Face mask with St. Damien and St. Marianne fabric by Wendy Wylder (Photo courtesy of Wendy Wylder)
By Patrick Downes
Hawaii Catholic Herald
Wendy Wylder had been sewing chasubles, the priest’s primary outer Mass vestment, in her small sewing studio in Waialua to present to Hawaii clergy at their annual convocation in May when the coronavirus pandemic struck. The event was canceled, so she adjusted.
Wylder is now making protective face masks with aloha-wear fabric bearing the images of Hawaii’s St. Damien and St. Marianne, heroes of a past health quarantine.
“I have been sending any priest who requests them face masks that I have been making with fabric from my supply at hand,” she told the Hawaii Catholic Herald by email April 4. “Also, many of my neighbors who are very devoted Catholics have requested them.”
Wylder began her liturgical sewing ministry in 2008 to benefit the sainthood causes of Father Damien and Mother Marianne when she was invited to the priests convocation at Turtle Bay Resort on Oahu’s North Shore as a vestment vendor who incorporated “light tropical weight washable fabrics with Hawaiian prints.”
She said it has been a “most rewarding experience” to watch so many young men progress through their seminary years, diaconate and priesthood, and “flourishing” in their parish assignments.
Hawaii Catholic Herald editor Patrick Downes wears one of Wendy Wylder’s new Sts. Damien and Marianne masks. (HCH Photo)
“I am feeling very blessed to be given the opportunity to make Hawaii priests the best dressed in the nation, in my opinion,” she said.
She said her goal during this forced COVID-19 seclusion is to create one new chasuble a day to take to the 2021 convocation. As of April 4 she had 18 completed.
In the meantime, Wylder said she has found several more pieces of Reyn Spooner saints fabric and has been sending facial masks to Hawaii clergy upon request.
The vestment designer is accepting donations for the Damien-Marianne masks. She will match any donation with a contribution to Sacred Hearts Father Lane Akiona, pastor of St. Augustine Parish in Waikiki, who is overseeing the completion of his parish’s Damien and Marianne Education Center. Shipping is free.
Wylder can be contacted via email at wendywylder@yahoo.com.
