BLOG: Maui Retains Bragging Rights in $1.7M Charity Walk

By Dave Smith / via our team at Big Island Now

Visitor Industry Charity Walk on Maui has raised more money than Oahu in the past four years. 2013 file photo courtesy of Carol Reihman, president, Maui Hotel & Lodging Assoc.

Final results aren’t in, but it looks like Maui will be keeping bragging rights — in a squeaker — in the 2014 edition of the Visitor Industry Charity Walk.

The walks were held in each county earlier this month, featuring a friendly competition between the mayors to see which county would have the highest percentage increase over the year before.

With the bragging rights this year comes a handcrafted koa wood “slippah” plaque.

The real winners, of course, are the hundreds of charities across the state as this year’s events brought in a record $1.7 million.

All the money stays on the islands on which it was raised.

A total of 14,281 walkers took part this year, according to preliminary figures released by event organizer Hawai`i Lodging & Tourism Association.

That included 3,576 walkers in Maui County (including events on Molokai and Lanai) who brought in $856,542 for charity. That was a fourth straight record amount for any county, and represented a 22% increase over 2013.

The Big Island walk held May 10 at the Mauna Lani Resort attracted 1,700 walkers who brought in $276,218 in donations, a 21% increase over last year.

On Saturday, Oahu’s 7,000 walkers raised $390,000, which was about $62,000 less than last year; while Kauai had 2,000 walkers who brought in $215,241, a 7% increase over 2013.

Since the donations are still coming in, the actual presentation of the koa slippah won’t take place until mid-June.

More than $28 million has been raised for Hawaii charities since the Charity Walk began in 1978.

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