Hawai‘i’s National Philanthropy Day 2024

Now more than ever, the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Aloha chapter is committed to supporting Hawai’i’s communities. We find hope in the community of heroes around us, each playing a part in helping Hawai‘i persevere through difficult times.

Founded in Hawai‘i in 1983, AFP Aloha Chapter is composed of professionals in nonprofit development, management, and fundraising consulting. It is a chapter of the international AFP organization, with members across O‘ahu, Maui County, Kaua‘i, and Hawai‘i Island.

Each year on National Philanthropy Day (NPD), AFP Aloha Chapter celebrates inspiring fundraisers and philanthropic leaders who give not only their resources but also their time and talent to make Hawai‘i thrive. Everyone can make a difference, and we honor the extraordinary change that philanthropy has created in our world!

This year, we are proud to welcome these awardees to our distinguished group of community leaders:

• Outstanding Community Leadership: Jennine Sullivan
• Outstanding Foundation Award: The Healy Foundation
• Outstanding Corporation Award: Hawai’i Pacific Health
• Outstanding Philanthropist in Memoriam: Gulab Watumull
• Outstanding Professional Fundraiser Award: Ku’uleinani Maunupau
• Outstanding Youth in Philanthropy Award: Remy Kobatake
• Outstanding Small Business Award: Exclusively Yours/Ceramic Tile Plus

Outstanding Community Leadership Paulette V. Maehara Award for Nonprofit Leadership: Jennine Sullivan

Photo: Aaron Yoshino

Jennine Sullivan took over at The Pantry just as the pandemic struck, in March 2020. She was tasked with reinventing the way that food insecurity is addressed and ensuring that people who need healthy, nutritious food could still receive it in a safe environment.

To continue to meet the need, Sullivan helped The Pantry develop an app that allowed clients to place orders online. That year, about 10,000 people were served per month through a drive-up process, and more than 1 million meals have been provided since.

“She’s dedicated and quite entrepreneurial,” says Gill Berger, The Pantry’s board president. “She was really committed to coming in, was a solo employee for well over a year, and basically launched a startup.”

Post-pandemic, The Pantry has emerged as a major distributor of food to Hawai‘i’s food-insecure population. The nonprofit’s focus has always been on its clients’ self-esteem and wellness, and serving them nutritional, healthy food is a priority.

As of 2024, the number of clients served has doubled monthly, and Sullivan continues to develop financial resources, volunteers, and staff to keep up with demand.

Since taking over, Sullivan has doubled the budget of the operation, increasing donations by 200%, and has developed a team of more than 1,700 volunteers. She has also developed partnerships with farmers, distributors and other nonprofits, which allows The Pantry to provide fruits, vegetables, eggs, dairy, and protein on a regular basis.

For her efforts, Sullivan was recently named to the Board of Governors of the Hawai‘i Community Foundation.

Outstanding Foundation: The Healy Foundation

Photos: The Healy Foundation

In 2022, The Healy Foundation surpassed the $20 million mark in grants, scholarships and impact investing in Hawai‘i and Oregon.

Its annual budget for grants has grown to $2.6 million, one-third of which is allocated to Hawai‘i, as Oregon’s population and geography are larger. Over the years, the foundation has supported more than 145 Hawai‘i-based youth, environmental and community nonprofits.

The Healy Foundation has roots in Hawai‘i, specifically on Hawai‘i Island, a place Cameron Healy loved. He founded both Kettle Chips and the Kona Brewing Co., then sold them to create the philanthropic organization in the late 1990s.

The foundation says it’s proud of its role in helping to shift the power dynamic of philanthropy away from the funder and more toward the community. It believes in a “trust-based” perspective, which means 100% of grants awarded are unrestricted, to be used as the beneficiary sees fit. It’s a unique model, and “hopefully growing,” says Usha Kilpatrick, the foundation’s Hawai‘i program director, based in Kealakekua. “We try to serve in more of a support role. We recognize that our partners are experts in the field and should be leading the work.”

In 2021, the foundation partnered with the Institute for Sustainability and Resilience at UH Mānoa to award three Climate Change Fellows, creating paid positions for graduate research assistants annually.

Further community impacts include ongoing support of the stewardship of Kapahukapu (Manini Beach) on Hawai‘i Island. In 2022, the foundation launched the Climate Change Mitigation Initiative, providing the nonprofit Hawai‘i Land Trust with a three-year, $150,000 unrestricted grant.

Outstanding Corporation (50+ Employees): Hawai‘i Pacific Health

Ray Vara, president & CEO of Hawai’i Pacific Health | Photo: Aaron Yoshino

Improving our community‘s health, financial security, housing and food stability is a priority for Hawai’i Pacific Health.

Each year, the organization awards approximately $400,000 in grants to nonprofits that are working to improve outcomes in those four areas. This year’s recipients include Hawaiian Community Assets, Aloha United Way, and the Council for Native Hawaiian Affairs.

HPH has also provided $4.8 million in lowcost capital through loans to nonprofit financial institutions such as Hawai‘i Community Lending, and Habitat for Humanity, which generated more than 250 below-market loans for affordable housing development on O‘ahu and Kaua‘i.

HPH recently launched another $8 million fund to provide additional below-market loans to nonprofit community financial development institutions. HPH is the only nonprofit health care system in the state providing this type of Hawai‘i Pacific Health financial support, and champions the investment model across the country as a member of the Healthcare Anchor Network.

In April, HPH partnered with the Department of Education to develop the nation’s first school-based academic health center at Waipahu High School. The center provides education and hands-on experience, helping students to pursue nursing aid certificate programs. Upon completion, students will have gained pathways to careers in the medical field and opportunities to earn a living wage.

Since 2019, HPH has also supplied more than 350 volunteers to work on agricultural lands, assisting in site preparations on O‘ahu and Kaua‘i.

HPH leadership currently serves on the boards of several community organizations, including the Hawai‘i Chamber of Commerce, Hawai‘i Pacific University, Lanakila Pacific Foundation, Aloha United Way, and Residential Youth Services and Empowerment.

Outstanding Philanthropist in Memoriam: Gulab Watumull

Pictured is Gulab Watumull

After arriving in Honolulu in 1948, Gulab Watumull worked alongside his father, managing the first Watumull’s retail shop in downtown Honolulu. By 1956, Watumull’s was a burgeoning business that sold souvenirs and treasures from India, their home country. The business, which became known for its matching family alohawear, would expand into a chain of 30 retail stores, making Watumull’s an iconic part of Hawai‘i’s history.

The younger Watumull passed away in May 2020, at the age of 96.

Known for his slogan ‘Be useful!’ Gulab Watumull’s philanthropic influence spanned the fields of health care, education, art, music, sports, environmental conservancy and cultural preservation.

Watumull served on several boards, including for Bishop Museum, the Hawai‘i Community Foundation and Chaminade University. The J. Watumull Fund, established in 1965, provides funding for educational institutions in Hawai‘i, on the mainland, and in India, as well as endowments for Honolulu-based art programs. The fund also helps to promote cultural and educational exchange between India and Hawai‘i.

“His generosity was well known at almost every nonprofit organization in our community, and continues to allow many to participate in cultural, educational and creative endeavors, now and into the future,” says Noelehua Archambault, vice president for institutional advancement at Punahou School.

Through the J. Watumull Fund, Watumull donated more than $500,000 to the Honolulu Museum of Art, and an additional $1.5 million of his own money.

His wife, Indru, a cancer survivor, raised $3.8 million for the American Cancer Society in Hawai‘i.

Watumull supported Punahou School as well, mainly through the activities of the Wo International Center, and helped students with a travel scholarship fund and financial aid.

Watumull also made several endowment gifts to the University of Hawai‘i to establish the Center for South Asian Studies’ J. Watumull Scholarship for the Study of India, and the J. Watumull Merit Scholarship in Oceanography. The Watumull Oral History Project remains a valuable resource in the University of Hawai‘i Hawaiian Collection.

Outstanding Professional Fundraiser (5+ Years Experience): Ku‘uleinani Maunupau

Photo: Aaron Yoshino

As a grant writer and funds development manager Ku‘uleinani Maunupau, has secured more than $22 million in funding for nonprofits over the last 30 years.

Maunupau serves as CEO of Native Hawaiian Philanthropy, an organization dedicated to improving the socioeconomic conditions of Native Hawaiians. She also volunteers to raise funds for nonprofits, including those that help victims of the Maui wildfires.

Maunupau is the founder of Habitat for Humanity Maui, which has brought in $500,000 in contributions from various donors for Maui wildfire disaster recovery, and in the last few years has raised over $3.5 million to support Maui communities, including Native farmers and cultural practitioners.

Maunupau is also working with Maui County, cultural practitioners, and community stakeholders on long-term resiliency planning. She played a key role in bringing together major institutions and 22 mental health practitioners to help develop an Indigenous-informed approach to disaster recovery.

In 2019, Maunupau secured $1.18 million to create and develop culturally grounded youth and adult after-school and summer programs. The three-year programs resulted in a partnership with ocean explorer and environmentalist Jean-Michel Cousteau to help restore Maui’s Ka‘ehu Bay. Maunupau currently serves as executive director of the Ka‘ehu nonprofit, which manages 64 acres of the bay’s coastal wetlands.

One of Maunupau’s volunteer efforts included securing $500,000 to help implement a Native youth program in California that’s focused on reducing drug addiction through cultural programs. And during the pandemic, Maunupau worked with Maui High School’s Digital Media Club to create over 24 educational videos on Hawaiian arts and crafts, cooking, archaeology, and natural resource management that integrates ideas and practices used by Native Hawaiians to manage their ahupua‘a land systems.

Outstanding Youth (Junior/Senior Student or Student Group): Remy Kobatake

Photo: Aaron Yoshino

Before she graduated from La Pietra – Hawai‘i School for Girls this year, Remy Kobatake was presented with the school’s Kahiau Award for her extensive volunteer work. Additionally, she was known for regularly going out of her way to help classmates, younger students, faculty and staff members, and was part of the school’s National Honor Society.

“She was such a big part of our school community, always giving of her time,” says Rachel Wagenman, director of marketing and communications at La Pietra.

Kobatake’s efforts also extended into the community. As a junior, she earned the title of Miss Hawai‘i Teen Volunteer. With pageant partner the American Lung Association, she helped raise awareness about youth vaping, along with nearly $20,000 to help combat it.

At Palama Settlement, a historic community center that provides programs for at-risk youth, Kobatake helped plan an educational event where participants engaged in group activities to learn about poverty, homelessness and other social issues, and mental and physical health.

Last year, she organized a clothing drive for struggling youths, collecting over 50 big bags of clothing that were distributed throughout the state—many to shelters on O‘ahu. Kobatake is also passionate about the environment and recycling.

“Something that sets Remy apart is that she did it all so quietly, without being the face of a specific organization,” says Wagenman. “She was so joyful, always had such a big smile on her face and was always ready to help in all kinds of different ways.”

Outstanding Small Business Award: James Doran III, Exclusively Yours Design & Ceramic Tile Plus

Giving back to the community is a generational custom in the Doran family.

It began with James Doran Jr., the founder of Exclusively Yours Design and Ceramic Tile Plus. His son, James Doran III, has continued the tradition with a steadfast commitment to philanthropy and supporting the Maui community.

To date, the business has donated to more than two dozen local programs and organizations, including Habitat for Humanity, Maui Food Bank, and Ka Lima O Maui.

Through proceeds from remnants and offcut slabs, the company has also contributed a five-figure donation to the Maui Strong Fund. The donation was made through the Hawai‘i Community Foundation, which is aiding recovery efforts in the Maui community after the wildfires.

These contributions have provided essential resources, enabling local organizations to support individuals and families effectively and efficiently.

Every Saturday for more than a decade, James Doran III has opened his warehouse parking lot to nonprofit and community groups for car wash fundraisers. And Ceramic Tile Plus and Exclusively Yours Design employees participate in giving campaigns as part of the company’s philanthropy.

In collaboration with the Maui Public Art Corps, the business financially supported the creation of a vibrant mural on an exterior wall facing a busy public street in Kahului. It now serves as a community focal point, celebrating the rich history and unique cultural heritage of the town. In promoting public art, Ceramic Tile Plus and Exclusively Yours Design is helping to enhance community pride and engagement by shining a light on local culture and history.