On his birthday (July 27), the Bishop presented Sonny Liu with an icon of St. Bede the Venerable. Sonny is the part-time Office Assistant in the Diocesan Support Center. He often arrives in the wee hours of the morning to work on cataloging and filing. He passes on historical documents to the archives. He does research when needed, looking in the files for details on deeds, land grants, donations, and the like. St. Bede is widely regarded as the greatest of all the Anglo-Saxon scholars. He lived and died in between the twin monasteries of Wearmouth and Karrow in the North East of England between 673 and 735 CE. He wrote or translated some forty books on practically every area of knowledge, including nature, astronomy, and poetry. He also wrote the first martyrology (a chronicle about the lives of the saints) of English saints. His most famous writing is The Ecclesiastical History of the English People. St. Bede seemed to be an appropriate patron saint for our own researcher into dusty files. Sonny, happy birthday!

Our clergy met in Kapa‘a (Kaua‘i) for the Annual Clergy Conference on August 21-23, 2023, at the Kaua'i Coconut Beach Resort. The conference began on a somber note with prayers for our Maui siblings. Maui clergy stayed home to be near their congregants, and the Bishop also did not attend so that he might visit with them and be a part of an ecumenical prayer vigil on Maui. READ MORE

Months before the Maui fires, the Rev. Bruce DeGooyer, Vicar of Holy Innocents Episcopal Church, had already made plans for his retirement that was pushed up because of health issues. Now with the tragic circumstances that have struck Lahaina and Holy Innocents, Father Bruce has delayed his retirement, and will officially remain as the Vicar through the end of September. Please keep the DeGooyers in your prayers. We will keep you posted on their future plans.

Despite enduring their own recovery from Typhoon Mawar in June, the students at St. John's School in Guam raised over $5,000 for Maui relief efforts. From their Facebook post:

The Cathedral of St. Andrew welcomed "home" the Bishop on Sunday, August 6, 2023, for his official Visitation. The Na Ali'i Guard (top left photo) were present to process and stand guard with their Kahili. The service included Confirmations, Receptions and Reaffirmations, followed by lots of fellowship under the Aloha tent where there was even a surprise birthday for Eunice DeMello (pictured with Bishop Bob below). (Photos from The Cathedral Facebook page)

The Episcopal Church on West Kaua'i (ECWK) held a neighbborhood fun day celebration that timed well with the Bishop's Visitation on Sunday, August 13, 2023. While organizing an event of this magnitude would be a challenge in itself, the Rev. Kerry Holder Joffrion, Vicar, still managed to put together an Emergency Response Team that would head to Maui to help with relief efforts the next day. On the Bishop's Facebook page, he posted the following with the photos shown here:

Sometimes the Bishop’s visit is a good excuse for a party with a parade, a water slide, horse and motorcycle rides, and music on the lawn — even an adult baptism [top left photo]. Being at St. John’s Church, ‘Ele’ele (Episcopal Church on West Kaua’i), was healing and a joy. The laughter of children, the smiles and the generosity of God’s people as we commissioned a team to go to Maui, and the warmth (spiritual and physical) of Kaua’i were a personal blessing for me.

Friday, September 1, 2023, is the 9th Annual Interfaith Remembrance and Commemoration of Queen Lili'uokalani and Soldiers Chapel, at Leilehua (Schofield), the historic Crown Lands of the Kingdom of Hawaii and: Kūkaniloko, as translated from Hawaiian to English, means “to anchor the cry from within.”

This annual event began in 2015 "to commemorate Lili'uokalani's role in supporting the construction of a chapel for use by the 13,000 soldiers of the newly established Schofield Barracks."

The service will begin at 10:00 AM. Soldiers Chapel is located at 10 Heard Street, Scholfield Barracks, Wahiawa. For more information and to arrange for transportation from St. Stephen's Episcopal Church, download the event flyer HERE.

BIRTHDAY REMEMBRANCE AT HALAWA CORRECTIONAL - Then on September 2, the birthday remembrance for our Queen continues hillside at Halawa Correctional facility on Halawa Valley Street. This gathering of prayers and music will begin at 8:00 AM. For more information, view the flyer HERE or contact Kahu Kaleo Patterson at (808) 330-3769.

We mahalo your support every year to anchor ourselves and bring remembrance, and honor, gratitude and love to our Moi Wahine Lili'uokalani.

St. Christopher's Episcopal Church in Kailua will be holding a "Back to Ringing Handbell Workshop" on Saturday, September 23, 2023. Two sessions are being offered: 8:30 AM-12:00 PM and 1:30 PM-4:00 PM. The workshop is being led by Karen Carlisle who has been ringing handbells for 40 years, and conducting for 31 years. Cost is $25 for one session or $35 for both sessions, and includes music and clinician fee. Lunch is on your own. Deadline to register is September 16. For full details, download the flyer HERE.

St. Augustine's Episcopal Church in Kapa'au, invites all to attend a light-hearted mini-concert of music for flutes and piano, this Sunday, August 27, at 5:30 PM. Enjoy 30 minutes of music in a variety of styles! An optional potluck follows in Walker Hall. St. Augustine's is located at 54-3801 Akoni Pule Highway, Kapa'au. For more information, download the event flyer HERE.

[August 23, 2023] Presiding Bishop Michael Curry is resting at home following a hospitalization to address a reoccurrence of internal bleeding, according to an Aug. 23 release from the church’s Office of Public Affairs.

On Sept. 8, Curry will undergo surgery to remove his right adrenal gland and an attached mass. His surgeon estimates his recovery period will be two to three weeks, after which Curry is expected to resume his regular work schedule.

Curry was admitted to the hospital on Aug. 17, after a reoccurrence of the internal bleeding that required him to be hospitalized over Memorial Day weekend.

The release asks Episcopalians to please continue to pray for the presiding bishop, his family and his entire medical team. READ OFFICIAL RELEASE

Coming Up: Diocesan ʻŌlelo Hawai'i Lessons Return! - Free ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi classes are starting up again on Tuesdays, beginning on September 5, 2023, and running through the school year. Classes will be led by Kumu Kū Souza, known by many in the Diocese as a Kumu at ‘Iolani school, and island-wide as both a Kumu Hula and member of the trio Walea. Once again, there will be a beginners' class (or for those who need a refresher) and a continuing class for those returning. Classes will be offered online through Zoom. ʻŌlelo I classes will be held Tuesdays at 5:00 PM (returning students at 6:00 PM). For more information, or to sign up, please contact Canon Sandy Graham HERE.

Required Safe Church Training - This is a reminder that Safe Church training is mandatory for all clergy, employees, vestry members, and most volunteers. Please read The Episcopal Diocese of Hawai‘i Safeguarding Policy and the Diocesan Safe Church Training Webpage. This training needs to be renewed every three years. Contact your church's Safe Church Administator or priest for more information, or if you have questions, email Nani Carroll.