Hawai‘i Non-Profits Encouraged to Apply for Grants in April

Honolulu (March 12, 2024) – Nonprofit organizations focused on improving Hawai‘i residents’ access to technology and health & wellbeing are encouraged to apply for a grant from Hawaiian Telcom powered by the Bell Charitable Foundation.

Bell Charitable Foundation, launched by Hawaiian Telcom’s parent company altafiber to support nonprofit organizations in areas where its companies provide service, offers grants twice a year. The upcoming application period for technology, and health and wellbeing grants is April 1 to 31, 2024. Eligible entities are U.S.-based, tax-exempt, nonprofit organizations as defined in the Internal Revenue Code. For additional requirements and information, please visit: bellfdn.org/.

“Hawaiian Telcom has a long tradition of giving back to the communities we serve, and we are pleased to continue building on this legacy with the Bell Charitable Foundation,” said Su Shin, Hawaiian Telcom President and Bell Charitable Foundation Board Member. “These grants enable us to make a more focused impact in areas we believe are essential for our local communities to thrive and grow.”

Hawaiian Telcom has given nearly $210,000 in grants powered by the Bell Charitable Foundation including $140,000 in digital equity grants in celebration of the company’s 140-year anniversary in 2023.

Click here for B-roll of the grant presentation.

About $500,000 in grants will be available across all geographies in 2024. Grants support organizations that are making an impact in one of four pillars:

Access to Technology - Projects that improve access to, literacy in, and advancement of technology.

Health and Wellbeing - Projects that promote access to quality care and improve mental, physical, and emotional health for all members of our communities.

Economic and Social Mobility - Projects that intend to lift at-risk populations to higher stability, status and success in their economic or social standing.

Environmental Sustainability - Projects that intend to diminish the harm made to the earth and nature in our communities, or improve access to nature spaces.

Last year Hawaiian Telcom gave Special Olympics Hawai‘i a $20,000 health & wellbeing grant to improve the physical and social-emotional wellbeing of people with intellectual disabilities by providing health screenings and clinician training.

“Sports training and competition get our athletes active and this grant really drives at the heart of our mission of providing quality care so they can be quality athletes,” said Dan Epstein, President & CEO of Special Olympics Hawai‘i.

The application period for economic and social mobility, and environmental sustainability grants is from October 1 to 31, 2024. For questions about Hawaiian Telcom grants powered by the Bell Charitable Foundation, please contact Geraldine Ibarra at geraldine.ibarra@hawaiiantel.com.

About Hawaiian Telcom
Established by King David Kalākaua in 1883, Hawaiian Telcom, a locally managed legacy company, has served Hawaiʻi’s telecommunications needs for over 140 years. Headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaiian Telcom delivers communications solutions, including high-speed internet, video, voice, data network solutions and security, managed and cloud services to residential, business and wholesale customers over its statewide future-proof fiber network. Hawaiian Telcom has expanded the possibilities of community connectivity, offering the fastest, most reliable connection available through its resilient, weather-proof fiber network.

Hawaiian Telcom has made a significant investment in the state, from building local infrastructure, including laying new undersea cables across the Pacific to Asia, to making strides in closing the digital divide by expanding its services statewide and supporting local organizations with programs focused on digital equity. Since 2017, between grants and sponsorships, Hawaiian Telcom has given more than $5.5 million to support nonprofits and charitable initiatives across Hawaiʻi. For more information, visit hawaiiantel.com.

Media Contact:   

Ann Nishida Fry
(808) 285-9289 cell / Ann.nishida@hawaiiantel.com