LIHU‘E — Even if Kaua‘i residents missed the free virtual COVID-19 CARES Act Seminar from Gather Federal Credit Union, financial advice is on tap for residents through their certified Financial Advisor Rylen Yamamoto of Retirement Benefits Group.
GFCU is also helping out the Kaua‘i community in many other ways, including partnering to support community food deliveries and helping residents apply for grant programs.
Yamamoto hosted the free virtual seminar on Thursday for people interested in learning about the rules and options of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act as it pertains to accessing 401(k) and IRA assets.
GFCU Business Development Manager Stephenie Brown said Yamamoto will be available for future financial counseling in person “when the pandemic is over,” and that the information could be helpful for those whose spouses lost their jobs or for those who are unemployed and are considering the use of their retirement accounts.
“He will be flying to Kaua‘i from O‘ahu to help our Kaua‘i ‘ohana reach their financial goals (after the pandemic), but for now they can call him to inquire,” said Brown.
Yamamoto said his goal is to create a friendly and pressure-free conversation to “help each individual meet their financial goals. and I have the ability to pick and strategize which investments are suitable for their goals.”
“Growing up with both my parents, they were city and state workers. They did the right things, but there were a lot better ways they could have taken advantage or better utilized the resources they had,” said Yamamoto, explaining he wants to help people make smarter decisions with their money. “They might have felt they were not smart enough or had enough money to invest.”
GFCU has also been supporting the community through the Aina Ho‘okupu O Kilauea, helping to pack and deliver community-supported agriculture produce boxes. That program, Brown said, started with boxes for six kupuna, and has now grown to delivering CSA boxes to more than 120 kupuna a week.
“I helped my friend Megan Wong, who partnered up with Neil Norman of Hawai‘i Life and other North Shore individuals who donated to the CSA project,” said Brown.
Brown said GFCU has also been helping its members by keeping their branches open, adding hours, and getting creative with their resources.
“We adjusted to make our Lihu‘e branch a temporary call-center hub to accommodate our high volume of calls,” said Brown. “We added kupuna-only hours and extended our drive-thru teller hours.”
GFCU has also successfully processed 125 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loans for a total distribution of $3.4 million. Applications are still being accepted online at gatherfcu.org.
The credit union is also one of four on Kaua‘i helping residents apply for the recently announced Small Business Boost Grant Program funded through the County of Kaua‘i’s share of the federal CARES Act funding.
Brown said that, now through the end of the year, GFCU is making a $2 donation to the Kaua‘i Chamber of Commerce for every new membership.
“We recognize that funds are needed, and we want to help,” said Brown. “On behalf of Gather FCU, we would like to send a very special mahalo to you, our Kaua‘i Chamber of Commerce, for your hard work, and all that you have done to keep all of us informed.”
For the past 20 years, GFCU and its community members have contributed $429,663 of fundraised monies to the Wilcox Health Foundation, and last year raised over $50,000 in their annual golf tournament to support the creation of Wilcox Hospitals Level III Trauma Center with specialty spaces for behavioral health, infectious control, pediatrics and OB-GYN care.
“This facility will be the first of its kind for Kaua‘i,” said Brown.
Brown also said that, last year, GFCU staff donated over 1,500 hours of unpaid community service.
“It is who we are,” said Brown. “It reflects those who have come before us.”
GFCU plans grand openings to new branches in Koloa in September behind the old Lappert’s Hawai‘i ice cream store, and in Kilauea across the post office by the end of this month, as well as the upcoming installation of the shared branching network, which will give members access to over 30,000 ATMs nationwide and 6,000 participating branches at no charge to members.
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Stephanie Shinno, features and community reporter, can be reached at 245-0424 or sshinno@thegardenisland.com.
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