While our fellow citizens across the country recognize and celebrate the economic achievements of the American worker on this Labor Day, today our hearts are with the people of Maui.
The day that fires devastated Lahaina, like many of you, I made frantic calls to check on family members & friends, making sure that everyone was accounted for. I was relieved to find that my family, from my mother-in-law, sisters-in-law and nephews down to the youngest born only a month ago, were all safe and sound.
That same day, HRP West Hawaii County Chair Dalene McCormick notified a few of us that she would be deploying with the Red Cross from Big Island to Maui to serve displaced residents in a shelter that had been set up in the Maui War Memorial Gymnasium. Three days later, I followed her lead and flew to Maui to spend the weekend working in the same shelter, serving clients and helping to train other volunteers. Dalene worked tirelessly for far longer than I, clocking 12-hour days for 9 days straight, before getting one day's break and continuing on. She stayed for the duration of the shelter operation until they closed.
COME TO ME ALL WHO LABOR AND ARE HEAVY LADEN,
AND I WILL GIVE YOU REST.
Matthew 11:28
Our hearts are heavy for the people of Maui. The devastation is unimaginable, and recovery will take years. So many families have lost loved ones, friends, beloved animals, property…. They are exhausted. And not just physically, but down to their souls, bearing a heaviness we can’t imagine.
Our purpose as the Hawaii Republican Party is to represent and advocate for our party members and the people of Hawai’i. Today, I want to suggest that we represent and advocate for our brothers and sisters on Maui. Below are a few suggested organizations through which you can support:
