Honoka‘a temple fundraiser returns with garage sale, silent auction

The Honoka‘a Hongwanji Buddhist Temple’s biggest fundraiser of the year brought the Hāmākua community back to its Social Hall on Lehua Street, where shoppers found furniture, art, rummage items, clothing, collectibles, plants and baked goods. The annual Garage Sale and Silent Auction, held Sunday, June 14, also opened the temple’s basement store, widening the range of donated items available to residents who came through the doors.

The event matters well beyond bargain hunting. Money raised helps sustain one of Honoka‘a’s long-running cultural institutions and the programs that keep it woven into daily life, from monthly services to community gatherings at 45-516 Lehua St. A custom-crafted ukulele made by an artisan from Kailua-Kona was one of the auction’s standout items, adding a local touch to a fundraiser built on donated goods and volunteer labor.

That volunteer network reaches into some of the temple’s most visible community work. Feeding Our Keiki and Kupuna has distributed more than 100,000 meals and 1 million pounds of groceries over the past seven years, and a May 2026 report said the program prepares, plates and delivers meals and groceries every Friday to more than 225 households. The weekly effort now serves more than 500 meals and about 2 tons of groceries through drive-thru, delivery and walk-up options.

The temple’s civic reach extends beyond food relief. The Honoka‘a Hongwanji Peace Committee has produced the Peace Day Parade and Festival since 2007, and the temple says the event will return Sept. 19, 2026 in Honoka‘a Town for its 20th year. Support for Peace Day comes from the County of Hawai‘i, the Committee on Social Concerns of Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawai‘i and the Honokaa Business Association, underscoring the broad partnerships that keep the event afloat.

Honoka‘a Hongwanji’s roots run deep in town. Informal services began in 1904 under Reverend Joei Abe, and the formal temple was built in 1905 with Reverend Keigetsu Shibata as Honoka‘a’s first resident minister. More than a century later, the temple remains part of a statewide Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawai‘i network that includes more than 30 temples, schools and charitable organizations.

The temple’s volunteer page says it needs help with projects of all skill levels and names Miles and Bernice as contacts for people willing to donate time, talents or money. In Honoka‘a, that kind of call has become part of the rhythm of community life, linking a garage sale to meals, cultural continuity and the steady work of keeping local institutions strong.