April 10 – The Power of Human Kindness

Last night at the Pagoda Hotel & Restaurant, more than 2,300 people, dozens of Hawaii companies, some 24 restaurants, Hawaii’s best entertainers and countless purple-clad volunteers showed what the power of human kindness can achieve, With Aloha.

The event raised $150,000 for Sendai’s Tohoku University Hospital and the money will arrive there in a matter of days. The hospital is the largest in Japan’s quake and tsunami-ravaged Tohoku Region and has been providing emergency care to thousands of victims. Despite suffering some quake damage, the hospital continues to provide care not only in Sendai, but in numerous evacuation centers in the hard-hit coastal areas throughout northeast Japan. The hospital staff, nurses and doctors are not just caregivers, they are victims too as their families and homes have also been impacted by the quake and tsunami and the resulting food shortages, power outages and more.

Although the 2,300 attendees last night were extremely generous, they were not the only ones who donated With Aloha as hundreds of people gave from around the world through the mail and Web site. In fact, donations continue to pour in and are still being accepted on the With Aloha site.

The fundraiser was organized by HONOLULU Magazine’s owner, aio.