL KFVE, KITV, KIKU, KHON, KHII, PBS Hawaiʻi, Nā Leo TV, Akakū, ʻŌlelo Community Media––a variety of radio stations including 92.3 KSSK, Island 98.5, Hawaiian 105 KINE, KCCN FM100, KQMQ, HI93 FM, KAPA Hawaiian FM, KPUA 670 AM, KWXX 94.7 FM, KAOY 101.5 FM, KNWB 97.1 FM, KMWB 93.1, CBS 1500 and other partners’ websites, including hawaiinewsnow.com, ESPN Honolulu, and Honolulu Magazine, Hawaiʻi Magazine and Hawaiʻi Business Magazine.
Together, these media partners amplified the songs, stories and calls for support of various artists, including Kolohe Kai, Hawaiian Style Band, Pure Heart, Jerry Santos, Raiatea Helm, Paula Fuga, Kimie Miner, Anuhea, Del Beazley, the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra, Napua Silva, Kamaka Kukona, Poʻokela Wood, Dane Fujiwara, Puamana, Paʻahana, the Farden ʻohana, over 20 kumu hula from Oʻahu and Maui and over 100 hula practitioners.
“Maui Ola is proof that significant goals can be achieved when we work together. We saw overwhelming support from the media, entertainment and cultural communities, providing lighting, staging, visual media, cameras, venue, advertisements, graphic design, broadcast, communications support and everything in between. In total, Maui Ola’s in-kind contributions exceeded one million dollars––all to benefit our Maui ʻohana,” said Ted Jung, co-producer and co-owner of Ponoʻī Productions.
Maui Ola will remain available on mele.com and social media platforms, where it will continue to encourage donations toward Maui relief. Learn more about the event and ongoing efforts by visiting www.mauiola.org.
To donate now, visit www.mauiunitedway.org, www.hawaiicommunityfoundation.org/maui-strong, www.hawaiipeoplesfund.org or www.hawaiiancouncil.org.
About Maui Ola: A Benefit Concert for Maui
Created as a grassroots response effort following the devastating fires on Maui, Maui Ola: A Benefit Concert for Maui is a live broadcast fundraiser where 100 percent of the proceeds will support Maui’s severely impacted communities through donation portals, including Maui United Way, Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, Hawaiʻi People’s Fund and Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement. Maui Ola is a collaboration of the best in Hawaiʻi’s media, creative and advertising industry, with all partners offering their services and resources pro bono.
Production partners include Kāhuli Leo Leʻa, Ponoʻī Productions, KSG, Kanaeokana, Kamehameha Schools, KS Kaiāulu, ʻOiwi TV, mele.com, a variety of live event companies, Honolulu Star-Advertiser and Hawaiʻi’s major TV and radio stations. As a Hawaiʻi-based collaboration of unprecedented magnitude, Maui Ola is indicative of Hawaiʻi’s cultural values that maintain a strong sense of community, especially in the most challenging of times.
Catherine Coleman
