During the 2022-23 NBA season, the Phoenix Suns and FirstBank launched the FirstBank Empowerment Awards, a season-long program designed to strengthen marginalized communities through economic empowerment. The program expands on the Los Suns Small Business MVP Award that the team started in 2018 and provides a financial grant and marketing value to deserving minority-owned small businesses across the Valley.
Doubling down on the Suns’ commitment to celebrating the culture and accomplishments of the Valley’s Asian American and Pacific Islander community, the AAPI Award is dedicated to a deserving AAPI-owned small business in Arizona. The award has been presented to entrepreneur Desmond Martin, founder and owner of Happy Honu Shave Ice in Arizona, who uses his passion for sharing aloha to positively impact his family and community.
Martin created his shave ice company alongside his wife, Laura, in 2009 to blend their favorite childhood treats and find a way to share them with their community. Laura grew up in Phoenix and was raised on “Raspados” – Mexican-style shave ice desserts. Desmond grew up in Haleiwa, Hawaii on the island of Oahu where Hawaiian-style shave ice was always an “after-da-beach” treat. Happy Honu Shave Ice allowed them to integrate their passions for shave ice while also showing their children to set a goal and see it through as entrepreneurs.
“Shave ice is a way of life,” said Martin. “Sometimes a reward for hard work around the house or a way to cool off after a day at the beach.”
“This is our way of expressing our aloha toward the Valley of the Sun,” he added.
Happy Honu Shave Ice is family owned and operated and is dedicated to providing customers with the freshest and softest shave ice, embellished with their choice of their favorite flavors and toppings.
Their menu offers more than 30 premium flavors to please every palette, including four sugar-free options. Guests can add a generous scoop of the best vanilla ice cream or tropical-flavored mini mochi balls before topping it off with sweet condensed milk (snowcap), homemade haupia (coconut) whip cream, li hing mui powder or chamoy and tajin. The menu also featured several preset combinations to choose from.
“We share this with people because it brings a feeling of joy, a feeling of community when you bring people together,” continued Martin.
“We like to share together over food and what better way than over some shave ice.”
As the recipient of the AAPI Award, Martin received a $5,000 small business grant, courtesy of FirstBank as well as promotional support on Phoenix Suns social media and website.
“Being given the AAPI Entrepreneur Award means the world to us, it means the world to me as an Asian American Pacific Islander from Hawaii.”
“This gives me the chance to share with the world what brings us joy and what brings the world joy through our shave ice. We’d like to thank the Suns and FirstBank for allowing us to just be who we are and serve the community.”
Since partnering with the Suns in 2019, FirstBank has donated more than $100,000 to the local community through donations to non-profit organizations and small business grants. The launch of the FirstBank Empowerment Awards adds five small business grants throughout the Suns season as well as the inaugural Phoenix Mercury EntrepreneuHER Award last season.
ABOUT HAPPY HONU SHAVE ICE
Website: HappyHonuShaveIce.net