Four years ago, John and then-12-year-old Ashley Streich survived a glider crash above Mokule'ia that killed the pilot, but the harrowing experience hasn't kept them from returning to Hawai'i each year for a family vacation.

"We just like the weather and the people," John said. And daughter Ashley — now 17 — added: "It's just like a second home."

This month, John, his wife, Karen, and Ashley — who live in Gig Harbor, Wash. — spent two weeks in Waikiki at their timeshare condo. They swam, sailed on a catamaran and relaxed as a family and with friends. And they dropped off a $200 donation to the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawai'i.

Each year, the society helps thousands of visitors statewide who run into emergencies, which can range from an accident or death to car break-ins.

Although visitor arrivals dropped over the past year in the wake of global economic challenges, the society is finding more of a need for services, according to Jessica Lani Rich, president and executive director of the society on O'ahu.

"For the first quarter of 2009, we handled 218 cases and assisted approximately 455 visitors," Rich said. That represents a 19 percent increase in the number of cases over the three months of 2008, where the society handled 183 cases and assisted 396 visitors.

The difficult economy that discourages vacations may also encourage some crime. "I think we're seeing a greater need for our services," she said.

"More people are desperate," Rich said. "Some of them are turning to crimes against our tourists. We're seeing more car break-ins."

The nonprofit organization was founded in 1997 by the Honolulu Rotary Club. The society — with branches on the Neighbor Islands — operates with funding from the Hawai'i Tourism Authority and the help of private donations.

Last year, the O'ahu budget was $240,000, which was cut by 3 percent this year to $232,176, Rich said.

But Rich understands the state agency is faced with competing priorities during the slump in the state's No. 1 industry. "We are grateful to the Hawai'i Tourism Authority for funding us," she said.

The society also relies on the strong support of the visitor industry with in-kind donations of hotel rooms, meals, transportation, private donations and hours of volunteer time.

One case could represent a large number of people. For example, this week she handled a single case in which VASH assisted 11 people, all visitors in a group who had their cars broken into.

New HTA president and CEO Mike McCartney thinks the society plays an important role in helping visitors if something unfortunate happens on a vacation.

"This is who we are," McCartney said. "We share aloha with our visitors."

As far as the Streichs, they have returned each April since the accident that killed the pilot. John and Ashley hung upside down in the crashed glider for more than two hours before they were rescued with minor injuries.

On the first anniversary of the accident, they returned to the site of the crash and thought of the pilot and how fortunate they were to survive. They haven't been on any glider rides since, but both recall the rescue helicopter ride as scarier than the glider.

The Streichs say the accident did change them. John: "I take a little more time out of work." Ashley: "I just enjoy life a little more."

And they credit Rich and the society for helping them with practical aid such as filling prescriptions and scheduling a news conference for the media camped in the lobby.

But they also appreciated the moral support of having someone guiding them through a difficult time; an organization they didn't know about until they needed help.

John added: "It's kind of like a secret society that does good."

Karen Streich said the two were planning a parasailing adventure as part of this trip but never got to it. "I don't let them do much," she joked.

Ashley will be a senior in high school next year and is planning a swimathon fund-raiser service project to benefit the O'ahu society "because they helped us out so much, I want to give back to them."

Rich said the society appreciates the donations from those they helped but expects nothing. She recently received a check for $500 from a man whose wife died while scuba diving. "It's very heartwarming."

Karen Streich hopes they won't need the services again. Still, "it's just knowing that somebody is out there waiting to help you out."