Public-Private Partnership Secures Personal Protective Equipment to Fight COVID-19
Several community nonprofits are partnering with the State of Hawaii to secure donations of homemade and unopened store-bought personal protective equipment (PPE), such as masks, goggles and face shields, and distribute them to behavioral health workers and social service providers statewide, to help prevent the transmission of COVID-19. Three drop-off and distribution sites, or “resilience hubs,” have been organized and will open on Oahu on Thursday, April 9. The effort is a public-private partnership with the Hawaii Department of Health, the Office of the Governor’s Coordinator on Homelessness, the Hawaii Department of Human Services, and three nonprofit providers who will operate the hubs: KROC Center in Kapolei, KEY Project in Kahaluu and YMCA in Kalihi. Funds for the effort were donated from BlackSand Capital into the Hawai‘i Resilience Fund, with a match from The Hawaii Community Foundation.
In the future the resilience hubs will also begin accepting supplies such as bleach, hand sanitizer, paper towels and toilet paper. The public can drop off items Monday through Friday during set times at each resilience hub or contact the facility to schedule a delivery during different hours. The effort begins tomorrow on Oahu, with statewide distribution of the donated supplies. Expansion of additional hubs on the Neighbor Islands is being discussed.
KROC Center in Kapolei
91-3257 Kualakai Parkway, Ewa Beach, HI 96706
Drop-off hours: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
(808) 682-5505
Opens: Thursday, April 9, 2020
KEY Project
47-200 Waihee Road, Kaneohe, HI 96744
Drop-off hours: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
(808) 239-5777
Opens: Thursday, April 9, 2020
Kalihi YMCA
1335 Kalihi St., Honolulu, HI 96819
Drop-off hours: 9 a.m. – 11 a.m.
(808) 848-2494
Opens: Thursday, April 9, 2020
“As the pandemic continues, ensuring continuity of care of our behavioral health and homelessness services system is vital because of the pandemic’s economic, social and psychological impacts,” said Scott Morishige, the Governorʻs Coordinator on Homelessness.To learn more about this initiative or for other ways to provide community support during the pandemic, please visit the Behavioral Health and Homelessness Statewide Unified Response Group (BHH-SURG) website at https://bhhsurg.hawaii.gov/.
