Respect Present Kalaupapa

We are writing on behalf of the Kalaupapa patient community to let you know that we do not support the passing of Senate Bill no. 2771 and House Bill No. 2975. We are, now, just a handful of us but we feel we have to stand up and be heard.

Fearing our stories would be forgotten, the patient community invited the National Park Service to come to Kalaupapa to document our history and preserve our stories. They have been doing this since 1980. Over the past thirty years, the National Park Service has shown us that they have the knowledge, experience and resources to do this better than any State agency. If left to the State, especially with the current budget deficit, we are afraid for the future of Kalaupapa and what might happen to its valuable cultural resources. We have testimony in 1980 and we are speaking once again. We want the National Park to remain at Kalaupapa in perpetuity to take care of the sacred `aina and to tell our stories to future generations.

We are in our golden years and we should not have to worry about this. Please respect our wishes. Please hear our voices and the voices of the patients who are no longer here.

I remain always,
Gloria L. Marks, President
Kalaupapa Patient Advisory council