Hawaii Members Exemplify 'Ohana' With Extraordinary Community Work

[Omaha Steve]

Honolulu Local 1260 members give back to their communities in a number of ways throughout the year, including working with the AFL-CIO on food drives, as pictured above.

https://www.ibew.org/media-center/Articles/24Daily/2407/240831_HawaiiMembers

July 31, 2024

Honolulu Local 1260 members, in partnership with employer Hawaiian Electric, are going above and beyond when it comes to supporting their communities.

"We believe in the guiding principles of 'ohana,' meaning family, and 'kuleana,' meaning responsibility and accountability," said Business Manager Leroy Chincio Jr., who also represents the Seventh District on the IBEW International Executive Council. "We feel that it is our family that we're helping."

In its most recent United Way campaign, which encompassed Oahu, Maui and the "Big Island" of Hawaii, the utility raised $372,000, including contributions from Local 1260 members and retirees. Approximately 1,200 members work for Hawaiian Electric, and 100% participated, said Assistant Business Manager Todd Mayeshiro. And the annual campaign, which this year had a theme of "pilina," meaning to come together, is just one way they embody that spirit.

"We do a lot with Hawaiian Electric," Mayeshiro said. "We're one of the biggest contributors to the United Way. But we also give back in a number of other ways, from food banks to emergency-preparedness fairs to blood drives."

According to Hawaiian Electric, employees across the state's five largest islands volunteered 5,307 hours over 101 community events, donated 913 units of blood and plasma, and collected $4,076 and 1,717 pounds of food for local food banks last year.

FULL story at link above.


Local 1260 members helped raise over $46,000 for the Hawaii Island United Way, part of a larger, state-wide effort that raised $372,000 in total. Pictured: Hawaiian Electric President and CEO Shelee Kimura, left, Local 1260 Business Manager and IEC member Leroy Chincio Jr., and Aloha United Way President and CEO John Fink.