‘I’ll stay in touch with you, and I won’t forget you,’ Jill Biden said
Posted: November 6, 2023
For the second time since wildfires struck Maui in early August, First Lady Dr. Jill Biden spent part of her Saturday on a Zoom call with the Hawaiʻi State Teachers Association Board of Directors to offer her love and support to educators dealing with the disaster’s aftermath.
“So many communities are having a hard time because of natural disasters or gun violence. I think Americans are good. We support one another. And I think that’s uplifting. I think Americans’ hearts are good,” said Biden on the call Saturday. The first lady visited Lahaina with President Joe Biden in August following the deadliest wildfires in the United States in a century.
About the recovery process, Biden said, “I know things take a long time, it’s just that’s the way it is.”
“I think people who are struggling financially, that just is another layer of stress. If they just had a little bit more help, they could probably see the light a little bit,” Biden added.
Biden heard updates on how teachers were coping with going back to school and navigating personal losses from two Lahainaluna High teachers who are HSTA board members: HSTA Maui Chapter President Mike Landes and Ashley Olson.
“I’ll talk to my husband and give him an update on what’s going on,” Biden told the HSTA board members.
HSTA President Osa Tui, Jr. told the first lady, “To have you with us today and have you and I know the support of your husband with us as well, means so very much to us and we very much appreciate you.”
“We’ve been so grateful for the support throughout the country. So many hundreds of thousands of dollars have come to support our teachers specifically,” Tui said.
As of Friday, the HSTA has received more than 306 donations for teachers affected by the Maui fires from people and organizations across the country and Hawaʻii totaling more than $334,000. The union is using those funds to issue relief checks to teachers who lost their homes and classrooms in the fires.
“Just to hear and see from all over the country how these communities are coming together to support Lahaina, has been very powerful,” Tui said
“We are Lahaina strong and Luna strong, and they’re gonna come through this,” Tui added.
Biden concluded the call by telling HSTA leaders, “I’ll stay in touch with you, and I won’t forget you. We’ll keep moving forward and hopefully, we’ll keep making progress. Stay strong everybody. Love you.”
Biden made her first Zoom call to the HSTA board on Aug. 26 when she told teacher leaders, “My heart goes out to you.”