GoFundMe campaign brings hope to flooded Kauai school

LIHUE, Hawaii (AP) - The directors of a Hawaii preschool severely damaged by flooding are finding hope through an online GoFundMe campaign.

Ashley and David Guerrero, co-directors of the Aloha School Early Learning Center on Kauai’s North Shore, are working to raise $37,500 on the crowdsourcing site to repair damage and reopen as soon as possible.

The pair has raised about $34,600 as of Sunday morning, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported .

“We just want to repair the school right away,” Ashley Guerrero said. “The faster we can get the school up and running, the faster our families can start rebuilding their own homes and get back to a normal life.”

The school, which has served the community for 40 years, was flooded by more than 2 feet (0.61 meters) of water last month.

Some families have lost their homes, while others are still stranded in Wainiha and Haena, Ashley Guerrero said.

Since the storms hit Kauai and East Oahu, more than a dozen GoFundMe crowdfunding campaigns have surfaced online.

“These crowdfunding platforms can be very effective in raising large amounts of money for very important causes,” said Hugh Jones, a senior deputy attorney general in the state’s Tax and Charities Division.

The campaign that so far has raised the most - more than $284,000 - is the Hanalei-Haena Flooding Fund led by several partners including model and pro volleyball player Gabrielle Reece, wife of surfer Laird Hamilton and a native of Wainiha. The fund has a goal of raising $1 million.

The school, a registered nonprofit accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, also has received help from the Hawaii Community Foundation and volunteers, including parents, teachers and others.

Repairs will cost more than originally anticipated, even with insurance, given the extent of the damage, Guerrero said. Instead of just replacing floors, the entire foundation had to be poured and external walls replaced.

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Information from: Honolulu Star-Advertiser, http://www.staradvertiser.com