Dozens of students, faculty, and staff participated in University of Hawai‘i–West O‘ahu’s Turkey Trot, an event that successfully supported UH West O‘ahu’s basic needs efforts with hundreds of donated clothing and food items collected for the UH West O‘ahu Basic Needs Pantry, which supports students facing food and basic resource insecurity.
The Turkey Trot, which took place on Nov. 24 on designated paths around campus, was hosted by UH West O‘ahu’s Recreation, Fitness and Wellness office. Health, fitness and wellness student employees collaborated with the office to plan and organize the event.
“Our main goal for the Turkey Trot was to create a fun and active way for our UH West O‘ahu community to come together while supporting local families in need,” said Kelly Akana, student lead with Health and Campus Recreation at UH West O‘ahu. “With the holidays often being a challenging time to stay active and prioritize health, we wanted this event to encourage wellness while giving back.”
A University of Hawai‘i System report, released in 2025 by Drs. Albie Miles and Konstantinos Zougris, professors from UH West O‘ahu, reveals that many students continue to face significant challenges meeting their basic needs, including food, housing, healthcare, hygiene, clothing, transportation and technology. The study found that 60% of students experienced at least one form of food insecurity, with 40% reporting going hungry in the past year due to lack of money; and 25% struggled with clothing insecurity, sometimes missing class as a result.
The Turkey Trot drew 54 student participants and 29 faculty and staff participants. Students who signed up received free pies from Liliha Bakery, and some also earned extra credit from their respective classes. Faculty and staff participants were encouraged to make donations — non-perishable food items, clothing, or cash — and were entered into a random drawing to receive donated gifts and gift certificates.
Event organizers estimated that they collected about 400 units (using the Hawai‘i Food Bank scale where 1 unit = 1 pound or 1 dollar) of donations, including:
- Non-perishable food: 304 items
- Rice: 8 bags of 5 pounds each, and 5 bags of 10 pounds each
- Clothing: 108 items
“It was great to see that this idea I had to establish better awareness for our food vault using the Turkey Trot came true,” said Recreation, Fitness and Wellness Coordinator Ryan Perreira.
Perreira said with the help of his student employees, led by Akana; Stacey Kelly with Campus Health Services; Chancellor Maenette Benham; Vice Chancellor for Administration David McDonald; and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Dee Uwono, “this became a great success and potentially an event that will bring more support for our student basic needs program.”
Perreira extended a warm mahalo to everyone who participated in the Turkey Trot.
Akana added, “We were excited to see such strong participation this year, and we’re grateful for everyone who donated. The turnout and generosity truly showed how committed our students, faculty, and staff are to wellness and supporting our community.”
For more information about UH West O‘ahu’s student basic needs efforts and resources, email imwest@hawaii.edu or uhwobn@hawaii.edu.
To see more photos from the event, visit the Turkey Trot 2025 photo album on Flickr.
