Page 11 - MidWeek - Nov 24, 2021

PROOF POSITIVE
Funding O‘ahu $1,000 At A Time
W By Kathryn Ellman, trustee with the O‘ahu chapter of the Awesome Foundation
hile in the car 10 $100,000 in grants later, AFO and we have transformed our over 100 awesome projects. years ago, Trac- continues to fund efforts by hundred-plus-year-old ceme- One of the greatest challenges ey Stott Kelley artists, teachers, environ- tery into a lovely place for the is getting the word out about
and her son, Mark, heard a mentalists — anyone with an repose of thousands of souls the $1,000 grant.
radio segment about a group of individuals in Boston that donate money to awesome projects in their community. Then and there, Kelley set out to form the O‘ahu chapter of the Awesome Foundation (AFO).
awesome idea for our O‘ahu community.
and a pleasant place for their families to visit.”
Founder and current trustee Tracey Stott Kelley says, “It has been thrilling to see how many people on O‘ahu work tirelessly and under the radar to make our island better. One person with an idea can create enormous change. We look forward to awarding another 100 grants.”
She contacted several women, a dozen of whom agreed to join as trustees and donate $50-$100 every month toward a deserving idea. Once a month, trustees meet to discuss applications and lobby for their favorites before selecting a winner.
Organizer Laura Ruby says, “With the seed mon- ey, we were able to get more supporters and volunteers,
Speaking of art, have you seen the painted traffic signal boxes on Wai‘alae Avenue? ArtBox Kaimukī organized the beautification by local artists in 2018 and used an Awesome grant to advertise and cover event insurance costs.
Do you or someone you know have an awesome idea for enhancing our communi- ty? Visit awesomefoundation. org/chapters/oahu and com- plete a brief, simple applica- tion.
Awesome Foundation O‘ahu’s $1,000 grant has kick-started fundraising ef- forts by priming the pump for many grassroots organiza- tions, enticing others to con- tribute their time, resources and financial support. One example was the Mōʻiliʻili Japanese Cemetery’s beauti- fication project.
Hawai‘i Arts Alliance applied AFO’s donation to paint and supplies for 2015’s POW! WOW! Hawai‘i festi- val in Kaka‘ako.
NOVEMBER 24, 2021 MIDWEEK 11
The AFO has now funded
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