Elise STILL needs our help! Maui fire devastation

Our dear friend, Elise Sharon, needs our help. She has lost everything in the Lahaina Fire in August 2024.

The good news is that she is alive and safe! But her life has been turned upside down and she is struggling to piece it all together again.

Elise has been a resident of Maui for nearly 20 years and loves her work in the hospitality industry. Tuesday, August 8, she was in her condo when a friend called to tell her a fire was fast approaching. She fled her condo just ten minutes before the fire consumed her neighborhood. She only had time to get her purse, computer and her car to escape. She is currently in temporary housing provided by the local church, so she is safe for the next week.

Many have asked how they can help. I wanted to set up this fundraiser to give her family and friends a way to help. Once power and banking operations have been restored there, all donated money will be transferred directly to her bank account and used to help her rebuild her life.

Last year, Elise was there for me during a really hard time in my life when I lost my sister to cancer. Now it is my turn to help her.

Please consider donating anything you can to help Elise get on her feet and move forward. Even just a small donation will go a long way.

Thank you for any support you can spare.

Cindy Dederick Dreher (the blonde in the picture)

UPDATE 8/17/23: A week after the fire, Elise is still in a state of limbo - trying to figure out where to live, how to continue to work through all the devastation she has experienced and where she goes from here. Electricity has been restored in many places, but internet and phone service are still spotty, at best. They are limiting travel allowed both in and out of West Maui...and supplies are at a premium. Everything is still on a cash basis as they wait for the internet to be restored and become more reliable. Thankfully, it looks like she has secured housing for the next month, and gives her a safe place to be as the insurance companies try to assess the damage.

Elise is blown away by the support she has received in this effort and wants me to send out a heartfelt THANK YOU to everyone who has donated and offered to help. Thank you everyone for your generosity and kindness...it takes a village.