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As children, my sister and I used to call the lush area between Noelani Elementary School and Manoa Stream, where there were many trees, old wooden buildings, Quonset huts and a picturesque dirt path, “little Molokai.” I don’t remember how we came to use that nickname for our secret shortcut to the back of the valley.

Thirty-five years later, I found myself moving from Palolo Valley on the other side of Waahila Ridge, to “little Molokai.”

St. Francis School, the adjacent convent and its sisters, the Leahi Swim School behind the convent, and the elderly day care facility further makai on the expansive property, all became our neighbors. Benevolent St. Francis himself, with his lei-bedecked outstretched arm, bible cradled in the other, was a constant presence in our lives.

My young son and his friends liked to catch frogs at night in the wet grass surrounding the property, kolea frequented the tree-lined grounds in the winter; there were beautiful koi in a small pond not far from the school’s entrance and a nearby crown flower plant was frequented by butterflies and children.

The school was started on Maui in 1924 to prepare girls to enter the convent, but soon moved to Liliha, Oahu. There, it provided a high school education for young women aspiring to enter nurse’s training at St. Francis Hospital. Subsequently, it moved to its century-long Manoa Valley location. Contributions made toward the purchase of the property included $7,000 from the residents of Kalaupapa, on the island of Molokai. Equivalent to $125,000 in today’s dollars, this sum was dedicated to the memory of Kalaupapa’s beloved Mother Marianne Cope.

In 1883, Mother Marianne left Syracuse, New York, with six other nuns and came to Hawaii to care for tragically ostracized Hansen’s Disease patients, most of whom were Native Hawaiian. In 1888, she moved to Kalaupapa to care for the ailing Father Damien, who had contracted the disease himself, and to assume his duties at the colony.

She spent the rest of her life there on the remote northern peninsula of Molokai. For her many decades of caring devotedly for this long suffering, resilient community, she was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI in 2005 and canonized (sainted) by him on Oct. 21, 2012.

The Manoa convent adjacent to the school was built to house sisters of the Order of St. Francis in retirement, many of whom served for years at Kalaupapa with St. Marianne Cope and in the century since her death in 1918. Sister Alicia Damien, who still serves in Kalaupapa, lived on the St. Francis School property until the school closed.

The demise of the historic school for girls several years ago was sad to witness. As neighbors, we had greatly appreciated the institution’s peaceful presence. The girls in their blue skirts and white blouses walking by in pairs and groups on their way to and from the campus were quiet and respectful.

The school, adjacent convent and beautiful surrounding trees created a tranquil sanctuary that blended seamlessly with the semi-rural ambience of this old neighborhood, bordering Manoa Stream. St. Francis seemed more flesh and blood than statuary where he stood in front of the cypress-lined main building with its mission architecture, red-tile roof and courtyards.

A heiau supposedly existed historically on the St. Francis campus, and some, including at the adjacent University of Hawaii, claim that there are ancient Hawaiian burials near the stream. Another heiau, the Hipawai Heiau, acknowledged in Thrums Hawaiian Annual and in the literature of the Manoa Heritage Center was allegedly of the “pookanaka-type” and may have involved human sacrifice.

Perhaps some of the lichen-covered basalt rocks lining the school grounds and surrounding the neighboring Youth with a Mission property are relics of these ancient sites. These natural remnants of pre-contact Hawaii imbue the area with a sense of timelessness as do the magnificent night-blooming cereus when it blossoms on the old rock boundary walls.

Every Christmas season, neighbors would hear the St. Francis school band rehearsing in preparation for the Manoa Christmas Parade, its energetic drumbeats and holiday tunes permeating the neighborhood, a seasonal reminder of youthful exuberance and hope.

The school board’s decision to go co-educational in 2006 was followed by competition for recruitment of athletes with St. Louis High School and others. The school became fully co-ed in 2012.

Around this time, a photo of St. Francis Health Care CEO Jerry Correa, who oversaw the convent as well as the elderly day care on campus, and St. Louis President and former pop crooner Glenn Medeiros (“Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love” from 1987 and “She Ain’t Worth It” from 1990), captured the two executives smiling in front of a large painted mural on the St. Louis campus, seemingly oblivious of St. Marianne Cope almost completely obscured behind them. Correa is a St. Louis alumnus and was a football player there.

It was also around this time that several angelic and religious statues which had long decorated the grounds near the convent were abruptly removed and dumped unceremoniously at the school’s entrance, to await oversized trash pickup. Seeing this, I recall feeling a vague sense of dread.
Despite this lamentable prologue, and notwithstanding its recent purchase by a real estate developer, there could still be a happy ending for this beautiful historic property allowing at least some of it to be preserved and to continue to benefit the entire community in many ways long into the future.

A Tranquil Oasis

The campus is a cool and tranquil oasis. The courtyards and corridors of its primary building are decorated with beautiful painted murals depicting nostalgic Hawaiian scenes as well as a large panorama featuring St. Francis himself surrounded by the animals of his flock.

The murals were painted by students with the mentorship of a much loved art teacher, Tia Severson, who dedicated the last 18 years of her life to inspiring the artistic sensitivity of St. Francis students. Many birds frequent the campus trees which include not only the cypress, but a row of stately old Cook pines lining the entrance road, and beautiful gnarled old kiawe and kukui trees of a similar vintage.

A line of plumerias grace the way past the convent and leading up to the Leahi Swim School, which has taught lifesaving swimming skills to many children over decades in two pools behind the church sanctuary.

Although the St. Francis statue was removed, as was a statue of Mary near the elementary school at the far makai end of the property, the trees, courtyards and murals remain as reminders of the need to perpetuate our reverence for animals, birds and all life in an era when violence has become much too pervasive.

Jon Osorio, dean of Hawaiian Studies, and David Lassner, outgoing president of the University of Hawaii Manoa, years ago discussed the idea of fostering a charter school on the former St. Francis campus. The vision was of a school that would teach Hawaiian history, culture, and language in combination with the principles of ecological sustainability and reverence for nature in keeping with the spirit of St. Francis.

A captivating book featuring nostalgic photographs of Kalaupapa and its people and natural surroundings, by Sister Wilma Halmasy, OSF, was given to me several years ago by a caretaker at the convent. I rang the bell outside hoping to find out if there was anything I could do to help the distressed sisters or prevent their displacement.

After she ushered me in and showed me a large glass case holding St. Marianne Cope’s artifacts inside the convent entryway, the caretaker gave me a copy of this beautiful publication.

Entitled “Letters from the Land of Long Farewells,” Sister Halmasy’s poignant and lyrical work of art is a journal of remembrance.

Its nostalgic photographs carry the reader on a journey back in time to experience the Molokai colony, the wild natural beauty of the remote peninsula, and the spirit of its people.

If declared a historic property, the former St. Francis campus could be restored, and preserved in perpetuity, rather than being tragically destroyed for yet another for-profit development. I believe the international community of Catholics would certainly contribute to this effort, as would many others if a successor school were started on the campus.

As a Catholic herself, the new owner of the property, Christine Camp, has an opportunity to help create a vital new charter school in the spirit of St. Francis, teaching reverence for nature and perpetuating Hawaiian history and culture.

Now that she holds the keys to the future of this iconic place, I hope Ms. Camp will work with the community and give consideration to the possibility of leaving a meaningful legacy for the benefit of future generations.