It all started with a pact.
In the early 1980s, Jim Worley and his wife, Kathy, were making their mark in Maui’s real estate market. The couple had moved to Hawaii in 1978 after a former colleague convinced Worley to switch careers. As an executive in manufacturing for a multinational firm, Worley had held 22 job titles in 19 years in three countries.
“I was ready for a change,” he said. “Real estate turned out to be a good fit for both of us.”
One afternoon, while showing a property to a prospective homebuyer, Worley said that he and Kathy had an epiphany.
“We decided that if we were going to make a living selling houses, we were going to do something for those who were struggling” he said. “So we made a pact to give back and try to help.”
It didn’t take long for the pieces to fall into place.
“Kathy said, ‘Let’s start feeding the homeless,’ ” he recalled. “So that’s what she decided to do.”
Soon after, she had a stove installed at St. Theresa Church in Kihei, where she started cooking and serving meals to anyone who needed one, no questions asked.
“Since then, they’ve served one hot meal a night, seven days a week with over 1,300,000 served to date,” Worley said. “They’ve also started delivering meals to people’s homes.”
Eventually, Worley decided to take it a step further: He joined the new board of the Ka Hale A Ke Ola (“The House That Desires Life”) Homeless Resource Center. In 1986, the nonprofit organization – with only $26 in the bank – opened the doors to its first facility in a renovated Catholic church on the edge of a cane field in Puunene. In its first five years, the organization sheltered, fed and clothed more than 3,600 residents in need. Worley, who served as chairman of the board from 1993 to 1995 and then again from 2005 to 2008, made it his mission to help Maui’s homeless and hungry through Ka Hale A Ke Ola.
Soon, Worley, along with his fellow board members, came to a realization: In order to break the cycle of homelessness, Ka Hale A Ke Ola residents would need more than just “sheets and eats” to develop stability in their lives.
“There are different levels of homelessness,” he explained. “At the bottom is chronic homelessness, then there’s emergency situations, where individuals suddenly have no place to go . . . and then transitional levels for training and other help.”
With that in mind, Ka Hale A Ke Ola started offering life skills classes, which ran (and still run) the gamut from managing finances to parenting tips and strategies. The objective, Worley said, was to emphasize the importance of education and accountability – a philosophy that carries on today.
“Our goal has always been to give a hand up, not just a handout,” he said.
In 1992, the organization broke ground on a new facility in Wailuku, and one year later, Ka Hale A Ke Ola Central opened its doors to individuals and families in need. A few years later, the 200-unit Hale Makana O Waiale Affordable Rental Housing facility opened next door to the center. It now provides permanent rental housing to low-income individuals and families – many of whom are former resource center residents.
In 2005, the organization welcomed the addition of Ka Hale A Ke Ola Westside in Lahaina. Like its Wailuku counterpart, there are affordable rental housing units next door.
In addition to its emergency housing (a basic emergency shelter for residents in crisis) and transitional housing (for residents who need to stay for six weeks or more) programs, the comprehensive resource center offers a chemical dependency education program, counseling services and adult education and training, as well as a primary care medical clinic and child care facilities.
“These services are absolutely critical,” Worley said. “These programs help keep this island from looking like Oahu.”
According to a report compiled by the state Department of Human Services earlier this year, there are an estimated 1,137 homeless individuals on Maui, an increase of 12 percent from 2014. Between April 2014 and March 2015, Ka Hale A Ke Ola served 715 individuals, including 154 children, at its emergency shelters; another 750 individuals, including 275 children, were served through its transitional housing program.
“What the staff are doing, they are doing well,” Worley said. “And they will keep doing it as long as it’s needed.”
He said there are strict house rules at each center, including “no drugs, no booze and no violence.” If you pay a visit to Ka Hale A Ke Ola Central, you’ll find a clean, spacious and well-managed property consisting of six residential buildings flanked by staff offices, common areas and a dining hall. There’s a good chance you’ll find Worley there, too, either meeting with his fellow board members or providing other support.
“There’s an overwhelming sense of gratitude,” he said. “I guess there’s no way to describe how appreciative the people are there – you’d have to see it for yourself.”
Ka Hale A Ke Ola is just one of Worley’s passions. He was a founding board member of Hospice Maui, as well as its second president. He’s also served on the boards of the Maui Arts & Cultural Center, the Banyan Tree Square Preservation Committee and the Maui Economic Development Board.
Worley’s decadeslong philanthropic efforts have not gone unnoticed. This year, he was the recipient of the Rotary Club of Kahului’s 2015 Michael H. Lyons II Palaka Award. The award, which honors late community leader Mike Lyons, pays tribute to residents who volunteer their time and talents to make a positive impact on the lives of others.
“There are many volunteers on Maui who give back,” Worley said. “There’s no greater feeling than knowing you’re making a difference for others.”
For more information about the Ka Hale A Ke Ola Homeless Resource Center, call (808) 242-7600 or visit www.khako.org.
& Sarah Ruppenthal is a Maui-based writer and instructor at the University of Hawaii Maui College. Do you have an interesting neighbor? Tell us about them at missruppenthal@gmail.com. Neighbors and “The State of Aloha,” written by Ben Lowenthal, alternate Fridays.
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