A&B’s Partners for Equality and Women’s Leadership Teams Host Fireside Chat with Krystal Ka’ai

April 9, 2022 in Education, Social

A&B’s Partners for Equality and the Women’s Leadership Initiative co-hosted a Fireside Chat with Krystal Ka’ai, the Executive Director of the White House Initiative for Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders (WHIAANHPI).

Ms. Ka’ai, who is a Kamehameha Schools graduate, is the first Native Hawaiian leader of WHIAANHPI.  Ms, Ka’ai shared her background, her path to WHIAANHPI, several issues they are tackling, as well as how we at A&B can help.

Kokua for Keiki 2021

January 4, 2022 in Education, Social

Alexander & Baldwin is excited to once again partner with local elementary schools for its Kokua for Keiki program. This year, the program has been expanded to 17 local schools near A&B-owned and operated centers – Aikahi Park Shopping Center, Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South, Kunia Shopping Center, Lanihau Center, Manoa Marketplace, Queens’ Marketplace, Pearl Highlands Center and Waipio Shopping Center – were invited to participate as a means to replace annual fundraising activities canceled due to the pandemic.

From December 1, 2021 – January 31, 2022, Kokua for Keiki will raise up to $20,000 to support participating schools. A true community-driven effort, patrons of the shops, restaurants and service providers at the eight A&B shopping centers can register and designate the school of their choice online and then submit shopping receipts throughout the campaign.

Below is a list of participating A&B shopping centers and local elementary schools. Click on the shopping center name to be directed to each individual Kokua for Keiki webpage:

Aikahi Park Shopping Center
Aikahi Elementary School

Manoa Marketplace
Hokulani Elementary School
Lincoln Elementary School
Manoa Elementary School
Noelani Elementary School

Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South
Mililani ‘Ike Elementary School
Mililani Mauka Elementary School

Kunia Shopping Center
Kaleiopuu Elementary School
Honowai Elementary School
Waipahu Elementary School

Lanihau Center
Kahakai Elementary School

Queens’ Marketplace
Waikoloa Elementary & Middle School

Pearl Highlands Center
Pearl City Elementary School
Manana Elementary School
Lehua Elementary School

Waipio Shopping Center
Kanoelani Elementary School

2020 Corporate Responsibility Report

September 3, 2021 in Education, Social, Sustainability

A&B is excited to share its 2020 Corporate Responsibility Report, which highlights our environmental, social and governance (ESG) efforts and progress made during the year. While we began 2020 with optimism to celebrate our 150th anniversary and to continue to advance our ESG program, we learned, along with everyone, that the arrival of COVID-19 would dampen our efforts. However, the pandemic provided an opportunity for us to demonstrate our long-time commitment to providing support to the communities we serve throughout Hawaii.

Alyson Nakamura, VP, Governance & Sustainability, shared “The year 2020 provided us a unique opportunity to demonstrate our core values and commitment as “Partners for Hawaii.”

Click here to see the full report.

A&B Neighborhood Shopping Centers Host Program to Boost School Fundraising

April 6, 2021 in Education, Social

Alexander & Baldwin announced the results of its inaugural Kokua for Keiki program to raise funds for Oahu public elementary schools. Schools near A&B-owned and operated centers – Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South, Kunia Shopping Center, Pearl Highlands Center and Waipio Shopping Center – were invited to participate as a means to replace annual fundraising activities cancelled due to the pandemic. The recently concluded program was a partnership between the A&B-owned centers, its patrons and nine neighboring public elementary schools.

Held over two months, Kokua for Keiki raised more than $11,000 to support participating schools. A true community-driven effort, patrons of the shops, restaurants and service providers at the five A&B shopping centers registered and designated the school of their choice online and then submitted shopping receipts throughout the campaign. Nearly 900 Kokua for Keiki receipts were tallied and converted into monetary grants for the schools.

“We extend our warmest mahalo to our customers for their support of our neighboring schools,” said A&B Executive Vice President and Chief Real Estate Officer Lance Parker. “This partnership is another example of how Hawaii comes together to support each other during challenging times. A&B looks forward to expanding Kokua for Keiki to other neighborhood schools and communities we serve across the state.”

Unrestricted grants were distributed to the following schools:

Gateway at Mililani Mauka and Gateway at Mililani Mauka South
Mililani Ike Elementary School – $1,800
Mililani Mauka Elementary School – $1,200

Kunia Shopping Center
Kaleiopuu Elementary School – $1,500
Honowai Elementary School – $1,000
Waipahu Elementary School – $750

Pearl Highlands Center
Pearl City Elementary School – $2,000
Manana Elementary School – $1,500
Lehua Elementary School – $1,000

Waipio Shopping Center
Kanoelani Elementary School – $500

Big Brothers Big Sisters Gifted $10K for Maui Mentor Center

December 7, 2018 in Education

Alexander & Baldwin has awarded a $10,000 grant to Big Brothers Big Sisters Hawaiʻi for its Maui Mentor Center.  The funds will be used to improve the 6,000 square foot facility in Wailuku, which is named in honor of Mercer “Chubby” Vicens, a former A&B employee an d member of the Big Brothers Big Sisters board.

The Center was built in 1996 near Hale Makana O Waiʻale and opened in 1998.  Organization President and CEO Dennis Brown said the center has provided valuable services to the keiki and families in the community for 20 years.  The grant, he said, will allow the organization to continue programs for years to come.

“We are deeply grateful to A&B for their support throughout the years, and for their commitment to the Maui Mentor Center. It was especially fitting that Chubby (Vicens) was part of today’s presentation. The Center would not be here without Chubby’s leadership,” said BBBS President/CEO Dennis Brown. “This center has provided valuable services to the keiki and families within our community for twenty great years, and we look forward to being able to continue our programs in the years to come thanks to this generous grant from A&B.”

Vicens expressed gratitude to BBBS and A&B, two organizations he holds close to his heart. He said, “Big Brothers Big Sisters Hawaii has provided unconditional love to the youngsters of Hawaii for decades. Many of the kids who come through these doors are in tough situations, but BBBS gives them a place they can call home. The Bigs organization has done an outstanding job nurturing our youth. Mahalo to A&B for their generous kokua to an organization that means so much to me and the people of Maui.”

Chris Benjamin, president and CEO of A&B, said, “Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Chubby Vicens Maui Mentor Center are crucial resources for communities in Hawaiʻi. As a big brother myself, I know what a great organization this is. A&B has supported BBBS for 30 years and we are proud to continue that tradition with this grant. Chubby is an important member of both our A&B family and the greater Maui community, and we are grateful for the opportunity to honor his legacy with BBBS.”

The Center dates back to 1996, when BBBS leadership initiated a capital campaign to construct offices and a mentoring building on Maui. The building is now twenty years old and many of the original fixtures have reached or are nearing the end of their useful life. The grant from A&B will underwrite building improvements to preserve this important resource for Maui families.

Originally posted in Maui Now

Grace Pacific Gives Back at the GP Ohana Festival

September 28, 2018 in Education, Social

On Saturday, Sept. 15, Grace Pacific held their GP Ohana Festival at Royal Kunia Community Park. This event hadn’t been held in over 10 years, and its revival was due to GP’s commitment to recognizing and expressing its appreciation for its employees and their ohana.

Many of the longer tenured employees mentioned how Grace used to show their appreciation in the “traditional local way,” with a gathering. Thus, the GP Ohana Festival was reborn.

The event was a huge success — 760 employees and family members showed up for a day of fun and giving back to the community. The festivalgoers enjoyed live entertainment; raffle prizes; bouncy houses; a shave ice truck; baseball, volleyball, and Portuguese horseshoe (built by the GPRM Prestress) competitions; and a delicious meal prepared and served by management employees, including Pike Riegert, Bill Paik, and Chris Benjamin.

GP employees brought donations for the Hawaii Foodbank to support the community. In total, the GP Ohana Festival yielded 894 pounds of canned goods and dry items, as well as $2,354 in financial contributions for the Hawaii Foodbank.

The GP Ohana Festival was also held on Maui on Sept. 29, and Kona and Kauai will have their festivals soon as well. The GP Ohana Festival is a wonderful celebration that demonstrates how deeply GP appreciates and values its employees and their ohana, and we look forward to it being an annual tradition for years to come!

Manoa Outdoor Circle and Malama Manoa hosted the 1,000 TREE GIVEAWAY at Manoa Marketplace

September 1, 2018 in Education

The Manoa Outdoor Circle and Malama Manoa hosted the 1,000 TREE GIVEAWAY on Saturday, April 28, 2018, at Manoa Marketplace.

Over fifty different varieties of trees and plants were shared for FREE, including kukui nut, hao, mountain apple, plumeria, coconut, papaya, false wili wili, avocado, monkey pod, ice cream bean, panax, monstera, valentine vines, kalo, snow bush, stag horn ferns, laua‘e, yellow ginger, red and green ti, and many more!

Thank you to use who attended, those who helped, and to Alexander & Baldwin for providing space for us to give away all those trees. It was a great community event. Look for our next tree giveaway in three years.

Why give away 1,000 trees? “Our urban forest is diminishing day by day,” said Dr. Jeremy Lam, chair of the event. “We hope the community will join us in this small step to increase the shade, diminish the glare, and make our island healthier and more beautiful.”

A few more benefits trees bring to urban areas:

  • Well-chosen landscaping increases the value of a property and its desirability. Mature trees enhance a property’s appearance.
  • Neighborhoods with tree-shaded streets can be as much as 10 degrees cooler in the summer than nearby neighborhoods that have no shade.
  • Air quality is improved. Trees give off oxygen.
  • Trees help anchor soil to prevent erosion and reduce sedimentary runoff.
  • Trees play an important role in deadening noise and absorbing unwanted sound.

The Manoa Branch of the Outdoor Circle was formed in 2014 and works to keep Hawai‘i clean, green and beautiful. Malama Manoa was founded in January 1992. Its mission is to promote community; to celebrate our cultural diversity and heritage; and to preserve, protect and enhance the special qualities of historic Manoa Valley. More information can be found about these organizations by checking their websites: outdoorcircle.org and malamamanoa.org.

https://www.outdoorcircle.org/manoa.html

The First Harvest at Kulolio Ranch

August 31, 2018 in Education

Kūlōlio Ranch, our grass-fed cattle pasturing operation in Central Maui, recently completed its first harvest. A partnership with Maui Cattle Company, Kūlōlio Ranch started in May 2017 as one of A&B’s diversified agriculture initiatives, transitioning former sugar plantation land into new agricultural purposes. This first harvest milestone marks the beginning of what will hopefully be a successful grass-fed beef operation on Maui, helping to provide more locally grown food to the state of Hawaiʻi.

Ranch Manager Jacob Tavares says approximately 90 percent of all calves born in Hawaiʻi are currently exported to the mainland, while about 80 percent of Hawaiʻi’s beef is imported. The carbon footprint for a steak in Hawaiʻi is immense, accounting for the shipping of the cattle to the mainland to be fattened, slaughtered, and butchered, as well as the transport of the meat back to the islands.

The commercial agreement between Maui Cattle Co. and Kūlōlio Ranch aims to address this issue by increasing local production of grass-fed beef. Maui Cattle Co. partner ranches breed and supply the calves for the A&B operation. When the calves are weaned at approximately 500 pounds, they are taken to Kūlōlio Ranch to graze freely in the pastures. The cattle are harvested once they reach about 1,200 pounds, and Maui Cattle Co. handles the distribution.

The contract between Kūlōlio Ranch and Maui Cattle Co. calls for raising an increasing number of cattle every year for five years, at which time projections indicate that the operation will reach steady state. At steady state, the goal is to process 3,500 head of cattle per year. Kūlōlio Ranch currently has approximately 1,511 steers and heifers (sterilized non-breeding male and female cows, respectively) grazing on their 5,000 acres of pastureland. Eight steers were harvested on June 5, producing 5,500 pounds of beef that was distributed to restaurants, grocery stores, and other retail locations on the island of Maui.

The current plan is to harvest eight head of cattle per week throughout the month of June, then increase to 20 head per week in the month of August. While the beef is currently only distributed on Maui, there are plans to expand statewide in the future.

Jacob says this venture will be successful because of several factors – the local nature of the operation, influences from paniolo culture, and strong collaboration within the industry. The 100 percent pasture-raised, grass-fed beef initiative has been an ongoing development since the fall of 2015. We would like to extend our sincere congratulations to Kūlōlio Ranch on this major milestone, and we look forward to the continued progress and growth of this local agriculture operation.

Project Vision

June 21, 2018 in Education, Social

On June 21, 2018, Alexander & Baldwin supported Project Vision’s “Passport to Healthy Aging” program with a $5,000 grant. We first supported Project Vision’s expansion to Maui in 2017. Their “Passport to Healthy Aging” program services the elderly populations who have limited access to health programs. Project Vision supports the Maui elderly by offering free vision screenings to low income or homeless seniors while also providing support towards strength, balance, medications, and home safety.

A&B provides additional, in-kind support through Kahului Trucking & Storage, where the Project Vision bus is stored free of charge. A&B’s Dana Gusman and Kris Kokame traveled to Maui to present the $5,000 grant with Carol Reimann, vice president of A&B Maui, and Michael Mendoza of Kahului Trucking & Storage. The check was presented to Blair Jimenez of Project Vision.

Project Vision not only supports the Maui community but communities statewide. In 2016 A&B Fleet Services on Hawaii Island supported the program in providing free glasses for keiki. Previously, A&B supported Project Vision by providing free storage of their vehicle for six years until permanent storage became available. A&B Fleet Services’ Gene Lyman served as a volunteer driver until the organization could hire its own drivers. To learn more about A&B’s in-kind giving to Project Vision, please refer to the 2016 Review of Giving, “A Culture of Sharing.”