Volunteers had a coding system to keep presents for adopted families in order for pick-ups.
More than 250 social service agencies refer families to lokahi for assistance. For anyone who wasn't adopted, volunteers picked and packed up gifts from the donations that came in to lokahi. That's what made it so special because everyone we had to find things for something had been donated to fit that need.
Before case workers picked up the packages, volunteers tell us they were running out of room to stack things, but they pulled it off. And, their efforts paid off... With thousands of smiling faces today.
One of thousands of families adopted for the holidays through our lokahi giving project is the ui ohana. Central pacific home loan employees were moved by the family's story and went out of their way to make this christmas extra special.
The ui's recently lost their young son, just as he was about to undergo a heart transplant. Medical bills and other expenses gobbled up what little they had.