LION Coffee will be providing a big boost to the Hawai'i High School Athletic Association's "SOS" (Save Our Sports) campaign to help public schools offset recent state budget cuts.

For every bag of LION Coffee sold at Longs Drugs stores now through March, 25 cents will be donated to the SOS Fund, which is designed to help Hawai'i's 45 public school athletic departments cope with state budget cuts that left them operating with less than 64 percent of their allocations for 2008-2009.

"We felt like this was a good cause to get behind," said Randy Cavaco, retail sales manager for LION Coffee. "The way the promotion is structured, the more coffee we sell, the more we can contribute (to SOS). So it's a win-win for everybody."

Radio ads already have been running to promote the project, and Cavaco said "there is no cap" as far as how much money will be raised for SOS through the coffee sales.

The SOS Fund's running total now stands at $1,428,882 since the effort began on July 23, 2009. The funds will be distributed later based on a formula that accounts for the size of each program and student participation.

An SOS fundraiser sponsored by the fledgling "Hawai'i Professionals Foundation" is scheduled for 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. today at Bonsai Restaurant and Lounge at Restaurant Row. Admission will be $20 per person, and the event will include food, a raffle and silent auction.

To contribute to the SOS Fund, make a check payable to "HHSAA SOS Account" and send it to HHSAA, P.O. Box 62029, Honolulu, HI 96839, or visit www.sportshigh.com

Read his blog on high school sports at http://preptalk.honadvblogs.com