MOLOKAI:HOPS

Title: Hawai‘i’s First Saint ~ Father Damien

Words: Noel Pietsch

Images: Noel Pietsch

 Father Damien, Catholic Priest

 Father Damien, a Catholic priest, traveled to Kalaupapa in 1873 to serve the hundreds of Hansen’s disease victims who had been confined to Kalaupapa. He provided hope, built a community, and raised awareness of this misrepresented disease. On October 11, 2009, he was canonized in Rome by Pope Benedict XVI. On October 31, his remains are to be ceremoniously marched down the cliffs into Kalaupapa, and on November 7, 2009, a ceremony held in his honor at St. Philomena Catholic Church.  You can visit the church of Father Damien in Kalaupapa, HI on Molokai.  Just google “Father Damien Tour Molokai” for more information.