Humanity Hale, a Hawaiʻi Island nonprofit dedicated to healing trauma and helping at-risk youth, was established in 2019 as a refuge for keiki who were dealing with trauma or instability. Over the past seven years, it has grown to be a place of culturally grounded preventative care that provides education, therapy, life skill development and mentorship.
The organization is now looking for land to develop transitional housing for youth aging out of foster care.
Charis Higginson, its founder and executive director, said Humanity Hale raised over $100,000 and its recent gala, bringing its fund for land acquisition to $500,000.
“We don’t want the youth to be lumped into the same category as adults because kids age out and face homelessness, and we’re trying to reach that demographic before they can even step out into the streets,” Higginson said. “So the longer it takes to find land, the more we’re at risk of losing another youth to homelessness and addiction.”
Higginson added that there are little to no transitional housing opportunities for foster youth who are about to age out of the system on Hawaiʻi Island’s west side, as most are on the Hilo side of the island.
She said reaching out to at-risk demographics like these is imperative when trying to provide preventative work, rather than focusing only on reactive solutions.
“If we want to evolve into a community that takes care of our people and is committed to the mental well-being of our citizens, then we can’t just continue doing the things we’ve been doing for the past 40 years,” Higginson said. “I will work tirelessly until we don’t have any more youth homelessness, because homeless children shouldn’t have even been a thing in the first place.”
The organization is looking for three to five acres on which to develop the housing project. It will also house a community center and a group foster home down the line.
