GEM stocks up on home goods for Lahaina as residents wait for rebuild permits

On Tuesday, Global Empowerment Mission (GEM) Hawaiʻi unveiled its warehouse stocked with beds, comforters, and other household essentials to begin its aid to at least 300 wildfire-afflicted homeowners in a multi-year rebuilding process.

“The idea is to get them back on their land, plant the flag, and have a solid place to live while they begin the rebuilding process,” said GEM Hawaiʻi Executive Director Danielle Dreis.

With the first Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) pending County permitting in Lahaina, potentially weeks away from move-in, the warehouse’s role is to ensure that once families are ready to move back onto their land, they have everything they need to start anew.

The warehouse currently has kids mattresses, bed frames, pillows, sheets and comforters courtesy of a network of donors, including The Salvation Army, Ashley Furniture and Good360. Some of the home goods already have destinations, with specific items earmarked for those transitioning into ADUs, according to Dreis.

Maui Now asked Global Empowerment Mission how residents can acquire the home goods:

“It’s not going to be just available where we just hand it out,” explained GEM Founder and President Michael Capponi. “What’s going to happen is, once we process and place them in an ADU through our partners […] then we bring the families here and then they pick out what they need for that particular [unit]. So everything’s custom size, fit for individual families.”

Next week, the nonprofit expects three more containers full of home goods, for what they hope is the beginning of a high-turnover warehouse this year. The warehouse will stock beds, linens, small appliances, cooking tools and eating utensils.

The home goods will go to the 275-plus displaced families GEM says it has housed in Airbnbs through collaborative state programs such as the Rental Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and the Disaster Case Management Program. They become available for families once established in mid-term housing, which will vary in time.

The materials donated to residents are meant to last a lifetime. “The quality of the furnishings are pretty high end,” said Dreis, adding that residents will be able to keep the goods. “Hopefully they last a lifetime.”

The warehouse on Maui is reminiscent of GEM’s previous work in Miami, where the organization provided comprehensive housing solutions for 100 displaced victims after a condominium collapsed in 2021.

Compared to past experiences, though, Capponi says Maui’s recovery is moving remarkably fast. “When you look at the recovery, where we’re at here on Maui after one year, I think it’s great,” said Capponi. “I think, in the next few months or by year two, you’re going to see some world records. The cleanups moved so quickly, and already we have one ADU on the burn site.”

The nonprofit organization is looking to build more than just temporary shelters. “We take it a step further,” Capponi said about the ADUs that are in progress. “We want to make it really feel like a home: the whole nine—landscaping, furnishing, a lānai, porch, solar panels […] That takes time, but we’re here for the long run.”

With 98% of impacted Lahaina residential properties cleared of ash and debris, Dreis said she noticed a renewed hope among homeowners. “They’re finally seeing the green light, the possibility to rebuild, and this is the very first time they can actually consider it,” said Dreis. “I mean, we’ve seen people that have popped up tents and just start watering their lawn because they’re seeing the hope of moving back.”

According to Dreis, GEM is facilitating construction in two neighborhoods within the Lahaina burn zone, and its first Lahaina family could be moving back this month, pending County permits.