The Sacred Hearts Fathers

On April 12, 1846, two Catholic priests with the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary landed in Lahaina. Father Modestus Favens, SS.CC., and Father Barnabas Castan, SS.CC., were assigned to be the first Catholic priests on Maui. A week later, Father Favens started to visit other sections of Maui, going to Kaupo via Olowalu, Maalaea and Keawekapu. He returned by way of Kanaio, Ulupalakua, Haliimaile, and arrived in Wailuku on June 15, 1846.

Both priests visited Wailuku every few weeks. A grass hut chapel was, built but the winds from the ocean constantly weakened the hut and so it was always in need of repair. Father Favens records in his diary that on July 13, 1848, the very first time Mass was offered in the renovated St. Anthony Church, that a rectory had been built close to the church, and that a one-room school building had been erected on the same church premises.

School was held in Wailuku possibly as early as 1848, but surely from the time Wailuku got its own resident priest, that is, from 1855 on. Throughout Maui - and for that matter, all over Hawaii - there were almost as many small one-room schools as there were villages. The enrollment in each school was small and proportionate to the population. The 100 mark of students was reached only in the larger and relatively well-to-do towns. The important thing, however, was that the school was there, was functioning and doing its bit toward education. In the beginning, these schools were almost all church sponsored. Because of their work in the field of education, civil government felt duty-bound to establish government schools in the places where a church had opened a school or where a church school had been abandoned.

A big problem during this period in Hawaii was the shortage of good teachers and the Catholic school system was no exception. A movement to make English the vehicle of education in the schools had started and was gaining momentum throughout the Hawaiian Kingdom. Progress would have been greater and more rapid were it not for the difficulty of finding qualified teachers as well as of providing suitable remuneration for their work of devotion.

At St. Anthony School in Wailuku, the change over from the Hawaiian language to English was greatly facilitated by the presence of Father Sullivan, a mainland priest who, for health reasons, had come to Hawaii. Having been given room and board at St. Anthony Rectory, Father Sullivan offered his services in reorganizing the Boys' School, especially in regard to introducing English as the medium of teaching. He did such a good job that he gained the high praise of Bishop Louis Desire Maigret, who visited "the St. Anthony English Boys' School" on April 20, 1875.

For the next two years Father Sullivan continued to assist the teachers with his expert advice and practical directions. In the second half of 1878, his health began to fail. Complete rest and the best of care did not bring the desired results, and the good priest died in 1879. He was buried in St. Anthony Cemetery in the section reserved for priests and religious.

Concerned for the schools, Bishop Herman Koeckemann, the great defender and promoter of Catholic education, dispatched Father Leonor Fouesnel to the United States in quest of religious teachers in 1882.

Father Leonor's endeavors were very successful, as he prevailed upon the Brothers of Mary, Marianists, of Dayton, Ohio, and upon the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis, Syracuse, N.Y., to staff and conduct several Catholic schools in Hawaii.

In September 1883, a small contingent of Brothers of Mary arrived in Honolulu. Three of them were dispatched to Wailuku's Catholic Boys' School. Ever since, the Brothers of Mary have staffed and run St. Anthony School, steadily expanding the Boys' Department. In 1927, the Boys' School had its first graduation of its Commercial Department, and in 1942, its first graduation of a full-fledged four-year high school.

In early January 1884, the Franciscan Sisters took the helm at St. Anthony Girls' School, eliminating year by year the lay teachers. As great and progressive strides were made, the school prospered and grew to such an extent that by 1928, the good Franciscans were unable to continue to staff the school adequately, for lack of Sisters. It was then that they requested Bishop Stephen Alencastre to relieve them of their responsibilities.

Fortunately, the Bishop was able to replace them with the Maryknoll Sisters, who graciously accepted the invitation to run St. Anthony Girls' School. They began their work during the 1928-1929 school year with nine Sisters. At the height of their 52 year service, their numbers grew to 32.

The Sacred Hearts Fathers relinquished the parish and schools in 1973, when Monsignor Charles Kekumano was appointed pastor of St. Anthony Church.