NEWS FROM PAGES PAST
50 years ago — July 3, 1964
Catholics of Hawaii welcomed the Dominican Sisters of the Holy Rosary Monday as they stepped ashore from the Lurline. The Sisters arrived from Adrian, Michigan, where they have done postgraduate work in elementary education in preparation for staffing the new St. Elizabeth’s School in Aiea, which will open this September. The Sisters and their home towns are (left to right) Sister Caridad, O.P. from Zarraga, Sister Helene, O.P., from Maasin, Sister Juanita, O.P. from Lapaz and Sister Visitation, O.P. from Bintgle. All are from the Province of Iloilo. Sister Visitation is returning to the Philippines. Another Sister, who also will be superior of the group, will arrive at a later date. Father Philibert Vanfrachem, SS.CC., is the pastor in Aiea.
25 years ago — July 7, 1989
Fullness of Church
“Isn’t it fabulous!” beamed Sr. Kathleen. “It’s the fullness of Church.”
Sr. Kathleen Marie Shields, CSJ, was speaking of the Catechetical and Pastoral Institute of Hawaii sponsored for the past two weeks by the Diocese of Honolulu. This is the sixth year of the institute which is held annually at Damien Memorial High School. …
The growth of the institute over the years has been impressive and is a tribute to Sr. Kathleen’s untiring efforts. This year the institute boasts over 383 students, 26 faculty and 28 course offerings. Participants from 45 parishes and 15 schools represented every major island in Hawaii.
“The challenge,” said Sr. Kathleen, “is to take this and let it nurture the parish communities, sort of like how Sunday Eucharist nurtures us through the workaday week.”
10 years ago — July 2, 2004
South Seas bishop
“We are the way the Hawaiian Islands were like 100 years ago. You can’t build a building higher than a coconut tree. There is only one road around the island coast. There are plenty of good beaches, though, and it’s good for family holidays.”
That’s how Bishop Stuart F. O’Connell begins to describe his diocese — the Diocese of Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, 15 tiny Polynesian dots scattered over an expanse of more than 772,000 square miles of ocean about 3,000 miles south of Hawaii.
The white haired, blue-eyed bishop was in Hawaii last month staying with fellow Marist Father John Sullivan at Star of the Sea Parish, Waialae-Kahala. On vacation, the bishop also used the visit to raise funds for the rebuilding of his diocese’s St. Joseph School. …
His first eight years as a priest was spent as a teacher and principal in New Zealand. He worked in Western Samoa for 12 years and in Marist administration in New Zealand for 11 more … The pope appointed him Bishop of Rarotonga in 1997.
