![]() She worked right with us and got just as dirty and sweaty as we did. Leimomi (aka Momi) was our boss for the day and led us very ably. It was our job to move the brush to outside the rock walls so that “the boys” (a crew of two could take it to the dump in dump truck) We also raked leaves and cleared a lot of weeds and thistles. Other crews had been in to clear lantana bushes and other brush and stacked them in large piles. Puanani, who knows much about local and native plants and their uses and shared her knowledge with us. I liked that approach and I did think about the daily words often as I was working on our assigned chores. We discussed the word, its meaning and what it meant to us. Ruth, our fearless leader, instituted a Hawaiian word of the day after breakfast to get us thinking about the spirit of the islands and why we, as Sierra Club members, were there as volunteers. The next day was beautiful and we were up early to get ready for our day’s tasks. I swam there a day or so later and really enjoyed the warm water and outstanding snorkeling. Few boats/barges arrive in the harbor, thus leaving the water very clean and refreshing. We finished our chores early enough that some of our group walked down to the harbor to go swimming and wash off some of the dirt. The next time we worked on the wiliwilis, we taped painter’s tape to our fingers to try to make it easier and faster. We sanded our fingers and nails, too, giving rise to many jokes and puns. Yes, the seeds were small (a bit bigger than a navy bean), difficult to grasp and tough to sand off even a small spot. It sounds weird, but we did this to give the seeds a faster sprouting time. That first day, we weeded out various plants, cleaned up the nursery a bit and sanded edges of the of wiliwili seeds. Luana was our first boss and she taught us what to do to help her expedite her efforts to achieve her goals. Nursery is the place where this process begins. Rise up Wiliwili fingers! (Click on this photo to get the full effect of the fingers) Jan fixed an excellent lunch and off we went to the nursery to begin our work week. They weren’t very clean at the beginning, but they were cleaned after a fashion and we settled in. We stayed in two historic buildings that were once housed a doctor and dentist. We arrived mid-morning of May 21, were met at the tiny airport and after signing in at the Park office were taken to our housing for the week. Our group consisted of nine people (two leaders, Ruth and Lynne one cook, the VERY able Jan six participants, Barbara, Elyette, Puanani and my good buddies, Jan & Dick). I felt very privileged to be a part of this endeavor. As members of a Sierra Club Service Trip, we received special permission to stay in the community for 4 nights and 5 days…something most people will never get to do. In accordance with residents’ wishes and State of Hawaii Department of Health regulations, Kalaupapa is a closed community. One of the park’s primary missions is to protect the lifestyle and privacy of the aging resident community. Today, Kalaupapa National Historical Park is administered by the National Park Service in cooperation with several Hawaii state agencies. It was filmed at Kalaupapa, thus giving you an idea of what the peninsula looks like and the conditions those poor folks dealt with on a daily basis. To see what Kalaupapa was like in those days, a good movie to watch is “Molokai,” a story of Father Damien. Damien since 2009) arrived at Kalaupapa in 1873 and worked tirelessly to promote the dignity of the afflicted and to improve conditions for the patients. I heard that more than 8,000 people died at the settlement which is about the same as the present-day population of Moloka’i.įather Damien ( St. Patients who still live there (about 10) are free to come and go from the settlement, but they choose to stay there as it’s more in their comfort zone. Until 1969, but forced isolation ended in 1949 when medications were made available to help patients. The isolation policy was not officially abolished Isolation was done because it was believed just touching a leper could cause a person to get it. Native Hawaiians live here for many centuries, but in the mid-1800s Kalaupapa’s remoteness secured its role as the setting for two tragic human sagas.” …in 1865 and again in the mid-1890s, the indigenous Hawaiian communities were displaced and the forced exile of those afflicted with or suspected of leprosy was begun. ![]() ![]() Peninsula has always been one of the most remote places in Hawaii. A portion of the peninsula from our final approach to begin our adventure ![]()
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