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Record-Breaking $1.2 Million Raised at the 20th Annual Kapi‘olani Radiothon for Kids

Published Sept. 18, 2026

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[Title: Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids, 20 years of miracles. KSSK 92.3 Hawaiʻi. A packed room of
phone volunteers.]

[Karen Keawehawaiʻi, Michael W. Perry and Sweetie Pacarro, KSSK Perry and the Posse, cheer at the
radio desk.]

KSSK HOSTS: Hi, it's Mike, Karen, and Sweetie. Why are we here? It's the 20th anniversary of the
Kapiʻolani Radiothon!

[Sponsors hold up Double Match signs and a giant check. Volunteers take calls.]

RADIO HOST: By your donation, we can make miracles happen every single day, one dollar at a time.
One million dollars, two days to do it, and I know Hawaiʻi, you can do this.

[Hosts dance on stage. Volunteers cheer at the phone bank with a turtle mascot.]

MICHAEL W. PERRY, KSSK Radio Personality: This has been a fast 20 years, I've got to tell you, and
we built on it every year. And the things that they've been able to do with the money that we give
the people of Hawaiʻi is so spectacular and so touching.

[Phone volunteers take pledges. A girl hugs a woman.]

JILLIAN TAMARU, Senior Catering Sales Executive, Kyo-ya Hotels and Resorts: We here at Kyo-ya love
to give back to our community. We have everybody coming together just to raise more funds for the
20th anniversary. We really value the partnership that we have together.

[A boy in a wheelchair holds a teddy bear. Groups cheer with It's a Match and Radiothon signs.]

CROWD: Radiothon! Radiothon! Radiothon!

[A girl peeks through a gold balloon-shaped sign.]

SEELEY BORGES, Hawaiʻi's 2026 Children's Miracle Network Champion: Hi, I'm Seeley. I'm your
Children's Miracle Network Champion. Thank you for helping kids like me.

[Seeley hugs a host, then meets Mickey and Minnie Mouse.]

[Hayley, Seeley and Shawn Borges, Hawaiʻi's 2026 Children's Miracle Network Champion Family.]

HAYLEY BORGES, Hawaiʻi's 2026 Children's Miracle Network Champion Family: I think being a part of
the 20th annual Radiothon in itself is so special, you know. We are so lucky because this year,
especially as they build the new cancer ward, it really hits home for us. We uniquely benefited from
all things that Children's Miracle Network helped provide for. It's so exciting for us to be here.

[UHA Health Insurance presents a $10,000 check supporting the Sex Abuse Treatment Center and
Children's Miracle Network.]

UHA REPRESENTATIVE: We thank all of our employers and our employees that support UHA so that we can
steward those dollars right back into the community, especially with some of the programs like the
SATC. It's statewide.

JOHN MATTHEWS, KSSK Radio Personality: We wanna give back! This has been just such an amazing day
for the Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids, and the best thing of all is the money goes nowhere else but
here!

LEILA-ROSE COLOMA, Hawaiʻi's 2024 Children's Miracle Network Champion: They should donate because
Kapiʻolani helped me get out of the hospital and make me feel better, and it's just amazing how
everybody donates to Kapiʻolani.

[Families with Mickey and Minnie. Sponsors bring more giant checks.]

[Matanuska Valley Federal Credit Union, 2026 Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids Day 1 Presenting
Sponsor.]

RADIO HOST: Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids, 20 Years of Miracles, Day 1, presented by Matanuska
Valley Federal Credit Union.

CHAD RITCHIE, President & CEO, Matanuska Valley Federal Credit Union: You see how the donations
impact through the Miracle Mile, through the wall that you're seeing with the pictures and the
construction that they're doing, and just the area where the kids can go and they can have a space.
It feels amazing to be able to know that you're in some way able to contribute to help with that.
Who doesn't want to be part of that?

[Volunteers check pledges on their phones.]

[A white SUV wrapped with Hyundai Hope on Wheels handprints.]

[Hyundai Dealers of Hawaiʻi with Hyundai Hope on Wheels, 2026 Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids Day 2
Presenting Sponsor, present a $60,000 check.]

HYUNDAI REPRESENTATIVE: Hyundai Hope on Wheels was founded to serve and fight pediatric cancer, and it's really important to us to be able to serve our community here in Hawaiʻi. Having a center here
that allows families to stay here, it's just so incredibly important.

[Children run across the stage with paddle signs. A $100,000 check.]

WOMAN: We're increasing that to $15,000.

[Sponsors bring giant checks to the stage, one after another.]

RADIO HOST: I just want to thank everybody, all of our listeners. I just can't believe that they're
as generous as they are.

[A group cheers with Triple Match signs.]

SHAWN BORGES, Hawaiʻi's 2026 Children's Miracle Network Champion Family: I think for us being here,
it's just awesome knowing that we're doing something to help other families that go through the same
battles that we all did.

[The Borges family on a bench.]

[Guests talk with the hosts at the radio desk.]

MAN: It's kind of near and dear to my heart. My wife, my wife worked here 1985, and my daughter was
born here. Yeah, so it's near and dear to my heart. If everybody does a little, nobody's got to do a
lot, right?

WOMAN: Yes, amen, amen.

ANNOUNCER: The bell is a sign of victory, it's a reminder of the hard-fought battles and the beacon
of hope for other patients and families.

SWEETIE PACARRO: Are you ready to ring the bell, Seeley?

SEELEY BORGES: Yeah.

[Seeley rings a brass bell with the hosts.]

[The crowd cheers and films on their phones.]

[Children hold up cards that spell $1,204,575.]

[Hosts applaud. Gold confetti falls on the children.]

[Logos: Hawaiʻi Pacific Health, Kapiʻolani Medical Center for Women & Children, Children's Miracle
Network.]

RADIO HOST: We exceeded the goal! $1,204,575! Mahalo, Hawaiʻi!

A record-breaking year for Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids! The 20th annual Radiothon raised more than $1.2 million to support programs, services, and equipment for Hawaiʻi’s keiki. Mahalo to everyone who helped make this milestone possible!

History was made at the 20th annual Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids, as a record-breaking amount was raised for Hawaiʻi’s keiki. The Radiothon surpassed its goal by collecting $1,204,575 over two days of live broadcasts on KSSK FM 92.3/AM 590 and KSSKRadio.iHeart.com. Generous donations came in from across the state and the mainland to support Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children.

“It’s amazing to see the overwhelming community support,” said Dawn Dunbar, Hawaiʻi Pacific Health senior vice president of Philanthropy. “To raise over a million dollars for programs and services at Kapiʻolani, especially for our 20th Radiothon with KSSK, is nothing short of remarkable. This is more than a number. This record total speaks to the strength of our community and advances our goal of creating healthier communities.”

KSSK radio personalities John Matthews and Sweetie Pacarro made the exciting announcement live on-air Friday evening. They were joined by 2026 Hawaiʻi Children's Miracle Network Champion, 4-year-old Seeley Borges, and her family. The little girl from Kauaʻi was diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer when she was just about 2 weeks old.

“Being here for our first Radiothon was so magical for us," said Hayley Borges, Seeley's mother. "We’ve had many meals in this cafeteria in not such happy times when Seeley was going through treatment. Now, to be here celebrating and giving back to kids like Seeley, it’s a full circle moment.”

Community Support Powers a Record Year

This year’s Radiothon was jam-packed with support from more than 50 sponsors and partners from near and far. Matanuska Valley Federal Credit Union (MVFCU), headquartered in Alaska with a location in Waipahu, made the first long-term pledge in Radiothon history by committing to be a presenting sponsor for three years. The first-time Kapiʻolani and Radiothon supporter also sponsored a Triple Match hour on each day of the event, tripling every dollar donated.

Donors and children holding radiothon banner.

“Matanuska Valley Federal Credit Union is proud to support Kapiʻolani Medical Center for Women & Children and the lifesaving care it provides to children and families across Hawaiʻi,” said Chad Ritchie, MVFCU president and CEO.

“Our connection to Hawaiʻi began more than a decade ago when Kunia Federal Credit Union joined MVFCU, and it has continued to grow through the relationships we have built in the Waipahu community and across the islands. At MVFCU, community partnerships are central to who we are. Supporting the Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids is a meaningful way for us to invest in the health, hope, and future of Hawaiʻi’s families.”

Special Guests and Local Partners Join the Celebration

Large group shot of donors and volunteers and a cute life size turtle mascot.

There was no shortage of excitement and fun for keiki. Kids didn’t have to go to the beach to meet Kai the Honu, Sheraton Waikīkī Beach Resort’s official mascot.

Kai wasn’t the only larger-than-life character to make an appearance in Kapiʻolani’s dining room.

Young boys with their mother alongside Mickey and Minnie characters actors.

Mickey and Minnie Mouse traveled all the way from Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa, for a special visit while Aulani “voluntEARs” helped keiki make bracelets and color Disney-themed sheets.

Investing in Care for Hawaiʻi's Children

Large group shot of corporate and medical leaders with radio personalities and a giant check for $60,000.

Many Radiothon partners supported specialized pediatric cancer care programs, services, and equipment at Kapiʻolani, including Hyundai Dealers of Hawaiʻi and Hyundai Hope on Wheels (HHoW), which gave $60,000 toward two Triple Match hours, and were named presenting sponsors of the second day of the event. HHoW and local Hyundai dealers are longtime supporters and have given more than $1.2 million to Kapiʻolani since 1998.

“The community backs our Hyundai dealers, so it’s our obligation to back the community the same way," said Jerry Romano of Hyundai Dealers of Hawaiʻi. "It’s special to us, and it really is an honor to be able to do that.”

Large group shot of volunteers with signs supporting Kapiolani Radiothon.

Donations also poured in for the future Martha B. Smith Cancer & Infusion Center, which is set to open at Kapiʻolani in 2027. The dedicated space will be five times larger than the medical center’s current space and is designed to enhance cancer and infusion care for Hawaiʻi’s women and children. Kapiʻolani’s specialized pediatric oncology team cares for about 60 children who are newly diagnosed with cancer and 150 in active treatment each year.

"We have been fundraising throughout the year to support Kapiʻolani and its new cancer center, and I am incredibly excited that both Northwestern Mutual Hawaiʻi and Boland Wealth Management are participating as sponsors this year," said Jamie Delgadillo, Northwestern Mutual Hawaiʻi managing partner.

"We hope to build on the momentum generated by our fundraising efforts and leverage this event to help us reach the $100,000 commitment we have pledged to raise for the hospital through the Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids."

Decades of Making a Difference

Another critical Kapiʻolani program received a significant funding boost. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser directed its Radiothon commitment of $40,000 to the Sex Abuse Treatment Center, which is marking 50 years of providing comprehensive and confidential services for sex assault survivors in Hawaiʻi.

Large group shot of corporate leaders with a giant check for $100,000.

Radiothon donations support programs and services that would not otherwise be possible, lifesaving equipment, and other items on this year's Kapiʻolani's Wish List, such as:

  • An adaptive tricycle for pediatric rehabilitation patients.
  • Incubators for babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
  • Custom-specialized burn carts to treat burn wounds for pediatric patients.
  • An infrared vein finder to help to make IV insertions more efficient.

The 2026 Kapiʻolani Radiothon for Kids would not have been possible without the overwhelming support of community partners and major sponsors, including: Matanuska Valley Federal Credit Union; Northwestern Mutual Hawaiʻi and Boland Wealth Management; DSE Hawaiʻi; Hyundai Hope on Wheels and Hyundai Dealers of Hawaiʻi; Honolulu Star-Advertiser; Genentech; Constructors Hawaiʻi; Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts; Family Mediation Hawaiʻi; Estes Express Lines; Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa; King Windward Nissan; HawaiiUSA Federal Credit Union; Jerry V’s Auto Group; RE/MAX Honolulu; Cal-Nev-Ha Children’s Fund; Farmers Hawaiʻi; Tony Hyundai Waipio; UHA Health Insurance; Matson; and Velera.

The first-ever Radiothon was held in 2007 in Kapiʻolani’s cafeteria, nearly a decade before the medical center’s Diamond Head Tower was built. Michael W. Perry and the late Larry Price hit the airwaves on KSSK FM 92.3/AM 590 with emotional stories from patient families. Since then, Radiothon has raised more than $7 million with every dollar staying in Hawaiʻi to support children statewide and across the Pacific.

“From our humble beginnings in the cafeteria, we have been here every year raising money for Kapiʻolani,” said Michael W. Perry, KSSK radio personality. “Our team is proud to be part of Radiothon, and we will continue doing this for the next 20 years.”

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Media Contact Liz Chun Uyehara

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