Making A Difference In The Zonta Zone

Zonta Clubs of Kaua`i and Hanalei volunteers worked on a project that involved cleaning, sorting, pricing and organizing items at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore facility in Hanapepe as a service project last October

A local organization dedicated to creating equal opportunities for girls and women uses a grant to benefit the entire Island

Active and engaged, the Zonta Clubs of Kaua’i and Hanalei are preparing for their annual fundraising project made possible through a Weinberg Friends grant from the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, a national organization that funds service organizations primarily located in Maryland, Hawaii, Northeastern Pennsylvania, New York, Israel and the former Soviet Union, in their respective efforts to support the underprivileged.

“Each year Zonta members choose a project to make our Island a better place and assist a nonprofit organization,” says Zonta Club president Melinda Uohara.

The full grant extends from the Weinberg Foundation through Zonta to another Kaua`i service organization. A difficult choice for Zonta each year, Uohara admits that there are many deserving programs and organizations working to better Kaua`i. After considering many applications, the club board votes and gets final approval by their total members.

“As members of the Zonta Club of Kaua`i, we are so grateful to be considered to participate in this program,” she adds.

The two-pronged project will begin July 24 with a service day at the Lihu`e Salvation Army. The 40-some members of Zonta Kaua`i and Hanalei will prepare and serve meals to the homeless and hungry. The service day will be followed by the announcement of the grant given to one of Kaua`i’s community service organizations.

“This is something we look forward to each year in helping the community,” says Uohara, “both through the hands-on project and being able to award a local group with the grant monies.”

Zonta Kaua`i was chartered in 1952 and has since actively worked to improve the status of women and underprivileged community members, while also contributing to Zonta International’s vision of a world where equal opportunity is afforded to girls and women of all nations.

Past projects of the Zonta Club of Kaua`i include painting of Nana’s House on the West Side; sorting and tagging donations for the Salvation Army’s support for Kaua`i Economic Opportunity’s purchase of a new van for its Meals on Wheels program, and painting the Good Beginnings home in Kapaa.

For more information, go to zonta-kauai.org.