Please kokua

Aloha everyone, first I wanted to thank everyone for all your kindness, love and support. I write this with tears flowing down and a broken heart. What we are going through as a community on Maui is beyond devastating and heartbreaking. Lahaina town as we know it is gone. So many families have lost their homes and sadly many lives have also been lost.

Complete chaos ensued as hundreds of homes caught on fire and strong winds ripped the fire down the mountain within minutes.

We lost 4 of my close family members in the fire - my aunty Faaoso, uncle Tone, cousin Salote and nephew Tony. My innocent, sweet, loving family! I can’t begin to imagine the horror and pain they went through as they tried to escape.

Lote was like my sister. We grew up together and were always there for each other. She was thee best mother to her only son. My aunty and uncle always made sure I was fed and cooked me the best Tongan food because I didn’t know how.

They leave behind the rest of my Tone family members who’ve not only lost their homes but their immediate family.

My mom, Seini, is one of many to have survived but also lost everything in the fire. Her home is gone. All of our childhood memories & things she’s kept safe for years have settled to ash. She’s safe albeit broken, yet just thankful she’s alive and still here with us. If anyone knows my mom, they know she is the most loving and first one to help, no questions asked, whenever and wherever it's needed. It's my turn to help her.

Mahalo to everyone who has and continues to reach out to me to help. I am humbly accepting any donations that will go directly to my Tone family and to my mom to help them get back on their feet. I also have Venmo @Sii-Tahi if you prefer. No pressure at all if you can’t donate monetarily as we know everyone is suffering too.

Thank you for reading, and thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

We don’t know the next steps, but we do know that we have each other. Hug your loved ones tight! Stay kind and aloha one another. Together, we will make it through.

#LahainaStrong