FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
“Fuel the Future,” a Month-Long Fundraiser
to Support Public Schools of Hawaii Foundation
at All Participating Hele Stores Statewide from Feb. 1 – 29, 2024
Honolulu, Hawaii — Par Hawaii and Hele stores will hold a month-long fundraiser called “Fuel the Future,” for the Public Schools of Hawaii Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides financial support for a diverse range of programs to give students in public schools enriching learning experiences. The fundraiser begins on Thursday, Feb. 1, and continues through Thursday, Feb. 29.
Customers and others in the community can make contributions at any participating Hele store statewide. Par Hawaii will match the first $10,000 that is raised. All proceeds will benefit Hawai‘i public schools.
“Providing a quality education for our children is important to all families,” said John Peyton, vice president – Hawaii retail. We’re glad to be partnering with the Public Schools of Hawaii Foundation so that teachers can have the resources they need to instruct and inspire the next generation of leaders and to help students realize their dreams. We’re excited about the opportunity to ‘fuel the future.’”
One of the Public Schools of Hawaii Foundation’s signature programs is the Good Idea Grants program, which provides resources for public school teachers to develop and implement innovative programs that they develop on their own.
“Teachers know what types of programs will inspire their students. We are very thankful to the Par Hawaii ‘ohana for their overwhelming support of Hawaii’s public schools so that we can award teachers for their ingenuity. All funds raised will be used to underwrite Good Idea Grants and our other programs to provide public school teachers with the financial resources they need to help create environments of high achievement, elevated learning, and eye-opening discoveries,” said Ken Hiraki, executive director of the Public Schools of Hawaii Foundation. “Without these grants, teachers would have to pay for the equipment and materials themselves to bring their Good Ideas to life or may decide to forgo the project altogether.”
Hiraki noted that since 2016, the Public School of Hawaii Foundation has provided more than $5 million in grants to public elementary, middle and high school teachers across the state.
In addition to the Good Idea Grants, the Foundation also creates other opportunities for teachers and students by partnering with Design Thinking Bootcamp, Altino Coding, Aloha Artificial Intelligence, Genome Science Labs, Oahu Math League and other organizations.
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About Par Hawaii
Par Hawaii, which ranked first in the Hawaii Business Top 250 company in terms of revenue, is the state’s leading provider of transportation fuels. It is headquartered in Honolulu and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Houston, Texas-based Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. Par Hawaii owns the state’s only petroleum refinery in Kapolei, Oahu, and is investing $90 million to reconfigure one of the refinery’s processing units to produce plant-based renewable fuels by 2025. Par Hawaii’s statewide fuel distribution system includes pipelines on Oahu and storage facilities on all major neighbor islands. It markets gasolilne, diesel, and biodiesel through its network of 76 and Hele retail stations throughout Hawaii, and operates the Hele convenience stores. Visit www.ParHawaii.com.
About the Public Schools of Hawaii Foundation
The Public Schools of Hawaii Foundation was founded in 1986 as a community-based nonprofit organization to strengthen the quality of public education in Hawaii by advancing innovation from within. The Foundation’s programs and initiatives are designed to encourage those in public education to continually challenge themselves in their pursuit of educational excellence. The Foundation will also equip students with the skills necessary to navigate into the future. Visit: www.pshf.org