Priests listen to some of the employees at the Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa in Kaanapali displaced by the Lahaina wildfire at a Mass Aug. 22 in the hotel. Of the hotel’s 400 employees, 77 lost their homes in the Aug. 8-9 wildfire that devastated Lahaina town. (Photo courtesy of Brian Perry)
By Brian Perry
Special to the Herald
In the wake of the devastating Lahaina wildfire that has claimed more than 100 lives and left hundreds more missing, a half-dozen Catholic priests celebrated a special Mass with about 70 Sheraton Maui Resort & Spa employees and their family members on Aug. 22 in the Kaanapali hotel’s Hoku Rotunda.
The Mass provided spiritual and emotional solace to those who have lost their homes and loved ones in the Lahaina firestorm. The Aug. 8-9 blaze engulfed Lahaina town, destroying more than 2,200 structures, most of which were family homes. Miraculously, amid the devastation, Maria Lanakila Catholic Church stands tall as a beacon of hope and a symbol of strength against adversity.
The La Salette Father Efren Tomas of Christ the King Church in Kahului presided. In his homily, he noted that the Mass celebrated the Queenship of our Blessed Virgin Mary.
“Mary has a special role for us,” he said. “At every turn of life, she is always with us. We thank God because there is always the Blessed Virgin who always reminds us, when we are lost and comforts us when we are weary. Maria Lanakila, or Our Lady of Victory, is a beautiful reminder to all of us that it stands tall in the middle of the tragedy, surrounded by piles of ash and rubble.
“Mary is our mother who is concerned about our welfare,” Father Tomas said. “Her apparitions are all meant to awaken our faith and need for conversion. Whenever she appears, she expresses her desire for mankind to be reconciled with God. Conversion is her message. At Guadalupe, Lourdes, La Salette, etc., she asked us to pray for the reparation of sinners and the conversion of the world.”
Other clergy in attendance were La Salette Father Edison Pamintuan, Father Jun Postrano, Father Roel de los Reyes, Father Ken Deasy and Father Jayson Landeza, who was visiting from the Diocese of Oakland, California.
Father Tomas was assisted by Deacon Chris Ribucan.
After Mass, the attending priests offered pastoral counseling to the displaced hotel employees.
The idea of celebrating Mass at the Sheraton began with Liezl Oandasan, Sheraton Maui executive housekeeper.
Sheraton Maui has a staff of nearly 100 housekeepers and about 15 of them were displaced by the fire that destroyed their homes, Oandasan said. Staff members’ children are traumatized, she said, and the scope of devastation is beyond belief.
“They put so much into building their homes, and then overnight everything is gone,” she said.
The Mass “helped our employees spiritually and keeps the faith going. They feel they are being loved, cared for and prayed for,” Oandasan said. “It really gives us hope, especially for people who lost everything. There’s hope that God is with us, despite the trials that everyone is facing.”
Sheraton Maui general manager Tets Yamazaki welcomed the priests and expressed appreciation for the spiritual respite. He said 77 of the hotel’s 400 employees lost their homes in the wildfire.
Recovery is going to be a “long haul,” he said.
Many of the employees are being sheltered at the Sheraton Maui, and they don’t have vehicles to drive to religious services at Sacred Hearts Mission in Kapalua. Access to Lahaina town and Maria Lanakila is strictly controlled, and celebrations of Mass in West Maui have been relocated to Sacred Hearts Mission where relief supplies are also being collected and distributed to fire survivors.
Providing support and assistance for the Sheraton Mass were Tanya Barbero of St. Anthony Church in Wailuku, and Alex Nicholl of St. Theresa Church in Kihei.
To help with Maui fire relief, please give to Hawai`i Catholic Community Foundation at https://tinyurl.com/MauiCatholic.
