Kumu Hula Nalani Keale leads and takes part in a traditional hula with kūpuna participants during a Monday hula class at the Waikiki Community Center.
While friends of the Sony Open in Hawaii family joined the world to mourn the passing of our 2024 champion Grayson Murray, we have chosen to remember the way he celebrated his win in January -- with joy, humility, inspiration, and kindness. Our champion’s legacy will forever be intertwined with the Sony Open in Hawaii’s history of golf and charitable giving, marked by over $25 million of blessing distributed to hundreds of local charities since 1999.
This year, tournament host Friends of Hawaii Charities, together with charity partner Hawai'i Community Foundation (HCF), generated $1.2 million in funding for local nonprofit programs strategically serving our island home in the areas of increasing household financial stability and savings and access to safe and affordable housing, providing kūpuna (elderly) care, and facilitating the healthy development of children.
Raised through generous sponsor support and tournament proceeds from the 2024 Sony Open in Hawaii official PGA TOUR competition held at Waialae Country Club, these funds combined with HCF’s matching $600,000 grant, were directed to the following programs:
ALOHA UNITED WAY/ALICE PROGRAM
Aloha United Way (AUW) and the Hawai‘i Community Foundation (HCF) partnered to administer the 2022-2024 ALICE® INITIATIVE.
ALICE represents the growing number of households who are above the Federal Poverty Line, do not qualify for many government assistance programs, and who are working yet cannot afford basic necessities to remain stable and self-sufficient. ALICE® stands for ASSET LIMITED (has no safety net for emergencies), INCOME CONSTRAINED (income falls short of basic necessities), EMPLOYED (working person(s), but can't afford the cost of living).
Nearly half of Hawai‛i's residents are struggling economically, with 33% identified as ALICE, while 9% live in poverty (2020 Alice in Hawai’i Report). Many individuals and families who have a job – even two or three – are doing everything they can to make ends meet yet struggle to get by each month. A single crisis — such as loss of employment for a short period of time, an unexpected health emergency or car repair, an increase in monthly rent, put these individuals and families at even greater risk of long-term instability, which may contribute to chronic health issues and loss of housing.
Funds from the 2022-2024 ALICE® INITIATIVE support nonprofit organizations based on O‘ahu that work toward increasing access to safe and affordable housing, facilitating greater financial stability and increasing savings.
A few of the local non-profits in this cohort include Catholic Charities Hawai’i, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, Family Promise of Hawai’i, Feed The Hunger Fund, Goodwill Industries of Hawai’i, Inc., IHS, The Institute for Human Services, Inc., Parents and Children Together (PACT), Kōkua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services, Waikīkī Community Center and more.
KŪPUNA AGING IN PLACE
Proceeds from the Sony Open in Hawaii were also directed to Hawai‘i Community Foundation Kūpuna Aging in Place (KAP), a multi-year grant program that supports local nonprofits across the island chain by providing community-based support, adult day care & adult day health, as well as caregiver support for low- to-moderate income kūpuna (seniors ages 65 and older) and their caregivers. The primary program goal is to enable kūpuna in Hawaiʻi to age in place.
Some of the local nonprofit organizations within this program include Catholic Charities Hawaiʻi, Hale Hauʻoli Hawai‘i, Hawai‘i Island Adult Care, Inc., Hawai‘i Meals On Wheels, Inc., Hawai‘i VA Foundation – Our Kūpuna, Kōkua Kalihi Valley Comprehensive Family Services, Kula No Nā Poʻe Hawaiʻi, Ma Ka Hana Ka ʻIke Building Program, Mālama Kauaʻi, Maui Day Care Center for Senior Citizens and Disabled, Mō‘ili‘ili Hongwanji Mission – Project Dana, Palolo Chinese Home, Waikīkī Community Center, and more.
PROMISING MINDS INITIATIVE
The leadership of Friends of Hawaii Charities has recognized that the well-being and development of children under age 6 is a core component in strengthening Hawai‘i’s communities. Promising Minds is HCF’s initiative dedicated to improving early childhood behavioral health in Hawai’i.
The prevalence of childhood and family trauma and stress in Hawai‘i has reached crisis levels. Nearly half of all Hawaiʻi children (46 percent) experience Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), with Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander children being impacted by ACEs at a higher rate.
The Promising Minds Initiative provided support to the following five non-profit nonprofit organizations this year -- Association for Infant Mental Health in Hawai‘i, Collaborative Support Services for Early Childhood Action Strategy, Partners in Development Foundation, West Hawai‘i Community Health Center, and Zero to Three.
The Sony Open in Hawaii moves in concert with its mission and HCF in each of these community sectors, leveraging the largest charity golf event in the islands, held annually at Waialae Country Club to make Hawaii’i charities the biggest winner annually! Tournament week for the 2025 event is scheduled for January 6-12. Tickets are now available for purchase at www.SonyOpeninHawaii.com. To support the work of Friends of Hawaii Charities, please donate to the Friends of Hawaii Charities Fund.
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About Friends of Hawaii Charities
A 501(c)(3), Friends of Hawaii Charities, Inc. was formed in 1998 through the shared vision and collaboration of a group of business and community leaders to provide support for local not-for-profit programs that serve and benefit Hawaii’s women, youth, elderly, and impoverished. The Friends’ principal fund-raising event is the Sony Open in Hawaii PGA TOUR golf tournament held at Waialae Country Club annually. Friends of Hawaii Charities (FOHC) activates financial resources from the private sector and spirited volunteerism from the community, in concert with the extraordinary natural resources of the state, to produce sports and cultural events that generate funds for qualifying not-for-profit endeavors in Hawai‘i. For more information about FOHC, visit friendsofhawaii.org.
About Hawai‘i Community Foundation
The vision of the Hawai‘i Community Foundation is to create an equitable and vibrant Hawai‘i in which all our Island communities thrive. With our more-than-105-year history, our trusted expertise, and the generous support of donors, we are working to address the root causes of our state’s most difficult challenges, including expanding access to affordable housing, conserving fresh water resources, and ensuring the healthy development of Hawaiʻi’s young children. HCF works in communities across Hawaiʻi, with offices and staff located statewide. For more information about HCF, please visit hawaiicommunityfoundation.org and follow our social media channels on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.
