FHB employees and retirees raise $886,449 for charity through Kōkua Mai campaign

First Hawaiian Bank today announced that employees and retirees have made a major impact this holiday season by contributing a donation of $886,449 to 36 charities in Hawai‘i, Guam, and Saipan as part of its annual Kōkua Mai employee giving campaign.

Since its inception in 2007, FHB employees and retirees have donated nearly $14 million through the program, benefitting thousands of people who receive assistance from nonprofit organizations.

The program is run completely by employees, with the bank covering all program costs so that 100% of every employee contribution goes directly to the local charity of their choice. While the majority of funds came from individual employee donations, many teams also rallied together to support the effort through fun activities like shave ice sales, book sales and online auctions. This year, Aloha United Way was the top recipient, receiving $256,696, followed by Hawai‘i Foodbank with $77,128 and Make-A-Wish Hawaiʻi with $57,035.

“Our employees and retirees once again stepped up to support nonprofits through our annual Kōkua Mai giving program,” said Bob Harrison, First Hawaiian Bank Chairman, President and CEO. “Seeing over 99 percent participation this year says a lot about our culture and how deeply our team cares for the community.”

This year, Kōkua Mai ran from Oct. 1-31. FHB employees and retirees are committed to helping local nonprofit agencies, which struggled to keep up with community demands, particularly the needs of vulnerable kūpuna and keiki as well as the growing number of hungry families. Over the course of the month, 99% of the bank’s employees made financial donations to Kōkua Mai, which exceeded this year’s total contribution goal of $725,000. In addition, 262 Leadership Givers stepped forward with contributions of $1,000 or more.

In 2025, Kōkua Mai benefited the following organizations that focus on health, education, self-sufficiency and life-sustaining services:

1. American Red Cross, Hawaiʻi, Guam & Northern Mariana Islands Chapters
2. Aloha Harvest
3. Aloha United Way
4. Ayuda Foundation
5. Big Brothers, Big Sisters Hawaiʻi
6. Blood Bank of Hawaiʻi
7. Boys and Girls Club of Hawaiʻi
8. Catholic Charities Hawaiʻi
9. Child and Family Service
10. Domestic Violence Action Center
11. Easter Seals Hawaiʻi
12. Family Programs Hawaiʻi
13. Goodwill Industries of Hawaiʻi, Inc.
14. Hale Makua Health Services
15. Hawaiʻi Children’s Cancer Foundation
16. Hawaiʻi Foodbank
17. Hawaiʻi Island United Way
18. Hawaiʻi LGBT Legacy Foundation
19. HUGS (Help, Understanding and Group Support)
20. Imua Family Services
21. Kamaʻāina Kids
22. Kauaʻi Hospice
23. Kauaʻi United Way
24. Keiki Circles of Love Hawaiʻi
25. Make-A-Wish Hawaiʻi, Guam, and Saipan
26. Maui Foodbank
27. Maui United Way
28. Pālama Settlement
29. Partners in Development
30. Pali Momi Women’s Center (Breast Cancer Prevention and Treatment)
31. Public Schools of Hawaiʻi Foundation
32. Salvation Army Hawaiʻi, Guam, and Saipan Corps
33. Special Olympics Hawaiʻi, Inc.
34. Teach for America
35. Waiʻanae Coast Comprehensive Health Center
36. YWCA – Oʻahu

Other ways First Hawaiian Bank and its employees gave back to the community in 2025:

• First Hawaiian Bank partnered with Hawaiʻi Theatre to host comedian Ronny Chieng for two nights of laughter with 100 percent of proceeds from ticket sales directly benefitting the Hawaiʻi Theatre.
• First Hawaiian Bank donated $125,000 to Child & Family Service to support and sustain the nonprofit’s youth programs in the Waiʻanae community. Distributed over five years, this funding will provide $25,000 annually to support prevention, intervention, and advocacy services tailored specifically for O‘ahu West Side youth.
• Caring is a core value at FHB and hundreds of employees demonstrate they care by serving on nonprofit boards throughout the community and by volunteering their personal time on the weekends through the bank’s Community Care program, in which employees support nonprofits through community activities like assisting communities, families and youth through the Maui Foodbank, Catholic Charities Hawaiʻi and Residential Youth Services and Empowerment (RYSE).