Family
Ties
In times of need, Hualālai employees and their loved ones receive the community’s support through a vital foundation. B Y R I M A S U Q I
T
he Hawaiian word ‘ohana means “family,” making it the perfect name for the community-driven foundation that provides financial assistance to employees of Hualālai Resort. The Hualālai ‘Ohana Foundation—the brainchild of a handful of Hualālai homeowners who’d witnessed the
financial strains many employees experienced even in the best of times— debuted almost 20 years ago and has since helped more than 8,600 people. In the beginning, the nonprofit offered scholarships for private K–12 education and financial aid to those with exceptional medical needs, and over the years, it has grown considerably. Today, it includes 14 educational assistance programs, for both children and adults, and three medical aid programs—all funded by donations primarily from Hualālai homeowners, plus a few corporate sponsors and private charitable foundations. In 2019 alone, it granted 211 medical awards totaling $205,700 and 641 educational awards exceeding $716,000. Nico Leilani Verissimo, the foundation’s executive director, is no stranger to this type of generosity. “I’ve been on my own since a very young age,” says the Hawai‘i Island native. As a teen, she spent four years working at Hualālai restaurants—including the Residents’ Beach House, Club Grill, and Pahu‘ia Restaurant (now ‘Ulu Ocean Grill)—where she befriended a couple who were return guests. “They told me that people can take your health, your wealth, and sometimes your happiness, but that they could never take your education from you,” recalls Verissimo, noting that she was the first in her family to go to college. “They told
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