By JOHN BURNETT ADVERTISING By JOHN BURNETT Tribune-Herald staff writer A Hilo Pop Warner football team whose trip to the national championships has been jeopardized by an alleged embezzlement of league travel funds has about $24,000 to date, but still
By JOHN BURNETT
Tribune-Herald staff writer
A Hilo Pop Warner football team whose trip to the national championships has been jeopardized by an alleged embezzlement of league travel funds has about $24,000 to date, but still faces an uphill climb to meet its goal.
The Panaewa Alii midget team is scheduled to depart on Dec. 5 for the Pop Warner Super Bowl, where it will compete for the national title in the 12-15 age group. The tournament starts on Dec. 7 in Kissimmee, Fla., an Orlando suburb.
There is a fund-raising concert, noon-9 p.m. Saturday at Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium in Hilo. Tickets are $5, available at the door, and children ages 5 and under will be admitted free.
“We are banking on this concert coming up on Saturday,” league secretary-treasurer Brenda Kuamoo said. Asked how much she hopes the team will collect on Saturday, she replied: “I have no idea.”
The team needs about $37,000 to pay for round-trip airline tickets, money that would be in league coffers if not for the alleged theft of about $100,000. There are also the costs of hotel, ground transportation and meals to be considered.
The Civic’s capacity is about 3,000, and even if that many tickets are sold, that would raise only $15,000, a sum far less than what is actually needed.
“The idea was to try and attract the families and keep (admission) low,” Kuamoo said. “We debated over the price and we came up with the $5. Hopefully, the donations will make it worth it.”
Out of that price will come the rental for the Civic, which Kuamoo said is $925, and the group is responsible for cleaning, something a county crew does after many events at the facility.
There will be a calabash for donations at the concert, as well as a silent auction of donated items and services. Kuamoo said there will also be a booth to accept donations Sunday at Makuu Farmer’s Market.
Atlas Recycling is accepting recyclables with proceeds earmarked for the team and there are two accounts set up to accept tax-deductible donations: one at HFS Federal Credit Union under “Panaewa Regional Travel” and another at Bank of Hawaii under “Friends of Panaewa Alii.”
Donations can be made at any Big Island branch of both financial institutions.
The original deadline for the team to pay for airfare was Nov. 21, but that has been extended according to Reid Shigeoka, United Airlines general manager on the Big Island.
“We’ve extended the hold and we got a pretty good rate for them. We’re donating two free tickets and they’ll be able to check their bags for free,” Shigeoka said Thursday. “We sent a message to our community affairs group because they’re local kids and this unfortunate thing happened to them. They just won a championship. We just had to do something for them, so we reached out to our group and were able to get this for them.”
There have been no arrests or charges in connection with the alleged embezzlement. Police have investigated and turned the case over to prosecutors for additional investigation and possible charges. Sources say the suspect is the former league treasurer, Greta “Pua” Correa.
Kuamoo said she hopes “everybody comes out and supports us at the concert” and that if efforts to raise funds fall short, hopes “there are others (potential donors) waiting in the wings to see how much we need.”
Email John Burnett at
jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.
