Kate Mahoney with St. Marianne mosaic in Kalaupapa. (HCH file photo)
Two mainland speakers at the Oct. 5-7 St. Damien and Marianne Catholic Conference have close connections to Kalaupapa and its saintly figures.
Kate Mahoney, whose cure from organ failure as a teen became the miracle that led to Mother Marianne’s beatification, will speak about her healing due to the intercession of St. Marianne, and also lead a session focusing on intergenerational dialogue, from her perspective as both a patient and as a caregiver.
St. Marianne modeled hospitality and gratitude throughout her life, Mahoney said, whether it was caring for her family in Utica, the marginalized in Syracuse or the patients of Kalaupapa.
“When I think of Mother Marianne, from what I’ve read, from the people I’ve listened to, my own experience, my own witness, she welcomed people wherever she was on her path,” Mahoney said.
Msgr. Peter Routhier of Stowe, Vermont. (Courtesy photo)
“Her model is universal and should be taken seriously all over the world,” she said, not just by Catholics. “Every exchange with another human being is a gift and one not to be taken lightly. And if we offer dignity and compassion, we can’t go wrong with that.”
Brother Joseph Dutton, a Civil War veteran and former alcoholic who came to Hawaii to work with Father Damien and Mother Marianne at Kalaupapa, will be the focus of Msgr. Peter Routhier’s conference talk.
Msgr. Routhier, who is a Vermont native, pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Stowe, Vermont, and the Diocese of Burlington’s vicar for clergy, will talk about his unique parish.
Blessed Sacrament Church was built on farmland where Ira Dutton (the future Brother Joseph Dutton) was born. The church is covered in artwork telling the story of Brother Dutton, St. Damien and the Hansen’s disease patients of Kalaupapa.
“There’s a very definite presence of God in this church every time we gather to celebrate,” Msgr. Routhier said, citing Brother Dutton’s legacy as part of that influence on the parish community.
At the conference, he plans to share not only his parish’s ties to Brother Dutton but also how Dutton’s example can deepen everyone’s faith.
SPEAKERS
The current speakers list for the Damien and Marianne Conference:
- Keynoter: Msgr. Ray East, Archdiocese of Washington
- Keynoter: Father Tony Ricard, Archdiocese of New Orleans
- Eva Andrade, president and CEO of the Hawaii Family Forum
- Toni Bissen, executive director of the Pu`a Foundation, a local non-profit organization focusing on prison reintegration
- Patrick Boland, St. Damien expert and tour guide
- Dallas Carter, local Catholic speaker and catechist
- Ed and Betty Coda, Natural Family Planning advocates
- Dr. Maria Luisa Villalba Devera, child and adolescent psychiatrist at Schofield Barracks Pediatric Clinic
- Colette Higgins, Windward Community College dean of academic affairs; lecturer on Queen Kapiolani
- Nathan Hokama, communications strategist with expertise advocating against Hawaii’s physician-assisted suicide bills
- Josie Howard, expert in the diversity and heritage of the Micronesian community
- Father Alapaki Kim Jr., pastor of St. Rita Parish in Nanakuli; only native Hawaiian-speaking priest in Hawaii
- Tyra Lamb, licensed social worker with the Department of Army, in charge of several Pacific region family support programs
- Franciscan Sister Alicia Damien Lau, owner and consultant for Damien Healthcare Consultants, LLC; regular visitor and assistant at Kalaupapa since 1965
- Kate Mahoney, author who’s healing from multiple organ failure was the miracle that led to St. Marianne’s beatification
- Jayne Ragasa Mondoy, author; director of religious education and faith formation for the Diocese of Honolulu
- Father Rheo Ofalsa, vocations director for the Diocese of Honolulu
- Sacred Hearts Father William “Bill” Petrie, retired local Sacred Hearts father and former pastor of St. Damien of Molokai Parish; worked with St. Teresa of Calcutta
- Sherry Hayes-Peirce, Catholic social media strategist, speaker and blogger
- Sacred Hearts Father David P. Reid, postulator (sainthood cause director) for the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts.
- Karl A. Schultz, author and speaker on pastoral and family applications of lectio divina (divine reading)
- Audrey Toguchi, retired teacher and woman whose cancer recovery was declared the miracle leading to St. Damien’s canonization
- Kimmy Takata, forensic peer specialist at the Pu`a Foundation
- Eseese “Ace” Tui, Samoan-born seminarian for the Diocese of Honolulu
- Debbie Victor, community outreach specialist at the Pu`a Foundation
- Joy Yadao, registered nurse specializing in end-of-life care issues
To Register
For complete speaker biographies, a full schedule and registration links for the Damien and Marianne Conference Oct. 5-7 go to www.dmcchawaii.org.
Groups of five or more can register for a discounted $75 per person rate for the entire weekend. The normal three-day rate is $150 per person. The normal single-day rate is $75 is person. An Oct. 8 pilgrimage to Kalaupapa is also available for an additional cost.
