Leadership Transitions at the Dispatch

The Molokai Dispatch News Release

The Molokai Dispatch would like to let readers, advertisers and supporters know about some upcoming transitions in leadership and staffing roles at Molokai’s only newspaper. 

Catherine Cluett Pactol, who has worked at the paper for the past 15 years and served as editor for more than a decade, is beginning a new chapter in her career. She will be working with Hawaii Public Radio as the organization’s Maui Nui reporter, where she will continue to live on Molokai and share the island’s voices and stories on statewide radio, while also expanding the station’s coverage of Maui and Lanai news. She will serve as HPR’s first full-time employee based on a neighbor island. Catherine will also continue to work with the Dispatch in an advisory role and write from time to time. 

Taking on the role of Dispatch Editor will be Jack Kiyonaga, who has worked at the paper for the past eight months as a reporter. Jack grew up in Washington, D.C. and came to Molokai to explore his family’s roots on the island. His great grandparents lived here, and his grandfather grew up in Kamalo. Jack is already a talented writer and will be training for his new role over the next two months. We are excited for the energy and perspectives he will bring to the Dispatch, while maintaining the high quality and relevance of weekly news that readers have come to expect. 

Dispatch Sales Manager Tirzah Pactol will continue in her role, which has greatly contributed to the Dispatch’s financial sustainability in being able to keep printing each week as many other local newspapers around the country close. Additionally, she will be taking on new responsibilities as Copy Center and Office Manager, bringing the consistency of her seven years working at the Dispatch. 

Also continuing with the Dispatch is Graphic Designer Marissa Motas, who has worked at the paper the past two years. Her design and layout expertise brings high quality ads for our advertisers as well as excellent readability and aesthetics in the Dispatch’s overall newspaper design. 

We are grateful for Tirzah and Marissa’s continued service to the community in these roles. 

We will share more about these transitions over the next two months. In the meantime, please reach out to editor@themolokaidispatch.com with any questions. 

Mahalo to the Molokai community for your continued support of The Molokai Dispatch, and we look forward to continuing to carry the island’s voices and share locally owned and produced news in the coming years.