Posted on: Saturday, October 27, 2001
Faith | Where We Worship
St. Ann's Church grew from grass shack
By Zenaida Serrano Espanol
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| The Rev. Herman Gomes, associate pastor, celebrates Mass at St. Ann's Catholic Church in Kane'ohe.
Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser |
• Name of church: St. Ann's Church & Schools.
• Our denomination: Roman Catholic.
• Where we are: 46-129 Ha'iku Road, Kane'ohe.
• Our numbers: about 3,600 members.
• Our pastor: The Rev. Clarence Guerreiro.
• What we believe: "The purpose of St. Ann's parish is to be a community of Catholics responsibly committed in word and action to the proclamation and the celebration of the gospel," said Sister Anne Clare DeCosta, parish director of education. Their aims, DeCosta said, include education, celebrating as a community, loving service to their neighbors and working for the common good.
• Our history: The parish was established in 1841 by the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, which continues to administer St. Ann's today. The original church and school structures were grass shacks, located on the site of the present church grounds. A new structure was built in 1852 because of the growing congregation. The building, nicknamed the "coral church," was made out of coral stones from Mokapu mined by church parishioners, the Rev. Clarence Guerreiro said. The new church accommodated 200 people.
As the congregation continued to grow, church leaders decided to build a temporary, cinder-block building, dedicated in 1955, that seated about 400 people. Construction of the current church building, which can seat up to 1,000 people, began on May 4, 2000. DeCosta said they expect to have it completed by January.
Also a significant part of St. Ann's history is its church bell, which dates back to 1862. The bell, named "Marie Rene" after its two sponsors, was made in Nantes, France, and was a gift to St. Ann's first pastor, Father Martial Jan. The children of St. Ann's Schools began raising money in 1999 to have the bell refurbished. They raised $55,000 and "Marie Rene" was refurbished in 2000 by the Virdan Co. in Cincinnati.
"This was (the children's) contribution to the next generation of children," DeCosta said.
St. Ann's Schools, which was also established in 1841, includes an elementary school for Grades 1 through 8 with 312 students and the Early Learning Center with 145 students, ages 2› years old through kindergarten. St. Ann's also has a large Sunday school program with 270 children and a youth ministry with 172 high school students.
• What we're excited about: St. Ann's will hold a special Mass at 4 p.m. today to dedicate the new church building and to celebrate the parish's 160th anniversary. Bishop Francis DiLorenzo, the bishop of Honolulu, will preside over the Mass. Following the mass will be a celebration lu'au; tickets for the lu'au are sold out. Organizers are expecting about 2,000 to attend, including guests from the west and east coasts of the Mainland and from Ecuador.
"One of our little mottos or sayings is, 'A proud history, bright future,' " said DeCosta, who noted that four generations of Catholic families are expected to attend the celebration, as well as newly baptized, "just starting out" families. "We come from much history and much heritage," DeCosta said, "but we look forward to another 160 years here, or more."
• What's special about us: "Without a doubt, it has to be the influence of God on the people," Guerreiro said. "I believe real strongly that the people are unique and the faith is so, it's not only strong . . . but it's deep-rooted because its been handed down from generation to generation."
There is a depth of commitment and service among parishioners, DeCosta added. "When the new people come in, they pick it up," she said. What makes St. Ann's special "is the people," DeCosta said. "You see God touching their lives and they're responding."
• Contact: Call 247-3092, e-mail stanns@st-anns-hi.org or visit www.st-anns-hi.org.
If you would like to recommend a 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.
