Martha Poepoe Hohu

She was the editor of two other United Church of Christ hymnals — "Leo Ho'onani" and "Na Himeni Haipule Hawai'i" — and was consulted in the compilation of the current edition published in 2001.

Five years in the making, this hymnbook is more varied than its predecessors,

"She worked along with us," said the Rev. Richard Kamanu, Kaumakapili pastor who also served on the committee for "Na Himeni O Ka 'Ekalesia," the hymnal later dedicated to Hohu.

"She was a wonderful person," Kamanu said. "She had a sense of humor, and yet she was dedicated to her life in the church. She composed several anthems for the church."

A former member of the Kaumakapili pastoral team, the Rev. Kaleo Patterson, also remembered her back to his own childhood in the parish as "a very special lady."

"She was always gracious, supportive of my pastoral career," he said.

Hohu's father, the Rev. Henry K. Poepoe, served as Kaumakapili pastor from 1903 to 1950.

Hohu directed other choral groups, including choirs at Hotel Hana Maui Hotel and Hawaiian Electric Co. She also spent 25 years working with Bishop Museum alongside Hawaiian language scholar Mary Kawena Pukui, and 18 years as a docent at Washington Place.

She has received honors from her alma mater, Kamehameha Schools, as well as the Hawaiian Music Foundation. In 1993, she received a Na Hoku Hanohano Award for lifetime achievement.

Visitation will begin at 4 p.m., June 24 at Kaumakapili, with the service to start at 6:30 p.m., he said.