Troupe delivers hot plates for funds

A local Polynesian dance troupe, Tupua, will be hosting a fundraiser Saturday in Costa Mesa, commonly known as “a plate sale” among Orange County’s Pacific Islander population.

The troupe will be assembling plates of hot food available for pickup only. The plate sale will subsidize the cost of costumes for a bigger joint fundraiser May 8 with Mater Dei High School, in an effort to benefit the troop, the school and American Red Cross’ relief for Haiti and Chile.

This type of fundraising became popular on the mainland over the past 10 years as the tightly knit island communities found it easier to have their family and friends pick up hot plates than to go door to door trying to sell chocolate or magazine subscriptions.

More than 300 tickets have been sold at $10 each. People with tickets will drive up, hand their ticket to one of the team’s runners in the parking lot, then drive off with their hot plate of chicken, rice and a bottle of water.

“There’s plenty of food to go around,” said Stephen Seanoa, the troupe’s Samoan-born leader, with a big smile. “I’ll never let anyone go hungry; I don’t care if I have to go to Del Taco.”

Seanoa is expecting 300 more plates of food to be sold at the door through their island brothers and sisters.

Other members of the community interested in picking up an island style plate for $10 to contribute to the team are welcome. The food will be hot from noon to 3 p.m. Saturday at South Coast Martial Arts, 2990 Grace Lane, Costa Mesa.

For questions about the fundraiser or the dance troupe, call (714) 376 - 5141 or visit www.tupuaproductions.com.