Maui Electric Donates Funds and Volunteer Hours in 2015

(Left to right) Maui Electric employee Mahaina Martin and MECO President Sharon M. Suzuki. MECO photo.

During 2015, Maui Electric donated more than $167,000 in corporate contributions to nonprofit and community organizations across Maui County, including donations to support community services provided by Maui United Way, the Boys and Girls Club Maui and Maui Youth and Family Services.

The company also recently created a $30,000 sustainability scholarship fund at University of Hawai’i Maui College.

Throughout the past year, more than 250 Maui Electric employees and their ‘ohana contributed more than 1,800 volunteer hours, assisting with 29 Maui Electric community service projects across Maui County. Volunteer activities included serving meals through Feed My Sheep, fundraising for various charitable organizations, spearheading food drives, donating blood, organizing and participating in community Adopt-a-Highway workdays and more.

In recognition of exemplary volunteer service to the community, the HEI Charitable Foundation also honored Maui Electric employee Mahina Martin as one of its 2015 “Kokua Community Champions” and made a $1,000 donation to a nonprofit organization of her choice. Martin selected the Valley Isle Animal Rescuenon profit as the recipient to support the organization’s on-call emergency animal assistance service.

Martin was recognized for her lifelong support and dedication to numerous nonprofits and community-based organizations and initiatives in the Valley Isle. She currently serves on the boards of the Maui Chamber of Commerce and the Maui Native Hawaiian Chamber of Commerce. She is involved as a volunteer of Ka ‘Ohana O Kalaupapa, the American Red Cross-Maui Chapter and with St. Anthony Jr.-Sr. High School, where she is leading the development of the alumni association.

For the past 11 years, Martin has served as the race director and lead race official for the Maui Interscholastic League’s high school paddling sport, which has grown to involve 12 high schools on Maui, Moloka‘i and Lāna‘i.

In addition, Martin coordinates an annual community candlelight vigil in October in recognition of National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. The vigil brings acknowledgement, support and comfort to the many families and friends of victims and survivors.

“So many of our Maui Electric employees deserve recognition for all they do to give back to our community and it’s pretty inspiring to be part of an ‘ohana that believes we can make a difference in making Maui better,” said Martin, who serves as the director of government and community relations at Maui Electric. “It’s wonderful to be part of a company that deeply values community giving—even after 95 years of doing business on Maui, and eventually on Moloka‘i and Lāna‘i, that commitment is exceptionally rooted.”