Carol W.P.
“Dear Governor Lingle,
My 17-year old son was visiting Kauai with friends on vacation in June 2006 when an awful accident happened to him. On June 17th, he nearly drowned at a swimming hole with a waterfall/rope swing near Princeville. He was airlifted that night to Honolulu to Kaiser Moanalua Medical Center for treatment. He remained in the hospital for two weeks, the first of which was in the Critical Care Unit. My husband and I immediately flew out from Colorado to be with our son. The uncertainty and the medical complications were very hard on my family. We were alone without family and friends in a strange place.
I am writing in part to express our great appreciation for the excellent care that our son received (and we received) at Kaiser Moanalua Hospital. We were very impressed by the caring, compassion, and competence shown by all the doctors, nurses, social workers, chaplains, and other staff who took care of our son. I have also written notes of appreciation to the managers at Kaiser Moanalua Hospital.
We also want to greatly commend the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii. We met Jessica Lani Rich, the President of the Society, in the early days of my son’s stay in the hospital. She was a wonderful support person and helped us through an awful time, especially after my husband had to return home to Colorado to care for our younger son. Every day she and her husband were in contact with us. By arranging for a discount rate at a local hotel (our thanks to the Best Western Plaza), Jessica helped alleviate financial stresses, and she and her husband went out of their way to also help alleviate our emotional stresses in dealing with our son’s hospitalization. They were a great help and the only reason I could get through this difficult time. My son Tucker and I have resumed our life with our family in Colorado, but we will never forget how Jessica and her husband looked after us and helped us in our time of need. I hope that Jessica Lani Rich can be acknowledged for her great contributions towards the goodwill of tourists to the islands and her humanitarian contributions for helping those in need. She and her staff on a daily basis help alleviate the suffering of people who are dealing with death or loss.
While in Honolulu we also received tremendous support from the First Presbyterian Church. Pastors Chang and Sim were also of great help to us in getting through our son’s hospitalization. I visited their wonderful church and was impressed by their outreach to a stranger.
Thanks to all of these people, we found Hawaii to be a wonderful and enchanting place to visit, and expect to return one day under better circumstances.”
Carol W. P. (Evergreen, Colorado)