On Sept. 17, the Winery Restaurant and Wine Bar hosted a fundraiser to help victims of the Maui firestorm, one of the worst wildfires in American history. The Newport Beach restaurant raised tens of thousands of dollars, all of which will go affected residents of Maui, in dual daytime and evening events.
“I am blown away by the show of support from our loyal friends and many sponsors — it is because of their generosity that we will donate $70,000 to the Maui Strong Fund,” said JC Clow, founding partner at the Winery Restaurant and Wine Bar, in a written statement. “We will also make a direct donation to assist in rebuilding to Kayci Thompson, a Lahaina resident who flew in to share her story after losing everything in the fires in Maui.”
The restaurant’s fundraisers, a daytime Maui Strong tasting event and a nighttime Taste of Hawaii dinner, included a performance by Lokelani’s Rhythm of the Islands, a Polynesian dance troupe; a live auction emceed by Roger Lodge; and Hawaiian-inspired food by executive chef Yvon Goetz.
All of the day’s proceeds went to the Maui Strong Fund, created by Hawai’i Community Foundation, which brings food, shelter, and relief to the communities affected by the wildfires.
“The Maui Strong Fund will provide resources that can be deployed quickly, with a focus on relief and recovery for the devastating wildfires,” said chief executive officer and president of Hawai’i Community Foundation Micah Kāne, in a written statement in August. “A sincere mahalo to our donors who continue to support our community in the times we need it most.”
In a separate ongoing fundraiser, more than a dozen Orange County restaurants are taking park in the Ohana Mai Tai fundraiser, where 100% of all sales of the popular rum-based cocktail go to the Legacy of Aloha Foundation, a nonprofit that gives grants to more than 800 TS Restaurants and Maui Brewing Co. employees on Maui who lost their homes as a result of the wildfire that ignited on Aug. 8. The Mai Tai fundraising effort happens throughout October.
As of Tuesday, Maui officials raised the death toll to 98. The fire devastated roughly more than 2,500 acres. The town of Lahaina, bearing the brunt of the fire, was nearly destroyed.
