A Maui business has announced it will be providing residents who have been affected by the Hawaii wildfires with $1,000.
Maui United Way, a non-profit charity organization, announced in a Facebook post on Friday it would be activating its Maui Fire Disaster Relief Fund in order to provide residents who have been affected by the Maui wildfires with monetary support to allow them to have access to items they “urgently” need.
“While this fund scratches the surface of a family’s long-term needs, we want Maui’s fire survivors to at least get a little relief and have the ability to purchase their most urgently needed items,” Nicholas Winfrey, the president and chief professional officer of Maui United Way, said in the post.
The organization said the activation of the disaster fund comes after several days of the organization providing funds to Hawaiian non-profits to assist survivors of the fires.
Residents affected by the fires who are in need of monetary assistance are encouraged to go to the organization’s website where they will be directed to a link that allows them to sign up for assistance.
Survivors from the fires can receive payment through Venmo, PayPal, pre-paid Visa bank cards, or through direct deposit into their accounts, according to the organization.
“We believe direct financial payments are important because they let families determine their own needs,” Winfrey said in a statement to Maui Now. “Having the ability to choose those needs and preferences is empowering. Maui is one of the most culturally diverse places in the country. Comfort food means different things to different people.”
To date, 114 people have died as a result of the wildfires which have left the town of Lahaina in destruction, according to Hawaii News Now.
IJR reached out to Maui United Way for a statement but did not hear back by the time of publication.