Where we Worship
Hawai'i Kai church awaits 'new beginning'

By Zenaida Serrano Espanol
Advertiser Staff Writer

• Name of church: Hawai'i Kai Baptist Church.

Pastor Duane McDaniel says his church is a loving group that has a deep desire to experience God and touch lives. Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser

• Where we are: 265 Lunalilo Home Road, Hawai'i Kai.

• Our numbers: Average weekly worship attendance of 150 members.

• Our pastor: Duane McDaniel, senior pastor.

• What we believe (our purpose statement): "To grow as a committed community whose passion is to worship God, to minister his love to others, to bring them to Jesus and to disciple every member toward maturity in Christ."

• Our history: McDaniel said that what is now known as Hawai'i Kai Baptist Church started in an unusual way. More than 30 years ago, a Hawai'i Kai developer offered the community one piece of property for a kind of "ecumenical" church, or religious center, open to any denomination that would contribute an equal amount of money for the construction of the facilities.

McDaniel said the Baptists ultimately were the only group that stayed with the project and as a result, were able to purchase the lease rights from Bishop Estate and the developer for about $60,000. This amount was given to the Baptist group as a grant from the Southern Baptist Convention Foreign Mission Board.

Thanks to this purchase, on June 18, 1967, members met to organize Hawai'i Kai Baptist Church. A call was extended to Pastor Ken Newman, who at the time was the pastor of First Southern Baptist Church of 'Ewa Beach. Newman served Hawai'i Kai Baptist Church for 30 years and retired in 1999. McDaniel, the church's new pastor, began in May of this year.

• What we're excited about: "A new beginning," McDaniel said.

He said that they recently paid off the remaining balance on their land fund, which totaled $763,000, and now they own the land.

Add to that a new pastor and a fresh vision for the church, McDaniel said that members are ready to move into an exciting future of growth.

"Now the sky's the limit," he said. "The horizon's bright for the days ahead."

• What's special about us: McDaniel described the church as a loving, caring group that has a burning desire to experience God's presence and to touch the lives of others. Members are always looking for ways to build bridges to the community.

"We believe that Jesus met all kinds of needs in people's lives," McDaniel said. "He cared about the whole person: spiritual, physical, intellectual and emotional. We care about people like Jesus does."

One example of the church meeting the community's needs is its childcare center, Hawai'i Kai Baptist Child Care Center, which is next to the church and serves about 100 children. The center is more than 30 years old.

• Contact: Call 395-9494, e-mail hkbc@aloha.net or visit www.aloha.net/~hkbc

If you would like to recommend your church, temple or faith organization for a Where We Worship profile, e-mail faith@honoluluadvertiser.com, call 535-8174 or write: Where We Worship, Faith Page, The Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802.