Ka’imi, Anais and their two babies, Kekela (2.5 years) and Hina’i (9 months), have been recently affected by hurricane Lowell that passed through their island home of Kaua’i on September 7th and 8th. They have since been without power, water is restored but under a boil advisory and live in an area where their only source of cell service is through their WiFi, which is also not functional. They currently rely on daily ice runs, a community hub for donations and a ten min car ride to get into cell reception for making important phone calls and connections. Power and internet service is not excepted to be restored until the first week of October….

Leaving the house is not at all easy, as they live on a steep, narrow mountain road that is still covered in down power lines, broken power poles, down trees in precarious places, piles of debris and landslides all making passing lanes dangerous and challenging. Now adding in the restoration efforts, they have long waiting periods behind heavy machinery, as crews come in to fix water pipes, clear dangerous fallen trees and put in new infrastructure.

Their home endured repairable damage; however, lots of water got in from the blowing winds and leaks in the roof, creating issues of mold and water logged household items that are no longer usable. Ka’imi’s truck was hit with fallen power lines and debris and now no longer runs. Their small farm, where they run a local non- profit supporting native Hawaiian traditions and grow tropical fruit trees with native plants, also sustained damages. The farm hale (house) lost half the roof and the carport storage areas were complete torn apart. Many of the up-coming crops were damaged and fallen trees and must be cleared until any farm work can be resumed. On top of all of this, their main source of income relies heavily on a tourism industry that is not expected to bounce back until January / February. Ka’imi is a Native Hawaiian musician playing for luaus and hotels, while making traditional shell jewelry to sell at the local farmers markets, in addition to being a well known fisherman providing locally caught fish to the community. Unfortunately, all of his recently caught fish stored in their deep freeze had gone bad with the pro longer power outage. Anais creates shell and gemstone jewelry to sell at the markets, as well as, taking care of their two young children full time. They both heavily rely on the holiday months for increased income that helps carry them over the slower months throughout the year, which now remain questionable.

We are raising funds to help them with upcoming bills, a down payment for a truck and making repairs to their farm and home. All love and prayers are greatly appreciated. Many were affected by the hurricane and they are fortunate to have a home still standing with an amazing community for strength and support.