Compiled by Assistant Editor Alfredo G. Evangelista. Send your community briefs to info@filamvoice.com.
Binhi at Ani
Celebrate your special events at Binhi at Ani Filipino Community Center. The Center can be rented from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. for $1,300 plus GET (including the cleaning fee) plus a $500 security deposit or from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. for $1,100 plus GET (including the cleaning fee) plus a $500 security deposit.
If alcohol is provided and/or served, there is an additional fee of $300 and you must hire two licensed bartenders.
If alcohol is BYOB or placed in coolers, there is an additional fee of $500.
The office is open on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and on Saturdays by appointment only. Telephone (808) 877-7880.
A Bayanihan Christmas: Aggie Cabebe Memorial Scholarship Fundraiser will be held on Friday, December 20 at Binhi at Ani Filipino Community Center. The Dinner is to sustain the memory of Aggie Cabebe—a remarkable trailblazer in Maui’s Filipino community—for generations, with the dinner funding the Agrifina Cabebe/Binhi at Ani Scholarship. The Dinner will also honor the 2024 recipient of the Promoting the Bayanihan Spirit Award, Melen Agcolicol. For more information, contact Nora Takushi at (808) 276-8861.
Bayanihan Feeding Program provides a Sunday lunch to Hale Mahaolu Residents in Central Maui (Hale Mahaolu Elua and Hale Mahaolu Akahi) and Maui Adult Day Care.
As of November 30, 2024, a total of 30,657 lunches have been distributed.
Teams serving during the month of November 2024 include Baldwin High School Bayanihan Club, Kīhei and Lahaina Seventh Day Adventist Church, Miss Maui USA, and Philippine Nurses Association Maui Hawai‘i Chapter.
There is a need for additional teams of volunteers to prepare the free lunches. Create a Team by contacting Melen Agcolicol at (808) 205-7981. Tax-deductible donations are accepted via Paypal or a Credit/Debit card or by mailing a check payable to Binhi at Ani, 780 Onehe‘e Avenue, Kahului, HI 96732 [Memo: Feeding Program].
The Bayanihan Feeding Program is supported by grants from Bayer Crop Science Hawai‘i and Nareit Hawai‘i.
The annual Bayanihan Food Distribution was held on Saturday, November 16 at Lahaina Intermediate School. Six hundred food boxes plus 1,560 plate lunches and 600 gift certificates were distributed.
Started during the pandemic with eleven monthly distributions, the Bayanihan Food Distribution is now held annually, right before Thanksgiving weekend. Through November 2024, over $70,000 in monetary donations were received enabling the distribution of 9,043 food boxes including 10,320 plate lunches, 1,000 turkeys, 95,740 canned goods, 73,994 pounds of produce, 6,290 bags of rice, 17,041 packages of noodles, 3,661 dozens of eggs, 3,868 loaves of bread/pan de sal, 6,200 McDonald’s certificates, 21,697 beverages, 26,310 snacks, 3,810 containers of spaghetti sauce, 6,006 Maui Gold pineapples, 2,160 gallons of milk, 2,318 boxes of mashed potatoes, 730 whole chickens, over 2,500 dragon fruit, and other miscellaneous items such as toilet paper, coffee, goat cheese and masks.
As part of the Food Distribution, the recipients were asked to complete a brief survey (525 recipients complied). 75% of the recipients were of Filipino ancestry/ethnicity, with 1,675 adults and 690 family members. Two hundred thirty-six of the recipients lost their homes in the Lahaina fire; two hundred ten lost their business or job as a result of the Lahaina fire; and seventy-nine lost an immediate family member as a result of the Lahaina fire.
Many thanks to those who assisted in the preparation and distribution: 139 volunteers helped on the actual day of the distribution, including many from Lahaina groups such as J1 teachers, Kaibigan ng Lahaina, Knights of Columbus, Lahainaluna High School Filipino Club, Lahaina Intermediate School staff and students, Maria Lanakila Filipino Club and Outrigger Kā‘anapali Beach.
Mahalo to the donors: Maui Foodbank, Yondr Group, Maui Lions Clubs Region VI Zone 1, Nareit Hawai‘i, Bayer, Valley Isle Produce, Rey and Cecille Piros.
Enhance®Fitness for Kupuna at Binhi at Ani Filipino Community Center classes are continuing. They are held on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 6:15 a.m. to 7:15 a.m.; from 7:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. from 8:45 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. Enhance®Fitness is an exercise program for those over 50 years of age that improves cardiovascular fitness, strength, flexibility and balance. Since July 2022 and through October 2024, there have been 834 classes with eighty participants. For more information on Enhance®Fitness, contact Enhance®Fitness Coordinator Ginny Kiick (808) 280-6251 or gkiick@hotmail.com or Wellness Coordinator Claudettte Medeiros (808) 463-3166 or claudette.b.medeiros@co.maui.hi.us.
At the recently held Immigration Workshop, attorneys and staff of The Legal Clinic presented information, answered general questions, and provided private consultations. Participating from The Legal Clinic were Josh Abeyta, Neribel Chardon and Megan Crimmins.
Maui Filipino Chamber of Commerce
The Maui Filipino Chamber of Commerce recently held its Holiday Dinner and Installation event at Maui Beach Hotel. Installed as officers and directors were: President Dominic Suguitan, Vice President Glenn Casil, Secretary Grace Sales, Treasurer Wayne Aguiran, Immediate Past President Chris Rabang and Directors Virgilio Agcolicol, Jared Agtunong, Sharon Banaag, Kit Furukawa, Christian Galapon, Jorge Tirona, Donna Urban-Higuchi and RoAnn Villoria.
Maui Filipino Community Council Foundation
The Foundation will celebrate its Dr. Jose P. Rizal Scholarship Dinner: Leadership Awards, Installation of Officers & Maria Clara Gala on Saturday, December 28 at the Maui Beach Hotel’s Moana Ballroom. The Foundation’s Awardee Committee has chosen the following as recipients of their annual Rizal Awards:
M. Jee Abara will receive the Outstanding Youth Award. Chef Joey Macadangdang will receive the Outstanding Citizen Award. Mrs. Nora Cabanilla Takushi will receive the Distinguished Service Award and Mr. Elmer Tolentino will receive the Outstanding (MFCC) Member Award. The evening will also include the installation of the newly-elected MFCC / MFCC Foundation officers and board of directors, and highlight a Maria Clara and Barong attire competition. The goal of the event is to raise scholarship funding for graduating high school students. Entry is $75 for General Admission, $35 for 5–11 years, and $15 for 3–4 years; under 4 is free.
