Queens' Marketplace's Red Giving Machines Return Nov. 20, Stocked by Nonprofits Working on This Island
November 5, 2026
November 5, 2026
You tap your card, a little card drops into the bin, and nothing comes out for you. A Giving Machine works like that. It's a red kiosk built like a vending machine, but each slot holds a gift for someone else. KHON's coverage of the Hawaiʻi machines last season listed gifts like a "Pads for Girls" kit, an "ʻOhana Meal Pack," and "Fill a Food Pantry."
From Friday, November 20, through December 31, 2026, the machines are back at Queens' Marketplace for their second year. They've moved to Unit D3–4, a holiday pop-up storefront next to Olivia Clare's Boutique.
All five nonprofits on this year's list work on Hawaiʻi Island. Some of their partners are in Kamuela and Kailua-Kona, and one runs a veterans shelter in Kona. When you buy something at Unit D3–4, you're helping people who live close to Waikoloa.
The machines are fairly new on this island. Catholic Charities Hawaiʻi says the first Hawaiʻi Island machines stood at Prince Kūhiō Plaza in Hilo, from November 22, 2024, to January 2, 2025.
In 2025 they returned to Hilo and reached the Kohala Coast for the first time. Big Island Now reported a 5 p.m. launch at Queens' Marketplace on November 21 and one at Prince Kūhiō Plaza on November 25. That first Waikoloa season, the Waikoloa Beach Resort calendar put two machines in Unit J6. If you found them there last December, head to D3–4 this year.
The same Big Island Now article put the statewide total from the year before at nearly $245,000. That was the 2024 season, counted across all of Hawaiʻi. According to Giving Machine Hawaii, donors worldwide have given more than $33 million since the first machine launched in 2017. Compared with that, the Hawaiʻi total is small. But it comes from just a few shopping centers, and on this island those shopping centers are now in Hilo and Waikoloa.
The machines come from Light the World, the Christmas initiative of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which runs them with Latter-day Saint Charities. Giving Machine Hawaii says the sponsor pays the operating costs, so the participating nonprofits receive 100% of each donation to buy and deliver the item you chose. The same page says a nonprofit may keep up to 10% of a donation for administrative costs. If you don't choose to cover the card fees yourself, the sponsor pays them.
The gift categories run from meals and groceries to shelter, hygiene kits, clean water, clothing, beds, school help, and medical, eye and dental care. Some machines even offer chickens, goats, pigs or beehives. The Waikoloa slots come from the five organizations below, and that list is the main reason the machines matter here.
| Organization | What it does | Where it reaches Hawaiʻi Island |
|---|---|---|
| Hawaiʻi Diaper Bank | Supplies diapers, wipes and basic essentials through partner groups serving low-income families | Partners include Family Support Hawaiʻi and Keiki O Ka ʻĀina in Kailua-Kona, PARENTS, Inc. in Nāʻālehu, and Parents in Development Foundation in Kamuela |
| The Food Basket | Runs food-access programs across the island | School pantries and keiki backpacks, SNAP outreach, DA BUX produce discounts, DA BOX produce boxes, Kōkua Harvest food recovery |
| Friends of the Children's Justice Center of East Hawaiʻi | Supports children in East Hawaiʻi who have been abused or neglected | A 24-hour clothes closet with emergency clothing, hygiene supplies, therapeutic tools and snacks |
| U.S. VETS Hawaiʻi | Serves veterans and their families who are homeless or at risk of losing housing | HOPTEL shelters in Kona and Hilo |
| Make-A-Wish Hawaiʻi | Grants wishes to children with critical illnesses | Its machine profile mentions wishes like dream trips and meeting a hero |
The Hawaiʻi Diaper Bank row reaches furthest up the hill. Its impact page lists Parents in Development Foundation in Kamuela as a partner, along with two Kailua-Kona groups. Diaper supplies bought at Queens' go out through organizations that families in Waimea and Kona already know.
The Food Basket's program page covers work you may have already run into. DA BUX lowers produce prices for SNAP-EBT cardholders. DA BOX sells produce grown on Hawaiʻi Island. Kōkua Harvest recovers food that would otherwise go to waste. The "Fill a Food Pantry" type of gift KHON described fits right into that work.
U.S. VETS is the West Hawaiʻi connection that's easiest to picture. The organization runs a HOPTEL shelter in Kona as well as one in Hilo. The Friends of the Children's Justice Center work happens on the Hilo side. A clothes closet that's open 24 hours means a child who arrives in the middle of the night still leaves in clean clothes.
The machines launch with a ceremony on Friday, November 20, from 5 to 8 p.m. Queens' Marketplace lists appearances by Mayor Kimo Alameda, representatives from Alexander & Baldwin, and community leaders, with hula by Natalie Ai Kamauu's Hālau Hula ʻInalani. The event page suggests making an evening of it with Mākeke Fridays, the weekly sunset market that runs every Friday from 4 to 7 p.m. with local makers, farmers, food vendors and live music.
A few practical notes before you go:
The machines sit right in the middle of Queens' holiday calendar, so most December trips to the center will take you past them. Here's the season in order, starting this weekend:
December 18 through 20 is the busiest stretch. In three evenings you can catch Santa photos, the longer culinary market, the Kanikapila and the movie, all a short walk from Unit D3–4. If one stop at the machines fits your family's holiday routine, that weekend is the easiest time to make it, with time to choose a gift from the five organizations above.
Growing up between Waimea and North Kohala taught me that the best part of the holidays is how people here look after each other, and it's good to see that kind of giving at Queens' again this year. If you'd like to talk about life on this side of the island, at the market or anywhere else, Denni Keyes is always glad to hear from you. Let's Connect.
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