Our History: A Path to Service

The History of St. Ann’s Church

The early history of the Catholics of Hawai‘i is reminiscent of a biblical story. A people hear God’s call and His promise. They respond and become a covenanted people. The ruling authorities inflict repression, exile, and persecution. The people persevere in faithfulness, confident in God’s promise. And finally, liberty.

This is what happened to the Catholics in the Hawaiian Kingdom in the 1820’s and 1830’s. The story of the people of St. Ann’s is rooted in this larger story.

The Grass Church

During the persecution of the Catholics in Hawai‘i, many natives fled from Honolulu over the Pali Trail to the windward side and settled in the Ko‘olau area. Father Robert Walsh, SS.CC. (Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, the same community as that of Father Damien of Moloka‘i) began ministering to the Catholics.

In 1841, Father Robert Martial Janvier, SS.CC. replaced Fr. Walsh SS.CC., and he centered the mission in the He‘eia area, aiding the Catholics by building a grass church, establishing the first St. Ann’s Church.

The story of how the Catholic missionaries received the land of which St. Ann’s Church stands have been passed down through generations and generations of Catholics in the St. Ann’s ‘Ohana. As the story has it, Chief Abner Pāki, father of Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop and hānai father of Queen Lili‘uokalani, had gone to a Protestant Missionary asking for kerosene for his lamps. However, they had none to give him. The chief then went to the Catholic mission and received his oil. In gratitude, the chief gave the missionaries a piece of property.

The Coral Stone Church

With the gift of the new property, the church at St. Ann’s began to grow. Construction of the stone church began in September of 1851 and was completed in May of 1852. Oral tradition has it that in order to transport the coral stone needed to build the church, a human chain was formed to move the stones from Mōkapu peninsula to He‘eia.

In the Church’s very beginning in 1841, the missionaries established classes for the children in the district. At first, these classes were instructions about the Catholic faith; very quickly they included reading, writing, arithmetic, and geography. In 1871, a boarding school was established for eight boys by Fr. Mattias Limburg, SS.CC. The following year, 1872, a regular day school was started for boys and girls. The McCabe family was instrumental in running the school until the arrival of the Maryknoll Sisters in 1927.

The "Temporary" Church

By the 1940’s and the 1950’s, the population on the Windward Side and the St. Ann ‘Ohana grew immensely. With the influx of worshippers arose a new issue: the Coral Stone Church was unable to house them all. However, St. Ann’s already has plans in place for renovating the school facilities, a covenant, and rectory. On September 4, 1955, ground was broken to mark the beginning of the “Temporary” Church, which was completed in December and the coral stone church demolished soon after.

In 1988, the administration of St. Ann’s School saw the need to provide quality child care coupled with an opportunity to prepare younger children for our own kindergarten. Thus, on September 11, 1989, the ELC was opened and established itself as the feeder to the school.

The St. Ann’s Church of Today

Several years later in 2000, under the leadership of Father Clarence Guerreiro SS.CC., the Church that we know and love came to fruition. Finally, after nearly forty-six years on May 4, 2000, construction commenced.

In 2021, both the school and the ELC closed their doors. However, the St. Ann Church parish still thrives.