The Molokai Humane Society operates a clinic out of two converted 40-foot shipping containers in an open field near the Hoolehua Airport. One serves as a small office and exam room, and the other offers a surgical suite and recovery area that runs off a generator.
WINGS FOR WISHES
A Mokulele Airlines benefit concert for the Molokai Humane Society featuring Anuhea and special guest the Mobettah Band:
>> When: 7 p.m. Friday.
>> Where: Hotel Molokai, 1300 Kamehameha V Highway, Kaunakakai
>> Prices: $35-$35 at the door; VIP $60 (includes prime seating, autographed photos and meet and gre et with Anuhea)
>> Info: MolokaiHumaneSociety.org or 558-0000
It’s a bare-bones operation, but since its founding in 1981, the nonprofit agency has been able to help animals in need. Its mission is “building humane and caring bonds between the people and animals of Molokai through education, community outreach and the prevention of cruelty to animals.”
The society is self-supporting, relying on the help of volunteers, donations and fundraisers, such as a Wings for Wishes concert by Anuhea set for Friday, hosted by Mokulele Airlines at Paddlers Inn in Kaunakakai.
“We run at a bare minimum,” said Executive Director Hoala Davis. “The money we receive keeps the staff afloat, the facilities functioning, the medications stocked. Everything we have we put back into the community and the animals.”
Davis said it’s not uncommon to find boxes of abandoned puppies — she calls them “Molokai bush puppies” — on the side of the road, and animals are also left at beaches and near hotels.
Sometimes dog owners are caught off guard by how large a litter of puppies is, she said, and other times pets get abandoned when a family moves away or falls on hard times.
The Molokai Humane Society offers basic medical care, spay and neuter services, education and advocacy. A staff of five runs the clinic, which opened in 2007 and lacks equipment like X-ray machines. Without a full-time vet on the island, the organization pays to fly one in to provide lifesaving services.
The agency’s land lease does not allow an animal shelter, so a network of volunteers was established to provide foster care to animals — mostly dogs but also a few cats. The limited population makes it challenging to find “forever” homes, so the Humane Society, through a partnership with Mokulele Airlines, sends animals to partner organizations on Maui and the mainland.
Davis says adoptable animals have been sent to the Maui Humane Society and the Hawaii Animal Rescue Foundation.
Tickets for Friday’s Anuhea concert are $30 in advance, $35 at the door and $60 for a VIP package. Doors open at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the Hotel Molokai; for more information, call 558-0000 or check molokaihumanesociety.org.
Organizers said every dollar in ticket sales will go to the Molokai Humane Society for spay and neutering services and medical care. Donations can also be made at the agency’s website.