HCAP WEEKLY September 23, 2024

Kumuhonua Resident Assisted With Retrieving Documents for Benefits
Pauoa STEM Gastronomy Friday: Making Guacamole
Give Aloha to HCAP at Foodland this September
Head Start and the Garden of Caterpillars
Curiosity and scientific discovery were the focal points at the Palolo I classroom this week. The Head Start children visited their classroom garden and were surprised to find several caterpillars and string beans. While collecting the string beans and several milkweed leaves, they carefully brought the caterpillars into their classroom.
As an extension of their learning, they hypothesized on whether the caterpillars would eat the string beans as well as the milkweed leaves. While awaiting results, the children drew colorful images of their observations.
Several images included the string beans, milkweed leaves and the caterpillars. The following morning, the children discovered that caterpillars do not eat string beans and prefer milkweed leaves instead. Such extensions of learning promote cognitive and fine motor development that allow children to build confidence in their abilities and understanding of the world around them.
Click here to learn more about Head Start and Early Head Start.
Kumuhonua Resident Assisted With Retrieving Documents for Benefits
The HCAP staff at Kumuhonua Transitional Living Center (KTLC) congratulates Wayne for achieving the goals he set when he entered KTLC in August 2024. When Wayne first arrived, he lacked essential documents and had no source of income. With the help of his case manager, Carolyn Pule, Wayne has since opened his own checking account, reinstated his social security benefits, and replaced his EBT card. He is now working with Legal Aid to obtain a Hawai’i ID and birth certificate.
Wayne expressed his deep gratitude for the support he has received from KTLC and has stated that he could not have made all this progress alone, especially with his medical challenges. His case manager, Carolyn, reminded Wayne it’s not how we start, but how we finish and by taking one step at a time you will accomplish all you set out to do. Congratulations once again, Wayne!
Click here to learn more about KTLC.
Pauoa STEM Gastronomy Friday: Making Guacamole
At Pauoa Hā Initiative: Creative STEM After-School Program, students at Honolulu STEM made guacamole from scratch and enjoyed chips and salsa on the side for Gastronomy Friday. Every week, the class chooses a simple recipe to make every Friday. During each gastronomy lesson, students will learn about the cultural history of each dish, the science behind heating, freezing, baking, or frying different foods, the nutritional facts about its ingredients, and how to wash, peel, cut, and present their final product.
For their lesson on guacamole, students practiced slicing and dicing tomatoes, avocados, and onions. Then they learned about how adding salt and lime to their dish not only helps to balance the flavors of the ingredients, but how the acid in the lime slows down the avocado oxidation, which is the process by which an avocado turns brown when its flesh is exposed to oxygen. Students also made observations about the avocado seed and were able to take it home to plant.
While students had the most fun getting to eat their lesson, they also got to learn more about each other while working in groups. Students found that some of their peers only liked guacamole, while others only chose to eat the salsa. A few students didn’t want to try either of the recipes and opted for eating plain chips.
Click here to learn more about Hā Initiative.
Give Aloha to HCAP at Foodland this September
Support HCAP while you shop at Foodland! Now through September 30, Maikaʻi Card members are invited to make donations up to $249 at checkout to participating nonprofit organizations through Give Aloha, Foodland’s Annual Community Matching Gifts program.
To donate to HCAP at checkout, show your Maikaʻi Card and give your cashier our code: 77207. Foodland will match a portion of your gift, and every donation will help HCAP continue to assist low-income Oʻahu families in achieving self-sufficiency.
Mahalo for your ongoing support of HCAP! To help us spread the word about Give Aloha, share our posts on Facebook and Instagram.