WHAT IS HELP MAUI RISE

Help Maui Rise is a Direct-to-ʻOhana initiative supporting verified families across all islands by helping share individual family fundraisers with the world while also equitably distributing funds through a centralized fund.

Using this model, our community helped raise over $18 million for Lahaina wildfire survivors, and we are now using the same approach statewide for families impacted by the March 2026 Kona Low Storm with over $1 million already raised and a growing list of 100+ verified families.

We combine on-the-ground outreach, in-person verification, and data tracking with centralized fundraising through our fiscal sponsor, GoFundMe.org, to move money quickly and fairly to families who need it most.

Help Maui Rise, at a glance:

• Direct-to-ʻOhana model supporting families across all Hawaiian islands

• We share and amplify individual family fundraisers

• We equitably distribute funds through a centralized, tax-deductible fund

• In-person outreach and verification across impacted communities

• Tax-deductible through our fiscal sponsor, GoFundMe.org (501(c)(3))

• 100% pass-through for wire and check donations

• Entirely volunteer-run

OUR STORY

Help Maui Rise began as a simple spreadsheet created to help families displaced by the Lahaina fires. What started as a small community effort quickly grew into a vetted list of over 1,600 families. As the list spread, people from around the world used it to donate directly to families, helping many who would have otherwise been overlooked — especially kūpuna, immigrant families, and those without large social networks.

As the work grew, so did the need for a more equitable way to distribute donations. With support from GoFundMe, we built systems to verify families, track fundraising progress, and sort fundraisers from lowest funded to highest funded so donors could easily find families most in need.

To make giving easier, especially for businesses and larger donors who wanted to help everyone, GoFundMe.org became our fiscal sponsor and helped us create the Help Maui Rise Fund — a centralized, tax-deductible fund that allows donations to be distributed across verified families based on need.

Using this two-part model — sharing individual fundraisers and equitably distributing centralized funds — our community helped raise over $18 million for Lahaina families. Today, we are using this same model to respond to the March 2026 Kona Low Storm, supporting impacted families across all Hawaiian islands through our Storm Kōkua list.

OUR GRANTS

Our goal is simple: keep funds moving, not sitting, and get help directly to families who need it most.

Help Maui Rise is entirely volunteer-run and has never used donations for operational expenses. All donations to the Help Maui Rise Fund are distributed directly to verified families through our fiscal sponsor, GoFundMe.org, while our team focuses on outreach, verification, and identifying families with the greatest need.

In addition to online applications, we host in-person outreach days across impacted communities to help families apply, set up GoFundMe transfers, access translation support, and receive technical assistance — especially for kūpuna, immigrant families, and those without internet access.

WHERE THE MONEY GOES

All donations to the Help Maui Rise Fund are distributed directly to verified families who have been displaced or experienced major loss from disasters in Hawaiʻi. Funds are managed and distributed by our fiscal sponsor, GoFundMe.org, which ensures grants are sent securely and that donations remain tax-deductible. Our team never touches the money — we focus on outreach, verification, and determining need so funds can be distributed as fairly and quickly as possible.

FOR DONORS

Our efforts are currently focused on those impacted by the March 2026 Kona Low Storm. There are three ways to give:

Donate directly to families — Use the Storm Kōkua sheet to find and donate directly to verified families.
Donate to families most in need — Use our Sorted GoFundMes list to donate to families with the lowest funding first.
One-Click Giving — Donate to the Hawai’i Flood Relief Fund to support all verified families through a single, tax-deductible donation that is distributed equitably based on need.

If you are planning to donate a larger amount, you can eliminate processing fees by doing one of the following options:

Check can be made out to GoFundMe.org and designated to the Flood Fund.

Mailing Address:
GoFundMe.org
8605 Santa Monica Blvd, #88639
West Hollywood, CA 90069

EIN: 81-2279757

Please email info@helpmauirise.org and provide an email address so we can confirm receipt.

FOR THOSE AFFECTED

If your family has been displaced or experienced major damage from the March 2026 Kona Low Storm, you can apply here to be added to our list and be considered for grants from our collective fund. Our team can also help you set up your GoFundMe, transfers, and provide translation or in-person technical support if needed.

If you need help at any point in the process, please contact us at info@helpmauirise.org or message us on Instagram @helpmauirise.

We are here to help.