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Welcome to Christ Memorial Episcopal Church. We are devoted to following the life and teachings of Jesus, the Christ.  

We hope your experience worshiping with us will bless and enrich your life. 

People of all faiths are welcome to worship with us on Sunday.

For an online service, join us at 9:30 here.

We Episcopalians believe in a loving, liberating, and life-giving God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

As constituent members of the Anglican Communion in the United States, we are descendants of and partners with the Church of England and the Scottish Episcopal Church, and are part of the third largest group of Christians in the world.

We believe in following the teachings of Jesus Christ, whose life, death, and resurrection saved the world. We have a legacy of inclusion, aspiring to tell and exemplify God’s love for every human being; women and men serve as bishops, priests, and deacons in our church.

Laypeople and clergy cooperate as leaders at all levels of our church. Leadership is a gift from God, and can be expressed by all people in our church, regardless of sexual identity or orientation.

We believe that God loves you – no exceptions.

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~ Blessing of the New Vicarage ~

The new Vicarage and Pavilion have been blessed by Bishop Bob on October 8, 2023 in readiness for our new full time priest coming from Alaska on November 1st, Catherine Amy Kropp+

This project was initiated before the pandemic at a meeting with the Bishop in 2020 letting us know The Episcopal Diocese of Hawaii would support our efforts to build a home for a priest to support the ongoing ministry of CMEC. With costs for rentals increasing every year having someone come live on the North shore of Kauai was becoming very difficult without us offering a home to live in. 

For three years starting in Nov 2020 we began the Clergy In Residence Program under the guidance of our last full time priest Gae Chalker+ to have rotating priests come for 1-3 months in order to save for this new vision to secure the future ministry of Christ Memorial Episcopal Church, 13 different priests staying at Rebecca Hullum’s condo or Saim Caglayan’s studio in Kilauea, 3 coming for a second time. 

Then with the ongoing invaluable help of the Helen Mitsui Shared Blessings Thrift Shop employees and volunteers, led by Steve & Susan Wright, a Vicarage Project was formed to set aside half the costs in order to finance the other half through the Diocese with First Hawaiian Bank, designing and permitting done by Maggie Lea and CB Pacific Services ~ Claurino Bueno, building by Charles Bueno and crew for the E Bueno Construction LLC, and Maggie furnishing this new home with donations from the Thrift Shop and local purchases, all which now have become a reality.

Kauai Seascapes Nursery will be planting a hedge with drip irrigation around the house for privacy and a new cedar fence will go in by the neighbor side of the property. A one car garage door is being ordered from Honolulu and installed by Charles’ crew, utilities to be turned on this month, and then all will be complete for Catherine Amy’s+ arrival. 

Thanks be to God for this abundant blessing for our church and the community.

We are elated to announce the call of our new Vicar, the Reverend Catherine Amy Kropp, to Christ Memorial Episcopal Church. 

We look forward to welcoming her on November 1, and her first Sunday with us will be on November 5. The Celebration of New Ministry will take place with Bishop Fitzpatrick sometime in the near future.

Catherine Amy comes to us from the Episcopal Diocese of Alaska where she has served as Associate Rector, St Mary’s Episcopal Church, Anchorage, focusing on pastoral care and children and youth ministries, as well as a traveling priest in villages throughout Alaska. Most recently she has managed projects and grant-writing and served as an instructor for Dancing With the Spirit, a traveling ministry connecting Alaska Native elders and youth, promoting spiritual, physical and wellness through the joy and love of music, and preserving Alaska Native language, culture and music. She recently returned from an international volunteer mission in north Lebanon, serving with Relief & Reconciliation for Syria at their Peace Center, a safe house for vulnerable youth.

Catherine Amy is a registered Maine Guide and former high school math and science teacher with experience in outdoor education and leadership. She has guided groups of all ages on spiritual pilgrimages in Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Alaska, and the Northwest Territories.

She graduated from Yale Divinity School with two degrees, Master of Divinity (2017) and Master of Sacred Theology (2019). She has a passion for the sense of interconnectedness pertaining to social, ecological and racial justice, and she loves to explore the cosmic dimensions of Christianity within spiritual formation and parish ministry. She also has a Diploma in Anglican Studies from the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and a Masters degree in history from University of Cambridge (M.Phil. 1994). Her undergraduate studies included forest ecology and took place at the University of Maine.

In addition to enjoying the outdoors, she plays cello and piano, loves to learn new instruments, such as the guitar and ukulele, and study languages. She speaks German and has recently begun learning Levantine Arabic. 

You may recognize Rev. Catherine Amy as she came to Christ Memorial as part of our Clergy in Residence program this past year when we discovered a mutual sense of call and shared ministry. As you might guess, we are thankful she has agreed to share her many gifts with us, and we are excited about our future under her leadership.

[October 12, 2023] The emotions are still raw, and the grieving for the lives and all that was lost from the Maui wildfires in August will linger for years to come; for those directly affected, perhaps a lifetime.

As officials painstakingly pore over the damaged areas section by section, much of Lahaina town is still inaccessible, including Holy Innocents Church. From photos, we know that the church building is gone, along with everything within it, but thankfully we have photographs of some of the precious artwork that graced the worship space. 

Below, we share some of the iconic paintings by New York artist DeLos Blackmar, a long-time friend of then Vicar, the Rev. John Miller Horton, as a "thank offering for the great aloha shown him during his several months' stay on the island." It was during his stay on Maui in 1940, that he completed several paintings that adorned the church walls, altar and pulpit.

Church members recently reached out to Blackmar's daughter Cheryl, who responded in an email, "The devastation in Maui has been like a death in my family. The paintings in Holy Innocents Church were works that my dad loved most. I was able to see them twice... It is very comforting to me to kow that his artwork is helping... My dad always spoke of the resilience of the Hawaiian people, but I'm sure he never could have imagined this kind of a trial... My heart is with you all. May God bring some good out of this tragedy."

The artwork shown was photographed by part-time member Bob Curnutt. Some of the images are being reproduced on greeting cards, and will be made available for purchase through the Diocesan Support Center beginning at Convention 55 on October 20 and 21.

Shown here is a cropped version of the iconic mural (at top of this page) of the Hawaiian Madonna and Christ Child that was hung on the wall behind the altar. Ironically, the church's outdoor sign that contained a cropped version of the mural like this, was left standing nearly unscathed from the fire. The models for both the Madonna and Christ Child were members of the congregation. 

The altar paintings consisted of three panels containing breadfruit, fish, and kalo, the Hawaiian staffs of life, and symbolized the body and blood of Christ.

Five panels decorated the pulpit, and depicted rare or extinct native birds, including the ​‘apapane, ‘ou‘ou, ‘i‘iwi, mamo, and ‘o‘o. They symbolized God's word winging forth from the pulpit.

Reporting: Sybil Nishioka

Photos: Bob Curnutt

DEDICATED WEBPAGE: The Diocese of Hawai'i has set up a dedicated webpage on the main website that will contain the latest information, resources, and updates about Maui recovery efforts, as we receive them. Click HERE to go there now. You can also visit the Diocese's Facebook page HERE where photos and other info are widely shared.

Help us… help you… help those affected by the Maui Wildfires!

Due to the generosity from people around the Diocese, country, and globe, we want to make sure we can help wherever help is needed. We are asking every congregation to think BIG on this one. For example, if there is someone you know (or have heard about) that has taken in family or friends who were displaced, they may find themselves with a tripled-or-quadrupled electricity bill that they hadn’t seen coming. Same goes for the increase in food and household living costs. 

Assistance isn’t limited to just people currently on Maui (there are many who have taken people in on other islands), nor is it ever limited to Episcopalians. So combine your thinking hats and your generous hearts and let us know! To send a request for financial assistance, click on the button below:

Sharing One Home Can Change Two Lives

Homesharing Hawaiʻi is a project of Hawai‘i Intergenerational Network, a nonprofit with IRS 501(c)(3) status. Our program helps match individuals seeking a home with people who have a home to share. Two or more people share a home for mutual benefit. A person offers a private bedroom and shared common space in exchange for rent, help around the house or a combination of the two. Each home sharing arrangement is tailored to the unique needs and interests of the people involved. To learn more, visit their website HERE.

Check out the latest news from the Episcopal Diocese of Hawai'i here

988 Suicide & Crisis

Lifeline is Here!

Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is now in full effect nationwide. Similar to the 911 emergency phone number, dialing 988 will connect a caller directly to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, and to a trained counselor.

Sunday school will be held at 8:00 a.m. in the Parish Hall across from Christ Memorial with beloved teacher Leona.

Aloha ke akua.

Helen Mitsui Shared Blessings Thrift Shop in Kilauea is seeking Volunteers for 2023.

Each volunteer shift is a 2-4 hour commitment for a minimum of one day per week. Experience in Retail, Customer Service, and/or Retail a plus, but not required.

Volunteers are invaluable to serving our community. Our goal is to reuse, repurpose and recycle goods — keeping as much as possible out of landfill — while providing our community with access to reasonably priced, quality merchandise.

Here are ways you can help:

* Greeters welcome shoppers and monitor our COVID guidelines.

* Customer Care helps shoppers to ensure a pleasant shopping experience.

* Merchandisers organize departments, restock the floor and display retail goods.

* Philanthropy distributes merchandise to organizations in need.

* Donation Intakers receive, sort and process donations.

Work-from-Home volunteers help prepare merchandise for sale. We are especially looking for help in these areas:

* Games: checking games to ensure all components are intact

* Stationery: packaging up cards and envelopes

* Holidays: preparing merchandise for Christmas, Halloween, Easter, Valentines, 4th of July, and more

* School, Office, Art Craft Supplies: organizing and packaging materials for reuse

* Toys: sorting, cleaning, and packaging toys

* Hardware: sorting and packaging tools, materials, electronics and appliances

Requirements?

*Team players with a genuine interest in serving the community and contributing to the reuse movement.

* Willingness to support COVID-19 safety measures set by Shared Blessings

* Physically able to lift 50 pounds (Merchandisers and Donation Intakers only)

Benefits?

Serving the community and our environment is rewarding work. We have a lot of fun! New merchandise is donated daily, so the element of surprise and wonder is constant. Get a first peek and more!

Interested?

Click on the reply button here! Let us know 1) your interests, 2) your availability to volunteer and 3) your contact information. Mahalo!

Let us pray for our own needs and those of others. We remember especially those on our prayer list. Healing of body, mind and spirit for: Dottie, Steve, Art, Sherry, Paul, Sylas, Charlyn, Erin, Wyatt, the Wills family, Niles, Robbie, Elise, Jane, Amelia, Margaret, Gordon, Dale, Webb, Linda, David, Helen, Tony, Anthony, Penny, Dwight, Tommy, Jennifer, Matthew, Pam, and Rich. We pray also for the people and leadership of Ukraine and the people of Russia who wish for peace and an end to the war; and for the people and land of Maui -- those who have lost their loved ones, homes, businesses and livelihoods.

We pray that you will bring people together in worship. Enliven your church and bless our musician, our clergy and lay leadership. We pray for our sibling Episcopal congregations on Kauai: St John and St Pauls, St Michael & All Angels, and All Saints, and for all churches on the North Shore. We pray for our own congregation of Christ Memorial, Kilauea for those present, online and absent - that all of us together may be united in your ministry. 

Are there others? Send a prayer list request to christmemorialkilauea@gmail.com

THRIFT SHOP MISSION STATEMENT:

Our goal is to provide our community with reasonably priced, quality merchandise. We will reuse, repurpose and recycle goods and keep as much as possible out of the landfill in an effort to help Kauai and our planet toward Zero Waste. Above all we will show compassion, kindness and tolerance to each other and our community.