MEO supports Maui wildfire survivors, underserved through Maui Strong Fund 

Maui Economic Opportunity continues to support Maui wildfire survivors through specific services and programs, including the Disaster Stabilization Grant funded by the Hawaiʻi Community Foundation’s Maui Strong Fund.

The Disaster Stabilization Grant provides up to $25,000 in direct financial support to Maui wildfire survivors to assist with their unmet needs for housing, utilities, transportation, home restoration and health care costs. 

“Since the wildfires, we’ve helped to house over 1,000 families with the help of the Maui Strong Fund,” said MEO CEO Debbie Cabebe. “We continue to assist the most vulnerable members in our community with the various struggles they face, including low-income individuals, persons with disabilities, youth and kupuna across Maui Nui.”

With support of Hawaiʻi Community Foundation, MEO will be putting out short videos, providing information about the work of the agency and role the Maui Strong Fund has played in the recovery. The videos featuring Cabebe will appear on the MEO’s social media sites and website.

MEO also continues to offer housing, vehicle, energy, appliance, clothing and school supply assistance to survivors through the Maui Relief TANF Program, which began in the months shortly after the 2023 wildfires through the state Department of Human Services. The program had assisted 6,400 individuals as of Sept. 30, 2024.

In all, MEO provided help to 30,500 households in the 2023-24 fiscal year. The 60-year-old agency’s staple programs include transportation services countywide; Head Start preschool and early childhood care; middle and high school substance abuse and suicide prevention programs; small business planning, microloans, financial literacy classes and credit counseling; and assistance with housing, energy and needs of individuals recently released from incarceration.

For more information on MEO programs and services, visit www.meoinc.org or call 808-249-2990.