
| Friends of Hawaii Charities Surpasses $1 Million in Grants to Hawaii Charities |
Friday, June 8, 2007 Hawaii's Not-for-Profit Organizations Receive Biggest Paychecks from Oahu Pro Golf Tournaments HONOLULU, HAWAII - Friends of Hawaii Charities, Inc. distributed a record $1,055,000 in grants today to more than 130 Hawaii not-for-profit organizations. This is the third consecutive year that grants given have met or exceeded $1 million. Grant recipients serve Hawaii's children, youth, women, elderly and needy. The flagship fund-raising event for the Friends of Hawaii Charities is the Sony Open in Hawaii PGA TOUR golf tournament held annually at Waialae Country Club. Its charity partner, The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Inc. provides matching funds for each dollar raised by the Friends at the Sony Open. Other Friends of Hawaii Charities fund-raising events include the Champions Tour Turtle Bay Championship, the LPGA Tour's SBS OPEN at Turtle Bay and Fields Open tournaments. The Friends Club, an annual membership program, also contributes to the charity fund-raising efforts of Friends of Hawaii Charities through its members which include a broad spectrum of business leaders, philanthropists, volunteers, and generous community members. "Through the support of our title sponsor Sony Corporation, The Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Inc., event sponsors and volunteers, we have surpassed our $1 million annual distribution goal for Hawaii charities this year. This is a great milestone. It will enable us to provide "malama" for many served by the not-for-profit community of Hawaii. "The Friends have come a long way from our first distribution nine years ago of $256,000," said Anthony R. Guerrero, Jr., President, Friends of Hawaii Charities. Over the past nine years in giving, Friends of Hawaii Charities has traditionally awarded smaller but numerous grants for grass-roots community programs as well as funding for larger established programs. For the first time in its history of giving, Friends of Hawaii Charities awarded two substantial grants. A three-year commitment of $150,000 was presented to The Salvation Army for its new Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center under construction in West Oahu, and the other large grant of $60,000 was awarded to Hawaii Foodbank for purchase of a new refrigerated van. "Friends felt strongly about these projects and believe in the vision and commitment these organizations have to reach numerous families and individuals in Hawaii," said Corbett Kalama, Grants Committee Chair. The 2008 Sony Open in Hawaii PGA TOUR tournament, scheduled for January 7-13 at Waialae Country Club, will mark the 10th Anniversary of this event. The Sony Open serves as the catalyst for rallying the resources of the PGA TOUR, national and international media, the State of Hawaii, its private sector, charity beneficiaries and community volunteers. The one-week tournament showcases Hawaii to a global audience, reaching more than 450 million homes in over 200 countries, including China and India. For more information about the Sony Open, please visit www.sonyopeninhawaii.com. Friends of Hawaii Charities, a federal 501 (c) 3 public charity is an all volunteer organization, incorporated in 1998 to benefit not-for-profit organizations serving Hawaii's children, youth, women and needy. Over the past nine years, Friends of Hawaii Charities, Inc., together with Sony Open charity partner, The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, Inc., raised and distributed more than $7,000,000 to over 250 not-for-profit organizations. For more information, please call (808) 792-9339 or visit www.friendsofhawaii.org |
| Friends of Hawaii Charities Grant Beneficiaries |
Adult Friends for Youth Sisters Offering Support |