Hale Lako: UH Hilo Student Supply Store provides food, school supplies, clothes, at no cost; open Tuesdays 3-6p
Items in the store are donated by UH Hilo faculty, staff, students, and the surrounding community to ease students’ worries about essentials and help them focus on succeeding in school.
By Susan Enright/UH Hilo Stories.
This fall semester, University of Hawaiʻi at Hilo’s Student Supply Store will be open every Tuesday, starting August 22, from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m.
Hale Lako is located in Portable Building 22 by the Student Life Center.
UH Hilo students can choose from non-perishable goods, school supplies, clothing, pet supplies (for emotional support animals), personal items such as soap and laundry detergent, and more, at no cost. Student are asked to bring student identification or proof of enrollment and a reusable bag.
Items in the store are donated by UH Hilo faculty, staff, students, and the surrounding community to ease students’ worries about essentials and help them focus on succeeding in school.
“This store offers free items to students, no questions asked, many of which are basic needs,” says Lissa Tsutsumi, assistant professor of applied agricultural sciences and a lead organizer of Hale Lako. “Student workers and volunteers assist in the process of collecting donations and maintaining the store.”
Tsutsumi says the mission of the supply store is not only to provide basic needs, but also, “hopefully, spread the message of reduce, reuse, recycle and sustainability.”
Students are asked to bring, when they visit the store, their food waste, which is used for compost offered at the store, lightly used cleaned items, and HI-5 cans, bottles, and plastics for the store.
Physical donations for Hale Lako can be dropped off during operation hours or at the College of Agriculture, Forestry, and Natural Resource Management office area breezeway any time or day of the week.
Story by Susan Enright, public information specialist for the Office of the Chancellor and editor of UH Hilo Stories. She received her bachelor of arts in English and certificate in women’s studies from UH Hilo.
