HCAP Weekly April 23, 2018

HCAP Celebrates First Annual Kupuna Day
HCAP’s Income Tax Services Brings Back Over $1 Million to Our Communities!
HCAP is Hiring LIHEAP Intake Aides
HCAP’s District Service Center Staff Prepare for LIHEAP
Kalihi STEM Students Build Wheel and Axle Systems

HCAP Celebrates First Annual Kupuna Day

On April 19th, over 50 participants of the Kupuna Independent Life Series from Kalihi District Service Center, Leahi District Service Center, Leeward District Service Center, and Windward District Service Center convened at Pokai Bay Beach Park for Kupuna Day – a day of education, awareness, and good fun for senior citizens 55 and over. The kupuna had an opportunity to participate in many different activities. Many kupuna opted for hula, swimming, and bean bag tossing. Those who enjoyed arts and crafts made their own ti leaf baskets, stress balls, and watercolor postcards. Overall, Kupuna Day was a success and a great opportunity for kupuna to socialize and make new friends.

HCAP’s Income Tax Services Brings Back Over $1 Million to Our Communities!

District Service Center staff and volunteers have once again made the Income Tax Services/ Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) Program a success! This year, there were 760 filers who participated in the program at one of the five District Service Centers or the HCAP Corporate Office. More than 46% of these filers received the Earned Income Credit, realizing more than $462K from that credit alone. Overall, the EITC Program brought back $1,238,460 to our local families and communities. A big mahalo to our partners, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Hawaii Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA), for all their patience and support this season. We also couldn’t have succeeded without the discipline and dedication of our staff and volunteers, who continue to make our clients feel welcomed during appointments and drop-ins.

HCAP is Hiring LIHEAP Intake Aides

HCAP is currently accepting applications for Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Intake Aides. LIHEAP Intake Aides are responsible for screening and interviewing applicants for program eligibility. This is a temporary position from May to July 2018. Multiple openings are available for this position.

To download the job description click here.

To apply for a LIHEAP Intake Aide position click here.

HCAP’s District Service Center Staff Prepare for LIHEAP

On Monday, the District Service Centers and longtime volunteers began training for the upcoming 2018 Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) with LIHEAP State Coordinator Teri Escudero. In the next month, District Service Centers will provide outreach to 54 satellite sites throughout Oahu. Beginning May 1st, District Service Centers will begin accepting applications at these satellite locations to ensure that senior citizens, individuals with disabilities, and families with young children receive priority and have ample time to register for the program. In 2017, 1,543 eligible households participated at these satellites.

Providing early outreach in the month of May allows staff to focus on the general public during the normal application period in June. The regular Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program for the general public will begin June 1st and run through June 29th. In 2017, 5,186 households took advantage of the program and applied for one of two programs: Energy Crisis Intervention (ECI), which helps to restore or prevent electric or gas service from being terminated, or Energy Credit (EC), which provides income eligible households who are not in crisis with credit to offset energy costs. Households who qualify for energy credit in the month of June will receive a credit on their utility bill later in the year.

For an application and a list of required documents, please visit our website here or contact your nearest District Service Center.

Kalihi STEM Students Build Wheel and Axle Systems

This past Tuesday, the students at the Hā Initiative: Creative STEM After-School Program’s Kalihi STEM Exploration Center, a 21st Century Community Learning Center, got the chance to learn more about wheel and axle systems. This recent experiment allowed them to build a ramp out of cardboard and clothespins to test out a set of wheel and axles. The children were given creative freedom in building their wheel and axle system by choosing what color and size wheels to use, along with the number of wheels they wanted to use. Not only did they have fun with this science activity, but they also were introduced to the concepts of friction, patterns of motion, and wheel and axle systems.