Jean Muragin was 11 years old when she watched a casket bearing the remains of Father Damien de Veuster carried via wagon down Bishop Street toward a ship bound for Damien’s native Belgium.

A devout Catholic, she was well aware of Damien’s work on Kalaupapa, where he spend 16 years helping a quarantined community of people afflicted with what was then known as leprosy.
“But I didn’t understand how significant it was to witness that event,” she said. “I was young and it was just something I had to do. I didn’t know that he would one day become a saint.”
That day is finally at hand, and in the hours before Damien’s canonization in Rome (at 10 p.m. today Hawaiçi time), Muragin, 84, honored Damien’s spirit by volunteering at a charity garage sale hosted by Blessed Sacrament Parish. The sale was among a number of special events being held across Hawaiçi today and tomorrow in honor of Damien’s elevation to sainthood.
“This is a labor of love,” Muragin said of the garage sale. “God is good and today is just a way to remember Damien and say thank you for all of our blessings.”
Like many in Hawaiçi’s Catholic community, Muragin said she had waited with growing anticipation for Damien’s most holy recognition.
“I get chicken skin thinking about it,” Muragin said.
About 400 people visited the garage sale through the early afternoon, availing themselves of a wide assortment of household goods, clothes, books, toys and accessories — nearly everything priced at less than $6.
Volunteers pushed pews together to form massive makeshift sale bins and restocked racks and tables with a seemingly endless reserve of donated goods while comedian and former seminary student Frank DeLima entertained visitors outside.
The event also featured an impressive variety of eating possibilities, from hot dogs and hamburgers to Hawaiian, Sämoan and plate lunches to Portuguese malasadas.
Damien Memorial School president and CEO Bernard Ho, who oversaw the event, said all proceeds will be directed to charitable organizations on Molokaçi.
“In a down economy, we saw this garage sale as a win-win,” Ho said. “We have discounted items for sale — some people are already doing their Christmas shopping — and the food is cheap. Plus, whatever money we raise will go to help people in need on Molokaçi.
“Damien is the first and only saint that Hawaiçi can lay claim to and we wanted to honor his legacy in the right way,” Ho said. “Instead of a big, fancy dinner, we wanted to do as he would have done and help the people of our community.”
Parish member Marlene Sagapolutele, 44, of Makiki, remembers learning about Damien in Sunday school and still finds inspiration in his story. She said she was eagerly awaiting last night’s live broadcast of the event.
“His canonization strengthens our Catholic community and the general public because it raises awareness of what we can do to be like him,” Sagapolutele said. “He taught us that you can’t be afraid to help people. It’s an honor to try and follow in his footsteps.”
Marcos Brackins, 42, of Kailua, spent the afternoon browsing through the sale bins and enjoying the live entertainment. Brackins said he has visited Kalaupapa several times over the years and has spoken with community members for whom Damien’s legacy is still very much alive.
“Damien took care of people who, at the time, nobody else took care of,” he said. “He continues to inspire other human beings to be better human beings.”