WAI'ANAE — As has happened every week for the past year, a small team of volunteers pulled their pickup to a halt at Kea'au Beach Park on Wednesday and quietly, with no fanfare, set about dispensing hot meals to any homeless tent dweller who happened to be hungry.

Most were eager to be fed.

In one year this handful of volunteers — along with a similar team that feeds homeless occupants living in the nearby bushes — have handed out more than 5,000 hot meals.

On this Wednesday, the menu included a bean and wiener casserole over rice with corn, Jell-O with peaches, a marshmallow dessert and a bottle of cold water. Practically everyone who stepped up to the pickup recognized volunteer Novelene Asing, who has distributed food at virtually all these hot meal outings.

"OK, here we go, precious," Asing said to beach dweller Anu Kea, who has lived at the park for about a year because she doesn't earn enough as a therapeutic aide to afford a place to live. "Give me a hug."

Kea accepted the meal and the hug.

"I wait for Auntie Novelene to come every Wednesday to bring us hot food," said Kea, 41, with a broad smile. "I am thankful for her. This is a blessing."

Asing and the others are volunteers for Our Lady of Kea'au, a serene and scenic Franciscan retreat on 58 acres at the base of a hillside in 'Ohikilolo Valley.

The facility includes a chapel, long house, furnished cabins, tennis courts, swimming pool and recreational fields. The site, which is dedicated to spiritual and physical nourishment and care, was formerly the First Hawaiian Bank's corporate retreat, built in the 1960s.

The property was later acquired by the Queen Lili'uokalani Trust, which sold it to Our Lady of Kea'au in 2005.

Since that time, as a subsidiary of St. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaii, the retreat has been part of a renewed mission to carry on the work of St. Francis of Assisi in assisting the homeless and the disadvantaged.

Those involved need look no further than their own backyard. The dense brush and jungle across from the retreat's front gate at 83-300 Farrington Highway, as well as Kea'au Beach Park a mile away, are home to an encampment of more than 100 homeless people, some of whom have been living beside the ocean for years.

And while St. Francis has sold its two O'ahu hospitals, the retreat represents a continuing effort to assist those in need.

"When we talk about the healthcare system, we're talking about meeting the needs of the people of Hawai'i," said Sister Beatrice Tom, chief administrator.

"And so we've done that in our hospitals, our transplant programs and all those things. And because homelessness is another need out here, we're taking that on as well."

The hot meals program began in early September 2006. Most of the work is done by volunteers who have assigned tasks. Some arrive at the retreat's commercial kitchen every Wednesday morning to prepare the day's meal.

Volunteer Carol Curry, 61, is both chief cook and star volunteer recruiter. On Wednesday, in addition to overseeing the kitchen duties, Curry brought along two new volunteers. According to her, cooking for the area's homeless community is a cake walk.

"It's not a big deal" said Curry. "My problem is that I don't know how to cook a little bit. It's when I get home that I've got issues."

After Curry's volunteer team had whipped up about 110 meals and boxed them to go, the two distribution teams took over.

And while a hot meal is the main attraction, the volunteers believe the mission calls for the little extras — from hugs to reassurance, clothing to toiletries.

"They do more than feed us a hot meal," said tent dweller Samnette Parks. "They ask what else we need, and get that for us too."

Reach Will Hoover at whoover@honoluluadvertiser.com.