Since 1998, Hawaii’s credit unions raised $1,558,333 for Kapiolani Children's Miracle Network

Children are precious gifts and represent our hope for the future. Even those who don’t have kids are “aunty” or “uncle” to these little ones, whether related or not.

Since 1998, Hawaii credit unions have come together to support Kapiolani Children’s Miracle Network. Under a national initiative called Credit Unions for Kids, Hawaii credit unions large and small have united to raise funds for Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children—Hawaii’s only Children’s Miracle Network Hospital.

Kapiolani Fast Facts

• Kapiolani Medical Center is Hawaii’s only CMN Hospital
• 6,200 babies are born each year at Kapiolani Medical Center
• Over 950 newborn babies spend at least one night in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) away from their families
• For infants born weighing under 3.3lbs, the average stay in the NICU is 75.9 days
• Diamond Head Tower opened July 2016 with 70 private NICU rooms
• More than 45,000 families rush their loved ones to Hawaii’s only Emergency Room staffed with Pediatric Emergency Specialists
• Each year, the Transport Team provides critical medical transport to Kapiolani by air and ambulance for 3,538 infants and children

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Special Kapiolani Children's Miracle Network Fundraiser 
Through December, 2022 to honor life of Martha Smith
Click here to donate through the League's fundraising page 
Create your own fundraising page!

Martha Smith was Hawaii Pacific Health Care System’s executive vice president of Oahu operations and chief executive officer of Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children, Pali Momi Medical Center, and Straub Medical Center. Sadly, she passed away in March of this year at age 63.

One of Martha’s most significant accomplishments was the development of the Diamond Head Tower at Kapiolani as a preeminent health care center for women and children. It was designed as a space that supported family-centered care for patients, families, and staff.

In the fall of 2013, Hawaii Credit Unions for Kids pledged to raise $500,000 in five years to help build the Diamond Head Tower. Martha was there at our “5 In 5” kickoff meeting, sharing the vision of the new tower and the architectural rendition of the building. In 2016, Martha led a “hard hat tour” of the tower construction site for League board and management. When Hawaii Credit Unions for Kids raised an astonishing $535,444 in less than five years, Martha expressed genuine appreciation when the check was presented, and the commemorative plaque was unveiled naming Hawaii Credit Unions for Kids as a contributing donor in the completed Diamond Head Tower.

To honor the memory of Martha Smith, Hawaii Credit Unions for Kids has embarked on a special fundraising initiative to benefit Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children. Martha was a cancer patient, and our goal is to raise $140,000 to purchase a breast ultrasound (US) machine for the hospital in her name.

Hawaii credit unions have held fantastic fundraising activities in the past and we look forward to great activities for this special initiative. Our fundraising initiative began on August 2, 2021 and will run through the end of December 2022. To date, we have raised $91,882 and with your continued support, we will reach our $140,000 goal by the end of this year. 

Please click here to download photos, graphics, fundraising tips, and an order form for free fundraising supplies.

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Current Kapiolani Children's Miracle Network Marketing 
Meet Xander Cabales, 2022 Children's Miracle Network Champion from Hawaii

Kapiolani Patient Xander Cabales Named Hawaii’s 2022 Children’s Miracle Network Champion

Xander Cabales says his mission in life is to inspire others. The 15-year-old will do just that over the next year as he serves as the Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) Champion for Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children. Xander accepted the prestigious role in front of Kapiolani staff members today at the medical center’s auditorium. He will share his courageous story throughout the coming year, inspiring countless CMN community partners and supporters committed to the health and well-being of Hawaii’s keiki.
“It’s important for me to talk about all of the things that Kapiolani Medical Center for Women & Children did for me to get where I am right now,” the high school sophomore said.

When he was 7 years old, Xander came down with a fever and, by the next morning, his temperature spiked to 105 degrees. A severe rash began covering his body. Then, the skin around his eyes and mouth began to soften and shed, while his breathing became shallow. Doctors at Kapiolani diagnosed Xander with the life-threatening skin disorder Stevens-Johnson syndrome (SJS) and, later, toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN), a severe form of SJS that only affects about one in a million people each year. Due to the infection, Xander lost 60% of his skin. He spent four weeks on life support in the Kapiolani Pediatric Intensive Care Unit before showing signs of responsiveness. His family attributes his miraculous recovery to the team of Kapiolani specialists who cared for their son. “The medical staff instilled hope in us,” said his dad, Ronnie Cabales. “They gave us Xander back. They saved our son.” Xander’s infection had severely damaged his eyes, skin, lungs and esophagus, requiring the care of several specialists at Kapiolani, including pediatric ophthalmologist Dr. David Young. “Given the rarity of this disease and how severe it can be for children, this was the place to be,” Young said. “We were able to coordinate all the different specialties – infectious disease, ophthalmology and the nurses who specialize in children’s health – which is what the team at Kapiolani does on a regular basis for children in Hawaii.”

As his health improved, Xander had to relearn how to hold his head up, sit, walk, talk and eat. The rehabilitation and Child Life teams at Kapiolani used video games to motivate him to continue his difficult but necessary therapy. “Being able to play video games at Kapiolani was something I could enjoy and it was helping me get better,” said Xander, who today is a high school sophomore who practices jiu-jitsu and expresses his creativity through detailed drawings of dinosaurs, monsters and superheroes. Those who worked closest with Xander throughout his medical journey say his resilience and desire to pay it forward make him a natural choice for the role of the Kapi‘olani CMN Champion. “Xander is a great Champion for Kapiolani,” Young said. “He represents just how difficult some of these medical problems can be and how it takes a special place and a special person to be able to come out of that as well as he did.”

In addition to his family and Kapiolani ohana, Xander’s Champion launch included several surprises, including a trip to Orlando and Universal Studios, along with a video compilation featuring CMN fundraising partners from across the state congratulating the teen on his new role and rocking his signature sunglasses. “His fight and resilience after all he has been through is incredible,” said Carol Cairme of CMN partner Marriott’s Maui Ocean Club. “I don’t know him personally, but his smile tells me he’s marching through life, knocking down any walls that may be in his way and living life positively.”  As Xander embarks on his Champion year, he is most excited to share his message of positivity, kindness and resilience with others. “Through this, a lot of people can understand my story, and they can understand what a lot of kids in the hospital may have gone through,” Xander said. “Being able to show how much Kapiolani did and what they accomplished to help save me – that’s a really big part for me in being a Champion.”

As a not-for-profit medical center, Kapiolani relies on community support to further its mission of caring for Hawai‘i’s families and creating a healthier Hawaii. Kapiolani is committed to providing advanced, quality care to all patients, regardless of their ability to pay. In Hawaii, CMN funds help support key programs and services at Kapiolani, such as the Child Life program and critical care transport team, as well as lifesaving equipment. Gifts made in Hawaii, stay in Hawaii, with 100% of the funds going to help local keiki. Local fundraising partners Costco Wholesale, Panda Express, Walmart, Ace Hardware, Marriott Vacations Worldwide, Hawaii’s Credit Unions for Kids, KSSK with iHeart Media, D. Suehiro Electric and more helped raise nearly $3 million for Kapiolani CMN last year. Kapiolani has had a partnership with CMN for more than 35 years.

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In October 2013, Hawaii's credit unions pledged to raise $500,000 in five years (called the “5 In 5” initiative) for Kapiolani’s new state-of-the-art wing, which was under construction. By the end of 2016, the “5 In 5” posted an astonishing $536,444 in total donations—exceeding the original goal of $500,000 in less than five years! 

​Beyond the steel frames and beautiful glass windows of this building stands the real purpose of our 5 In 5 fundraising—to help bring healing to children in Hawaii and the Pacific. Upon reaching our fundraising goal, a plaque was installed in the new rehabilitation reception room of the hospital. It proudly bears the name “Hawaii’s Credit Unions for Kids” and stands as a lasting reminder of all the fundraising efforts of Hawaii’s credit unions.

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The Credit Unions for Kids/Kapiolani Children's Miracle Network continues to be a Hawaii Credit Union League community partner. Credit unions are encouraged to raise funds for Kapiolani Children's Miracle Network now and into the future. To help with your fundraising campaign, free marketing materials are available from Kapiolani Children's Miracle Network.  Download the order form here.
Donations can be submitted to:

Colette Forcier, Program Director/Kapiolani Children's Miracle Network
55 Merchant Street, Suite 2600
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813

If you have any questions, please contact Laurie Okawa Moore, HCUL Communications Officer at laurie.moore@hcul.org.  

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Credit Unions for Kids ® is the brand through which the credit union movement raises funds for our industry's charity of choice—Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. All the money raised by Hawaii credit unions stay in Hawaii to benefit the programs and services of Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children—the only Children's Miracle Network hospital serving all islands and the Pacific Basin. Fundraising also benefit the pediatric services of Wilcox Memorial Hospital on Kauai and myriad outreach programs that impact the lives of children on the neighbor islands. 
Credit Unions for Kids offers fundraising ideas and turnkey programs that help credit unions maximize fundraising efforts.  Please visit their web site for more information.