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Ko Olina Film Festival Supports Neonatal Unit

Last month, keiki and their families flocked to the first-ever Ko Olina Children’s Film and Music Festival, and that attendance also helped raise money for Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children.

In addition to enjoying the films, games and activities, the more than 3,000 attendees should know they helped support a neonatal intensive care unit in the hospital’s new building – and it will be named KORA, after Ko Olina Resort Association.

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Honoka Katayama and Azita Ganjali delight the crowd with their ukulele concert. Photos by Martin Shelley.

At the end of the festival, KORA president Jeffrey Stone presented a $50,000 check to Kapiolani for its Campaign for Hawaii’s Children – a capital campaign to rebuild the hospital.

“This festival was envisioned to be a celebration of the creativity and joy of film and music,” stated Stone. “The support we received – from both kamaaina and visiting families – was overwhelming. We are so delighted to contribute to the future of Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children and its dynamic efforts to provide high-quality healthcare to our island keiki and their ohana.”

Kapiolani’s capital campaign has raised more than $29 million so far, toward a goal of $30 million. The neonatal and pediatric intensive care unit building currently is under construction and is slated to be completed in the spring of 2016.

“We are extremely thankful for this generous donation and also grateful for the opportunity to touch members of our community by giving them the joy of musical entertainment, film and education in one beautiful location – Ko Olina – to support our mission of caring for Hawaii’s women and children,” stated Martha Smith, CEO of Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children. “Our patients and families depend on the experts in our hospital to be there for them for generations, and we can make that happen with people like visionary Jeff Stone and the Stone family, and the leadership of the Ko Olina Resort Association, plus all the wonderful people from our own community who attended the event.”