Give Shareef A Hand

Last year, local food truck operator Shareef Thabata and his father Ala Thabata began having trouble with the rent on the parking stall for his mobile restaurant Ala. In fact, he began having trouble with just about everything. It was an unusual turn of events for Shareef; unfortunately, the problem turned out to be far bigger than he could have imagined…. Cancer. In his brain.

Medical bills began to pile at an alarming rate, everyday priorities started crashing, and then we came around to collect his past-due food truck rent, in-person. What we saw broke our hearts; a proud man brought low by the worst possible luck. Shareef’s head was bald and scarred from a recent surgery which was all we needed to know. He didn’t need us adding to his troubles, so we backed off. Recently, Shareef and his father received an eviction notice from their apartment. In desperation, they began trying to build some sort of shelter to sleep in on top of their truck. On Tuesday, July 26, 2022, a TV news crew showed up to cover their plight.

We saw the news story and, as their food truck landlord, PARKLINQ knew we had to help! So, we’re moving their truck to a more profitable lot in Waikiki rent-free for the next couple of months. We've also established and contributed the first $4,000 to this fund to help cover Shareef and Ala’s housing costs while they improve their truck and begin the financial recovery for their wonderful mobile restaurant. We have their back on the food truck parking, but between Shareef's medical bills and their need to find a new permanent place to live, we fear they will need a bit more help until life becomes more manageable.

All funds received by this campaign will be spent directly on housing for Shareef and Ala. Any excess donations will go directly to covering Shareef's medical bills.