WILMINGTON — In the spirit of paying it forward, the Cape Fear community is raising funds for Maui wildfire relief efforts.
READ MORE: Willie’s son Lukas Nelson raises over $66,000 at Greenfield Lake benefit concert
In 2018, Lukas Nelson and Promise of the Real donated their time and talent to help Wilmington recover from Hurricane Florence. The band played a charity concert, which raised more than $65,000 in direct relief for the tri-county region.
To return the favor, program director of The Penguin 98.3 Beau Gunn has launched a GoFundMe page to collect donations for those impacted in Maui — an island Nelson calls home.
“Lukas and his band showed our community compassion in our time of need, so I just felt compelled to start this fundraiser in an effort to show him our community was there for him the same way they were there for us,” Gunn said.
Wilmington Mayor Bill Saffo echoed Gunn’s sentiment.
“Today, Lukas’ hometown is experiencing its own natural disaster, so I encourage those who are able to repay his kindness by supporting those affected by the wildfires on the island of Maui,” Saffo said.
As of Friday afternoon, the fundraiser has already surpassed its $15,000 goal with more than $16,000 from 323 donations, though Gunn encourages the community to keep contributing.
“We recently reached our goal, but in the spirit of giving and knowing how bad this community’s been devastated, we’re going to leave the fundraiser open in hopes of continuing to raise much needed relief,” he said.
All donations will go directly to the Hawaii Community Foundation’s “Maui Strong Fund.” Its purpose is to provide financial resources that can be deployed quickly and support shelter, food, financial assistance and additional services to Hawaiians in need. As of Thursday, the fund has $43.8 million in donations.
More than 100 people have been killed in the devastating wildfires, according to CNN. The death toll is expected to rise as emergency crews dig through more than 2,000 burned homes and businesses.
Hawaii Gov. Josh Green told CNN Wednesday there were probably more than 1,000 residents still unaccounted for. In total, the three wildfires — Lahaina, Pulehu and Upcountry — have consumed thousands of acres of land.
The Maui wildfires, noted as the nation’s deadliest in more than a century, started Aug. 8 just after midnight as a perfect storm of strong winds and dry conditions. Maui has been under a drought, according to the national Integrated Drought Information System.
The blaze’s official cause has not yet been determined, according to a report from Reuters.
[Full disclosure: 98.3 Penguin is the sister company of Port City Daily, run by Local Daily Media.]
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