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Author Archives: Catherine Cluett Pactol

Weekend Sports Results

Friday, March 28th, 2025

Weekend Sports Results

By The Molokai Dispatch Staff

The Molokai High School (MHS) Farmers took wins in baseball, softball and boys volleyball this past weekend.

For baseball, the boys traveled to Maui to take on Kulanihakoi High School in a two-game series. The Farmers swept Kulanihakoi, putting up an 11-1 victory on Friday followed by a 4-1 win on Saturday. The wins propelled the Farmers to a 4-0 start to their season.

MHS softball was also in action, taking on the Pine Lasses. The Lady Farmers dropped the first game on Friday by a score of 29-20, but came back strong for Saturday’s rematch.…

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Strengthening Literacy on Molokai

Friday, March 28th, 2025

Strengthening Literacy on Molokai

By Jack Kiyonaga, Editor

This year, Molokai High School (MHS) took a new approach to their annual Read Across America initiative: focusing on local authors. Funded by a grant from the National Education Association, MHS was able to put on a special event at both the high school and Molokai Public Library focusing on the book “Ho’ohui Maika’i: an Anthology.”

The anthology is a collection of Molokai women’s stories told through the context of food, culture and identity. It focuses on the various ethnic make-ups of Molokai families and how this diversity is experienced and demonstrated through food practices. The book was created via a collaboration between the Hawaii Council for the Humanities and the Krause Family Foundation.…

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Mobile Vet Plans to Service Molokai

Friday, March 28th, 2025

Mobile Vet Plans to Service Molokai

By Jack Kiyonaga, Editor

Relief for Molokai pet owners should be coming soon, as a Maui-based mobile veterinarian is planning on adding Molokai to her schedule.

Dr. Krysta Scimeca started her mobile veterinary clinic, Infinity Vet, in the immediate aftermath of the 2023 Lahaina wildfires. In fact, she’d moved from Kaneohe to Kihei only three days prior to the fires. Following the disaster, Scimeca noticed a massive need in pet care, especially as the blaze had burned down the only two veterinary hospitals in West Maui. Converting her business from a mobile animal euthanasia clinic to an animal care clinic, Scimeca began to service over 400 patients in Hana and Lahaina.…

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Iconic Church Faces Uncertain Future

Friday, March 28th, 2025

Iconic Church Faces Uncertain Future

By Jack Kiyonaga, Editor

Famed Kalamaula church, Kalaiakamanu Hou, looks much the same as it did last spring. The Easter wreath still hangs on the door. The pews face the altar, as if expecting Sunday’s service.
But in front of the doors hangs a yellow ribbon of caution tape.

“Everyone takes it for granted that Kalaiakamanu Hou will be here forever,” said longtime congregation member Crystal Egusa. “They can’t believe that we might lose it.”

The church has been closed since last summer when building contractors deemed the structure unsafe. Sunday masses have since moved to the adjacent church hall. Now, congregational members are unsure of how to proceed, and if it’s even feasible to try to save the iconic church.…

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Featured Farmer

Thursday, March 20th, 2025

Community Contributed
UH College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resilience, Cooperative Extension Team

Christina Aki, a homesteader on Molokai, has cultivated an inspiring food forest and garden
since taking CTAHR programs. Her small-scale, subsistence-focused operation has grown
through innovation and dedication, and with the help of her son, Anthony, who manages much of the implementation. Together, they are restoring their ‘aina while reclaiming a sense of purpose and self-sufficiency.

Before she began gardening, Christina was an active Zumba instructor. When COVID-19
disrupted her lifestyle, her grandson built her planter boxes, sparking a new passion for growing
food. She started with pak choi, basil, and mamaki, eventually supplying 70 pak choi monthly to
the local market.…

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Ho’aka Mana Partners with The Spirit Horse Ranch to Foster Healing

Thursday, March 20th, 2025

Ho’aka Mana News Release

Ho’aka Mana, a Native Hawaiian organization and nonprofit, is collaborating with The Spirit Horse Ranch to support healing, mental wellness, and resilience through evidence-based, equine-assisted interventions and trauma support.
Scheduled for every first Tuesday of the month until July 1, with additional dates on Aug. 19 and Sept. 21, Ho’aka Mana is inviting the Molokai community to join them at Wichman Ranch in Ho’olehua.
This program is open to the entire community—time slots will be on a first-come, first-served basis. We welcome all ages and encourage those interested in fostering healthy relationships to participate.
To participate, register through the link at HoakaMana.org…

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Free Guitar Concert

Thursday, March 20th, 2025

St. Damien Parish News Release

The St. Damien Parish and Remember the River invites the community to enjoy a free concert
presented by guitarist, composer and storyteller Susan McDonald at St. Damien Church on
Tuesday, March 25 at 5 p.m. The program will include Latin American music and will
feature pieces inspired by sea creatures, as well as music McDonald composed during her travels in the Ecuadorian Amazon.

When her friends Chip Scarlett, a marine photographer, and his wife Susan, a writer, invited
McDonald to join them at their home in Molokai, she embraced the opportunity to not only
experience the humpback whales in their spring migration but also to get to know a tight knit
community that holds such a deep respect for nature.…

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Up to $10K in Student Scholarships

Thursday, March 20th, 2025

AlohaCare News Release

AlohaCare’s Giving Program provides annual scholarships to AlohaCare members and their immediate family pursuing post-secondary education programs related to healthcare or social services. This year, the maximum annual award has been increased to $10,000 to help pay for tuition, books, supplies, certification, testing and course fees.

Our portal opened on March 3 and will close on June 2. More information about the application process and requirements can be found at foundation.alohacare.org/scholarships.

We’d like to encourage Molokai students of any age, including adults, to apply. Last year, AlohaCare awarded $50,000 in academic scholarships to 11 students on Oahu, Maui and Hawaii Island who are pursuing an education in healthcare and social services.…

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Large-scale Land Restoration on Molokai is Possible

Thursday, March 20th, 2025

Molokai Bahá’í Community News Release

John Liu’s documentary film, “Hope in a Changing Climate,” will be shown at the Molokai Public Library at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday March 26 as part of the Global Citizenship Speaker Series.
Two hundred years ago, Molokai had a population of approximately 30,000 and exported food to other islands. Today with one quarter of that population, we import 90 percent of our food. Traditional food systems have largely disappeared, and large parts of Molokai have experienced soil erosion and loss of native vegetation, with climate change accelerating degradation of the land.
There is hope that this can be reversed.…

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Celebrating Prince Kuhio

Thursday, March 20th, 2025

Celebrating Prince Kuhio

Ho’olehua Homesteaders Association News Release

The Ho ‘olehua Homesteaders Association (HHA) will celebrate its champion Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole’s legacy by honoring pioneer Ho’olehua-Pala’au Homesteaders on Saturday, March 22, 2025, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Kualapu’u Community Center.

Prince Kuhio played a pivotal role in the passage of the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act in 1921, which set aside land for Native Hawaiians to homestead, including areas on Molokai. In 1924, lots were awarded for the Ho’olehua-Pala’au homesteads on Molokai. This would be the third area in the territory after Kalama’ula and Keaukaha. The area was officially established in 1925 with additional lots being awarded through 1926.…

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