HUGS (Help, Understanding & Group Support)

It's back!

The 2nd Annual Paddle for HUGS Pickleball Tournament will return to Kamilo'iki Community Park on November 2, 2024.

Bring your pickleball skills to the court to compete in this unsanctioned benefit tournament to support HUGS and Hawaii's seriously ill children and their families

Format will be Mixed Doubles Round-Robin for ages 16+, skill levels up to 3.0 and 3.5+. Experience playing in a tournament is NOT required. Beginners are welcome.

PLUS!
🏓Enjoy a special halftime exhibition by Pickleball Pro Keven Wong
🏓Special live performance by Jody Kamisato of Ukulele Hale
🏓Snacks and refreshment will be provided
🏓Come dressed in pink to show your support!

Register by Sep. 30 for special early bird $65/person.
For full details and to register visit givebutter.com/paddleforhugs2024

It’s back!

The 2nd Annual Paddle for HUGS Pickleball Tournament will return to Kamilo’iki Community Park on November 2, 2024.

Bring your pickleball skills to the court to compete in this unsanctioned benefit tournament to support HUGS and Hawaii’s seriously ill children and their families

Format will be Mixed Doubles Round-Robin for ages 16+, skill levels up to 3.0 and 3.5+. Experience playing in a tournament is NOT required. Beginners are welcome.

PLUS!
🏓Enjoy a special halftime exhibition by Pickleball Pro
🏓Special live performance by Jody Kamisato of
🏓Snacks and refreshment will be provided
🏓Come dressed in pink to show your support!

Register by Sep. 30 for special early bird $65/person.

For full details and to register see link in bio.

Big mahalo to our friends at for holding their 2nd Annual School Supply Drive for our HUGS keiki and their siblings, at their Oahu locations.

Honolulu Federal Credit Union collected an abundant amount of school supplies donated by their members, even including backpacks! Caring for a seriously ill child can take a toll on finances due to medical bills, and with the rising cost across goods and services, not having to worry about purchasing school supplies for the upcoming school year will be a big relief for some of our families.

Thank you to the amazing team at HOCU and all their members for sharing "hugs" with our families.

Mahalo to everyone who nominated HUGS so far. There's still time to nominate HUGS for the 4th Annual Spirit of Giving. Based on the nominations we receive, up to $75,000 could be awarded to HUGS.

Please consider nominating HUGS and sharing to pass on the word. Last year because of you, HUGS was a recipient of $5,000! Let's all give hugs to HUGS again this year.

To nominate, visit https://lovesbakery.com/spirit-of-giving-2024/. Here's a cheat sheet to help😉 Deadline is Aug. 11, 2024.

❤️Name of Organization: HUGS for Hawaii’s Seriously Ill Children and Their Families
❤️Contact at Organization: Maureen Purington
❤️ Email of Contact: [email protected]
❤️Contact’s Position: Executive Director
❤️Contact’s Phone Number: 808-732-4846
❤️Type of Organization: (select) Families & Youth Development
❤️Organization’s Address: 3636 Kilauea Avenue
❤️Organization’s City: Honolulu
❤️State: (select) Hawaii
❤️ Zip Code: 96816
❤️Organization’s Website: www.hugshawaii.org
❤️Reason for Nomination: (in 100 words or less, explain why you are nominating HUGS.)
❤️Tax ID # : 99-0213594
❤️ Fill our your personal information in the required fields on the page

Mahalo for your consideration!

Big mahalo to our volunteers from the , and for showing some love for our Memorial Garden at this past . They helped to water our trees, pulled w**ds, and cleared debris. Because of awesome volunteers like these, we are able to keep our memorial garden maintained. Mahalo for all you do!

🎶“Mom’s “ just wanna have fun.. they just wanna, they just wanna… 🎶 HUGS Mom’s experienced a night of fun, food, and…karaoke! Singing and connecting with other Mom’s . Moms welcomed one Mom new to HUGS to her very first HUGS Mom's Night and enjoyed appetizers, salads, pasta, pizza, and dessert from Kapolei. The event was sponsored by the City & County of Honolulu Grant in Aid.

HUGS Mom’s Night provides peer support from other moms facing similar challenges of caring for a seriously ill child and creates lifelong friendships fueled by sharing that common bond. To learn more about HUGS’ programs visit www.hugshawaii.org.

HUGS had its 11th annual SibCamp at this past ! SibCamp provides a safe space for HUGS siblings to connect with other peers who share a similar experience of having a brother or sister with a serious medical condition or a sibling who has passed away. And is totally free of charge for them!

At camp, our HUGS Sibs got to do a variety of fun activities including playing at the beach, crabbing, kayaking, paddleboarding, singing songs around the campfire, and making s’mores. They also got to express their emotions and learn healthy ways to cope through various SibShops. This included a Breathing Buddy and Grief Monster workshop, led by Gabby and Joyce of . In these workshops, our HUGS Sibs each got a stuffed bear and learned breathing exercises they can do when they are feeling a big emotion. They also got to create their very own grief monsters and were able to artistically express what grief looks like to them.

Our HUGS Sibs also got to challenge themselves physically and mentally through a swings and ropes course, courtesy of . At the end of the camp, many of the kids did not want to go home and were sad to leave their new friends. Everyone had such a memorable time and can’t wait till next year’s SibCamp!

Big mahalo to Let Grace In for collaborating with us, Julie Holy and Matthew Babas with and through Foresters Financial for providing all the supplies, and the Assistance League for providing the teddy bears. SibCamp was funded by grants from the Laurence H Dorcy Hawaiian Foundation and Atherton Family Foundation.

Mahalo Waikiki. The residents there held a toy and canned food drive for us and collected some goodies😄 And thank you to Adrienne Leduc, Activities Director at The Plaza at Waikiki (2nd from left) for putting this together.

Last year because of your nominations, HUGS was awarded $5,000 - very big mahalo to everyone who nominated HUGS. The Love's Bakery 4th Annual Spirit of Giving is once again accepting nominations for local nonprofits and we are humbly asking for your help once again to nominate HUGS. Your nomination could have a big impact in helping Hawaii's seriously ill children and their families.

Visit www.lovesbakery.com/spirit-of-giving-2024 and simply fill out the nomination form by August 11. Here's a cheat sheet to help you out

Instructions for entry:
❤️Name of Organization: HUGS for Hawaii’s Seriously Ill Children and Their Families
❤️Contact at Organization: Maureen Purington
❤️ Email of Contact: [email protected]
❤️Contact’s Position: Executive Director
❤️Contact’s Phone Number: 808-732-4846
❤️Type of Organization: (select) Families & Youth Development
❤️Organization’s Address: 3636 Kilauea Avenue
❤️Organization’s City: Honolulu
❤️State: (select) Hawaii
❤️ Zip Code: 96816
❤️Organization’s Website: www.hugshawaii.org
❤️Reason for Nomination: (in 100 words or less, explain why you are nominating HUGS.)
❤️Tax ID # : 99-0213594
❤️ Fill our your personal information in the required fields on the page
❤️ For the last question, “How did you hear about Love’s Spirit of Giving?” you can select “social media”

Please share and help spread the word😄
Hawaii Foodservice Alliance

Mahalo to our friends at for their 2nd "Hops for HUGS" beer collaboration. Partial proceeds from their limited HUGS beer sales were donated to HUGS and raised over $1,300! Thank you again for partnering with us and your generosity. And mahalo to the HUGS Hip Squad for spearheading this campaign.

Wishing everyone a fun and safe from the team at HUGS.

HUGS got a surprise visit the other day from our former awesome intern and woman's volleyball player Kendra. Kendra graduated last year and is currently an EMT in San Francisco. Please drop by again when you're in town!

It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas! VoluntEARS from wrapped for HUGS, helping Santa gift wrap toys for our upcoming Christmas in July for our HUGS keiki and their siblings. Tis the season!

Mahalo to the Disney Aulani VoluntEARS. We could not put together our family events without the help of community volunteers who spent their Saturday “volntEARing” and having fun with their fellow cast members.

Mahalo Atlas Insurance Agency, Inc.

We had the honor of volunteering at the HUGS House this past Friday! We prepped goodie bags for their SibCamp event, packed food boxes, painted the event banner, and even managed to squeeze in some time for lawn maintenance. We are proud to support such a wonderful organization and community partner!

Big mahalo to yifanghawaii for holding a fundraising campaign for HUGS. They donated a portion of their sales of “HUGS” Strawberry drinks during the month of May. And mahalo to for putting this together.

Big mahalo to for holding a fundraising campaign for HUGS. They donated a portion of their sales of “HUGS” Strawberry drinks during the month of May. And mahalo to for putting this together.

Big mahalo to volunteers from for helping to prep for our upcoming SibCamp by designing our banner and putting together goodie bags, and also for putting together food boxes for our distribution for our Ho'okele families. And they even brought us lunch! Thank you so much for your continued support😄

When you support HUGS, your impact goes a very long way. Your generosity enables us to continue to provide the emotional and financial support our HUGS families need. Because of this, they won't have to face their journey of caring for a seriously ill child alone. Mahalo everyone for your past and ongoing support.

To learn more about HUGS and the services and programs we provide free of charge to our families, visit www.hugshawaii.org

HUGS dads were treated to a special dinner at in Aiea for this month's Dad's Night. Everyone had a great time enjoying the fellowship and feeling really special that they were able to enjoy an amazing meal. Needless to say it was a meat-a-rama celebration with every dad feasting on a prime rib or steak dinner! HUGS Dad's Nights give our dad's the chance to hang out with the peers, other dads that face similar challenges of caring for a seriously ill child. They not only receive peer support, but develop life-long friendships and are all part of our HUGS ohana. To learn more about HUGS and our services, visit www.hugshawaii.org

HUGS got some help from worker "elves from the other day to help sort and gift wrap toys, and create greeting cards for our upcoming event at

Mahalo for your continued support and all you do for our HUGS families😄

HUGS had one of our largest groups yet to help us out at our Memorial Garden this past . Over 50 volunteers from and some members from the gathered at to give our Memorial Garden some TLC.

They raked leaves, pulled w**ds, and watered the trees that were planted for our HUGS keiki that have passed on. We can only continue to maintain our garden with help from the community like this awesome group.

To learn more about how you have help HUGS and other volunteer opportunities, visit www.hugshawaii.org/volunteer

HUGS Moms had a fun evening out at in Ward’s South Shore Market. Moms were able to connect with other Moms going through similar experiences of having a child with a serious illness. There was a yummy selection of food including calamari, pork and fish tacos, empanadas, and mini churros. Following dinner, the Moms enjoyed a movie of their choice at Ward Theatres.

Very big mahalo to who chose HUGS as their charity of choice at the in Washington in honor of one of our HUGS keiki that has passed on, Ally Tamayose, who was a member of Rainbow Gymnastics and raised $1,044 for HUGS! We greatly appreciate all you do and thank you to the RGA optional team for representing HUGS and Ally.

Our monthly Respites are just one of the monthly events that HUGS provides HUGS Families at no charge. To learn more visit www.hugshawaii.org

Over the weekend, our First Hawaiian Bank team volunteered for our friends at HUGs (Help, Understanding, and Group Support). With over 100 volunteers, we were able to clear the lot of shrubs and w**ds, tidy up their sandbox play area, pack backpacks of school supplies, and write dozens of greeting cards for the kids.

HUGs plays an important part in Hawaii’s community by providing emotional and financial support to Hawaii’s families who are facing the hardships of caring for a seriously ill child. For more information on how you can support, visit hughawaii.org.

The sound of lawn mowers, w**d whackers and hedge trimmers fill the air this past as over 150 employees gathered in for the Community Care Event for HUGS.

The First Hawaiian Bank team provided some very much needed TLC not only for the HUGS House, but also the surrounding block on Kilauea Avenue where HUGS is located. The tall grass that could be spotted a mile away is now gone and sidewalks are visible once again.

For over 30 years, Kilauea Avenue in Kaimuki has been home to HUGS, which is owned by the University of Hawaii and leased by HUGS. When COVID hit, the surrounding state offices located on the property were vacated and maintenance was discontinued. In exchange to extend the lease, HUGS agreed to upkeep the grounds and FHB came to the rescue to take on this huge undertaking.

Not only did FHB provide TLC, they also donated a 100 backpacks and school supplies for our HUGS kids, and designed greeting cards for them as well.

Very big mahalo to First Hawaiian Bank and their awesome team for their continued support and all they do!

to 2015 to our first Celebration of Life at . We cannot be more grateful to our friends at Sunset Ranch and owner Greg Pietsch for graciously providing space at the ranch for our memorial garden for our HUGS kids that have passed on and hosting this event every year since. And our long time partners for their continued sponsorship. Through their combined support, our bereaved HUGS families are able to honor their child's memory.

For this month's HUGS Volunteer Spotlight, say hello to Epi.

Aloha! My name is Epi Echavez, and when I’m not working as a Production Manager for the Department of Defense, my true passion lies in the great outdoors, embracing nature, and getting my hands dirty!

Volunteering at HUGS has been an absolute blast for me! I love helping others, and it truly brings me a sense of purpose. I've been incredibly blessed in my own life, and now I want to pass on those blessings to others in whatever capacity I can.

That's why when I learned about HUGS through Men's Leadership of Hawaii (MLH), I knew I had to get involved. This incredible opportunity opened my eyes to a purpose greater than myself. Respite nights offer a fantastic opportunity for parents to unwind, rekindle their connection, and relish each other’s company, while their children have an absolute blast with me, bringing smiles and laughter to everyone involved. The joy and laughter we share during our time together is simply contagious.

My first experience volunteering with HUGS was an absolute blast! Let me tell you, my buddy was a true athletic powerhouse and an amazing brother to one of the HUGS children. For the three hours I spent as his buddy, I was pushed to my physical limits! This kid was like an iron boy straight out of Hawaii. I must have done close to 400 push-ups, 200 sit-ups, and ran nearly a mile that evening! I couldn't believe the amount of energy he had! I was completely gassed by the end of the night, but it was worth every second. Recovering over the following days, I realized that this exhilarating experience gave me the encouragement, and reminder I desperately needed to loosen up and have fun. In my usually stressful career, moments like these are rare, but volunteering with HUGS reminded me of the pure joy of living life to the fullest. So, if you're looking for an adventure that will make you laugh, sweat, and rediscover the thrill of enjoying life, and create a world where every child knows their worth and purpose, join me at HUGS. Together, we can. Let’s spread the love and have a blast doing it!

that time in 2012 when the cast from Hawaii Five-O dropped by our Annual event. The annual Surf4HUGS event gave our HUGS kids the chance to go out and learn to surf by surfing community member volunteers. Very big mahalo to the Thomas Ohana for having hosted this fantastic event for many years.