It has been one year since the devastating Maui wildfires destroyed the town of Lahaina and many survivors are feeling forgotten. 102 Americans were killed, but the survivors feel forgotten by the U.S. government, the media, and the charities who were there a year ago, but have now left … however, Mercury One is still on the ground. Glenn speaks with Mercury One Executive Director J.P. Decker, who is in Hawaii for the one-year memorial. J.P. describes the scene on the ground and what Mercury One is doing to continue being a beacon of hope for the people of Lahaina. Shockingly, he describes how their own local and state governments are standing in the way as they fight over who will take credit for a housing community that Mercury One helped build. Mercury One plans to stay in Lahaina for as many years as it takes. If you would like to make a difference in the lives of the people of Maui, you can donate at https://MercuryOne.org
Transcript
Below is a rush transcript that may contain errors
GLENN: Let me go to JP decker. JP is with us. He's been with me forever. He's the Mercury One executive director now.
And it is the one-year anniversary of the wildfire in Lahaina. And I think we're one of the only major charities, that is still there. I could be wrong.
J.P., welcome to the program.
J.P.: Hey, Glenn, thanks. It's good to be on.
GLENN: Yeah. So you're not over in Hawaii now, are you?
J.P.: Right now, we're here for the memorial today.
GLENN: You are. You are.
Tell me what is happening with Mercury One. Just give us an update on what has happened in Lahaina. And what we've been doing there for the last year.
J.P.: Yeah, so we've been providing mental health. There's been a mental health crisis of multiple suicides. Most people still feel uncertain. Speaking with many people yesterday.
And they're uncertain about their housing still. Is they're uncertain about what the jobs. About 72 percent of all people in Maui were affected by these fires.
Fifty-nine percent say -- say they have moved over three times.
Mercury One, like you said, is one -- if not the only, nonprofit, that is still here, helping.
We have provided sports to nonprofits, who ran out of funds and sports for kids.
Because these kids can't -- one of the kids can't even come into Lahaina, without crying and screaming because of what they saw that day, a year ago.
We have been able to be a beacon of hope for these people.
We have also worked with a nonprofit who has built a whole community, for the survivors. What's crazy about this. Is that they're ready for hundreds of these survivors, to come live, temporarily until their homes can be rebuilt. But governor and the mayor continue to fight with each other. On who is going to get the credit, for wherever they will put these survivors.
And so they're not allowing these people to move to this nonprofit.
GLENN: Wait. Wait. Wait. Are these the tiny homes we've helped built?
J.P.: Yes. These are the tiny homes we've helped build with churches all across the island.
That's what we've been doing. That's some of the work we've been doing just over the past year.
GLENN: Thank you so much.
I saw some of the stats on what has been done.
Just in Lahaina. And I know we've been all over the world, and it's -- it's stunning.
Funded a DC-8 aircraft. Seventeen tons of relief supplies on board, including solar lights, hygiene kits, following the DC-8 airlift to the islands. Samaritan's Purse teams, sifted through the ashes. Cutting the burned trees and ministered to homeowners.
Teams worked with providing survivors with connectivity in common spaces of the hotels. This is all last year. 25,000 meals were given out through one of our charities that we fund. Operation Barbecue Relief. Operation Blessing was there to get people clothing and tarps and all of that stuff.
We've been doing a lot of stuff with harvest church, which is right there in the community. And, you know, help shelter people. And make sure they're doing things.
I love the thing that we're doing with the kids. Giving them a chance to play sports.
Because they're not doing it now. And they ran out of money.
And go ahead.
J.P.: And so many of these people feel left by the -- by our government. They feel left alone. They feel as if no one is talking about them anymore.
102 people were killed last year. Americans. And we have -- Mercury One has not. But our government has forgotten about them.
A lot of them are asking, you know, where is Oprah and The Rock? Where are those funds? Where are the funds to help us rebuild?
And the governor even said yesterday, well, I know you like Front Street, which is historical in Lahaina. You have to remember that climate change is taking Front Street away. So things will change, and it will look different.
How do you say that on the one-year anniversary. What kind of people are you? These people are trying to find hope.
Out of the 11,000 that live there and were displaced, there's only about 3,000 left because they've had to move to find jobs. So Mercury One is here.
And when we started Mercury One -- when you started Mercury One, we wanted to be the first in and the last out.
And that's what we're doing. And that's why we're here today. We're praying. With all the partners, we're praying and trying to bring that hope, that we have brought to Israel. That we have brought to Afghanistan.
That we've brought to all the United States with our disaster relief. And that's what we do. That's who Mercury One is.
And we still need help. Because obviously, this is going to be a long process. It's going to be years. And we have to continue to be here.
GLENN: Thank you very much.
I know that we're -- first and last out in Afghanistan. We hope to be getting the last people out, this year.
That's our goal. We are still doing that in Afghanistan.
MercuryOne.org. J.P., thank you so much. God bless to you and everybody in Lahaina, this one-year anniversary. Okay. Thank you, J.P.