Koko Marina Salon Aids In Operation Backpack

A Hawaii Kai salon recently helped supply the nonprofit Colby’s Army with essential toiletries for those in need. No Tan Lines served as a drop-off site for the Operation Backpack campaign, which ended Dec. 22.

“Sometimes all a person who is homeless needs to get back on his or her feet is a little love,” stated Lisa Wysocky, executive director of Colby’s Army. The group fills backpacks with daily essentials — like socks, washcloths, shampoo, band aids and other supplies — and passes them out to those who need them.

It’s a situation that No Tan Lines’s Lyssa Chapman knows well, having once been homeless herself.

“Just being able to wash your hair, brush your teeth or put on clean socks makes you feel so much better,” she stated. “And if you feel better, you are more likely to help yourself, or let others help you get into a better place in your life.”

Co-owners Chapman and Alysin Hauptner thus made the decision to designate the Koko Marina Center red light therapy salon as a drop-off site, and No Tan Lines staff also were to distribute the donations during the holidays.

For more information about the campaign, visit colbysarmy.org.