How we’re helping fire victims on Maui
And how you can help too!
How it started:
When the fires hit, we were there to receive victims in the shelters. Jenn, one of our co-founders is a lifeguard and worked alongside medical teams from day one to identify people with disabilities and those with complex medical cases, advocating for their needs and connecting them to vital services and extended medical care. We realized quickly that we would need to replace large quantities of durable medical equipment like wheelchairs, walkers, shower chairs and more. We jumped into action and started sourcing these items from our community and then beyond. We have put together a "disability hui" of organizations and agencies who are working together to ensure Maui's most vulnerable don't fall through the cracks.
How its going:
Durable (& Consumable) Medical Equipment
We have been fortunate to acquire, through donations, many pieces and have already served nearly 150 people. We continue to seek donated items via our amazon wish list. Click on the link to donated items on our list. We are consistently updating needs on this list. If you donate, please be sure to fill out this form so we can keep track and get you a donation receipt. Donation Form
Community Building & Resilience
Now, we are raising funds to open an accessible community resilience HUB in central Maui. This location will serve as a storage and distribution center for medical equipment and other items needed in the community. Additionally this space will serve as a co-working space for social workers and community case workers that we are in partnership with. They will be able to meet with clients in a safe, comfortable and accessible space. This location will also serve as a spot for off island specialist (many of our specialists come from Oahu) to see patients free of charge. And finally, this place will serve as a community center for us to gather, plan, collaborate and heal as we move forward from this disaster. We will host accessible yoga and fitness classes, community safety classes, host support groups and more. This is a community space that will be truly inclusive.
You can donate to helping us creating this accessible community space here.
UPDATE: May 2024
In November, with the help of Grant funding and support from individuals and group fundraisers, we secured a 3 year lease at 111 Hana Hwy. We immediately received a shipping container from Afya Foundation filled with Adult Diapers and durable medical equipment. We also received shipments of donated good from Joni & Friends and Friends of Disabled Adults and Children. All combined equipment donations have totaled well over 50 pallets. Because of the urgent support of our community we have been able to receive, organize, store and distribute much needed supplies to those most in need. We continue to work with FEMA, Global Empowerment Mission, Red Cross and other local agencies to meet the needs of people living with disabilities and complex medical issues. You can donate here to help us keep the lights on and cover other basic expenses in managing our new resource center. From this storage and distribution center, we have created an online database of equipment donations and work with other loan closets on Maui to make the process for acquiring donations more straight forward. You can see the online database here. Starting this summer, we will be hosting community events such as accessible yoga, support groups, movie nights and other events.. Keep your eyes on our social media to learn more and stay up to date with events at our HQ.
Thanks to a generous Grant from both the Maui Strong Fund as well as the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, we are hiring 3 full time positions that will continue the work to assist fire survivors living with disabilities. We continue to collect data, and seek funding to help support our community. These roles will support survivors through one on one advocacy, recreational and mental health support and advocate at the organizational level to help insure and inclusive recovery and rebuild for all.
Our Values
Focus on the most vulnerable- Leave no one behind.
Community Led Action
Collaboration with agencies, organizations and individuals
Get Support
Email: KeleaFoundation@gmail.com
If you are a fire victim and have a disability, please reach out to get the support you need. We are here for you.
Ways to get in touch or learn more:
Follow us in Instagram @KeleaFoundation
Reach out via email KeleaFoundation@gmail.com
Text or call 808.276.1719