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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Monday, December 18, 2006

ADVERTISER CHRISTMAS FUND
Mother seeks better life for kids

 • 
Help our neighbors in need

By Mary Vorsino
Advertiser Staff Writer

HOW TO DONATE

Send checks, payable to "The Advertiser Christmas Fund," to Helping Hands Hawai'i, P.O. Box 17780, Honolulu, HI 96817. Helping Hands will accept credit-card donations by telephone, 440-3831. Monetary donations may also be dropped off at any First Hawaiian Bank branch or The Advertiser's information desk. Monetary donations help operate Community Clearinghouse programs year-round.

Material goods can be taken to the Community Clearinghouse, 2100 N. Nimitz Highway, near Pu'uhale Road. For large-item pickup and additional information, call 440-3804.

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• Make an online donation to the Christmas Fund.

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At 35, trying to turn your life around is no easy feat.

But one mother of four is determined to do it, vowing to provide more for her children, her autistic nephew and her blind mother. "Who suffers in the end but the children?" the mother asked. "I get so heartbroken when I see my children looking at other kids and their toys."

The mom, who asked not to be identified, said she feels guilty for letting herself wander aimlessly for so long. She said she's jumped from job to job and has struggled through years of unemployment. All the while, her parents were there, helping to raise her children.

Now, the woman is trying to straighten up her life and get a steady job. She's volunteering at a nonprofit to get work experience and has signed up to get welfare benefits for her family. The money doesn't go far, but she's grateful to finally be doing her part to help out.

"It took me so long to wake up," she said. "I want to do this for my kids already."

The woman said her brother committed suicide a few years ago, leaving behind a son. Soon afterward, her mother lost her sight to diabetes. The back-to-back tragedies got the woman to thinking about her own life. And earlier this year, she resolved to get a good job.

"This has just got to be a new year for me and my kids," she said.

"I want to be just like my mom."

The woman said life is hard for the Kahalu'u family, and she still relies on her parents for a hand. Her mother and father help provide groceries and pay for clothes for the kids.

Despite their struggles, the children — 12, 11, 6 and 5 — are doing well in school. Her 11-year-old autistic nephew is also making strides.

For Christmas, the mother is asking for bunk beds and backpacks for her children. She also said the kids would love a gift certificate to Wal-Mart or Kmart to buy clothes for themselves.

The new items would go a long way in helping the kids' self-esteem, she said.

The mom said she would also love to have something under the Christmas tree for her children. Her kids have been asking for bikes, and the youngest would like a bike with training wheels. The autistic boy adores anything related to the movie "Toy Story."

The 35-year-old mother also said she wants to surprise her parents with a small present, perhaps some groceries or a gift card. The family has needed a new refrigerator, too.

RECENT DONATIONS TO THE ADVERTISER CHRISTMAS FUND

Csoki Haraguchi — $300
Byron Kaya — $300
John Lynch — $300
Peter & Candace Yanagihara — $250
Leialoha Draper, in memory of Rachael Taitano — $200
Richard & Sharon Geilenfeldt — $200
Frank & Helen Hiroe — $200
In memory of Arthur & Ruth Ann Ward — $200
Darcella Cooper Sanders — $120
Romolo Barros — $100
John & Chizumi Gilbert — $100
Ryan & Rachel Inouye — $100
Marshall & Mari, in memory of our great-grandparents Nakashima & Hashimoto — $100
Pokhui & Bill McKinney — $100
Moni Marc Inc. — $100
Karen Oren, in loving memory of Oliver, Agnes, Deane & Marc — $100
David & Susan Raser — $100
Melissa & Kristie Sagara — $100
Lawrence & Sandra Siu — $100
David & Katherine Tallman — $100
Anthony Tica — $100
Verna Anama, from Stan — $55
Nadine Cohen, from Stan — $55
Joshua Cohen, from Stan — $55
Stanley Hamada — $55
Yuriko Hamada, from Stan — $55
Christian Hamada, from Stan — $55
Gregg Nakamura, from Stan — $55
Jerome & Mary Bacon — $50
Arthur & Rosemary Eberhardt — $50
Margaret Higa — $50
Walter Iha & Helen Uyehara — $50
Janet & H. Dean Ishihara — $50
Betty & C. Y. Kawahigashi — $50
Juliet & Roy Kesner — $50
Clifford & Jaye Kobashigawa — $50
MaiKai Hawaii, in loving memory of Arthur Hoover & Wilfred Chong Sr. — $50
Susan & Lloyd Sako — $50
Stanley & Lynetta Sekiya, in memory of Koji & Chiyi Sekiya — $50
Stanley & Lynetta Sekiya, in memory of Fortunato & Susana Jatico — $50
Philip & Cynthia Young — $50
PW Jorgensen — $40
Sabina Kaupu & Karen Fronda — $30
Francis & Evelyn Kawahara — $30
Clarence Liu — $30
Vernadetta & Dexter Dickson — $25
Kellee Duarte & Kimo Woelfel, in memory of Koa Barney — $25
Ronald Honda — $25
Nancy Bey Little — $25
Marjorie Powell — $25
Beverly Shelley — $25
Nancy & Errol Rubin — $20
Anonymous — $400
Anonymous — $100
Anonymous — $100
Anonymous — $100
Anonymous — $50


Total — $5,355
Previous total — $68,483.34
Total to date — $73,838.34

Reach Mary Vorsino at mvorsino@honoluluadvertiser.com.