Waiakea Mission Station-Hilo Station
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The Waiākea Mission Station was the first
Christian mission A Christian mission is an organized effort for the propagation of the Christian faith. Missions involve sending individuals and groups across boundaries, most commonly geographical boundaries, to carry on evangelism or other activities, such ...
on the eastern side of the
Island of Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii ) is the largest island in the United States, located in the state of Hawaii. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcanic islands in the North Pacific Ocean. With an area of , it has 63% of th ...
. Also known as the Hilo Station, the latest structure is now called Haili Church.


The first mission

The
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missionaries A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...
Asa Thurston Asa Thurston (October 12, 1787 – March 11, 1868) was a Protestant missionary from the United States who was part of the first company of American Christian missionaries to the Hawaiian Islands with his wife Lucy Goodale Thurston. Asa Thurston B ...
, Artemis Bishop, Joseph Goodrich and English missionary William Ellis toured the island in 1823 and planned to establish a network of several posts. The first two were
Mokuaikaua Church Mokuaikaua Church, located on the "Big Island" of Hawaii, is the oldest Christian church in the Hawaiian Islands. The congregation dates to 1820 and the building was completed in 1837. History The congregation was first founded in 1820 by Asa a ...
in the
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(western coast), and this one on the east side. On May 19, 1824, a simple grass hut was dedicated as the first church of the
American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions The American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM) was among the first American Christian missionary organizations. It was created in 1810 by recent graduates of Williams College. In the 19th century it was the largest and most imp ...
with Joseph Goodrich as preacher and Samuel Ruggles as teacher. The Hawaiian village at the time was called Waiākea, in the district called
Hilo Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Hawaii (island), Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 United ...
. The name of the village came from ''wai ākea'' in the
Hawaiian language Hawaiian (', ) is a Polynesian language of the Austronesian language family that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language o ...
meaning "broad waters", and was located in what is now the southeast part of the city of Hilo. In December 1824, Goodrich met
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at the Kīlauea volcano, for a dramatic demonstration that the new faith was acceptable. In June 1825 arrived, and Goodrich guided a party to the summit of Mauna Kea. In 1825 a larger grass structure was built on present-day Kalakaua Park. Goodrich brought some Coffea, coffee trees here some time after 1825, and Samuel Ruggles brought some to the other side of the island (the first Kona coffee) in 1828 when he was transferred to the Kealakekua Church. David Belden Lyman and his wife, Sarah Joiner Lyman arrived in 1832 to established and teach at a new boarding school. Over the next few years, the boarding school, a larger thatched church, and other buildings were built in that area, which now is the town square surrounded by civic buildings such as the historic District Courthouse and Police Station and U.S. Post Office and Office Building (Hilo, Hawaii), Hilo Federal Building. In 1835, Rev. Titus Coan and his wife Fidelia arrived. He learned the Hawaiian language, so he could travel through the districts of Puna, Hawaii, Puna and Kau, Hawaii, Kaū to the south, gathering converts. His writings describe avoiding the perils of the dense Hawaiian tropical rainforests, tropical rainforests, and observations of the Kīlauea volcano.


Later buildings

By 1840 the congregation had grown, and a wood-frame building was built on a stone foundation. The wood had to be dragged by hand down from the slopes of Mauna Loa since no horses or oxen were available, and no roads suitable for wheeled carts. Labor was provided by hundreds of Hawaiians, with the blessing of Royal Governor John Adams Kuakini. All these previous buildings had suffered damage from the heavy tropical rains in this area, so a more substantial building was planned. The present structure was started in 1854 near the Lyman house and dedicated on April 8, 1859 by Rev. Coan. The name of this church comes from the forest where the ōhia (''Metrosideros polymorpha'') wood was gathered for its construction. The main interior space has a ceiling high spanning . The architectural style is simplified Greek Revival architecture, Greek Revival, as was popular in New England meetinghouses at the time of its design. Coan served as pastor, but was often proselytizing on circuits through the countryside or showing visitors to the volcano, when Lyman performed services. The flexible wooden building survived an 1868 Hawaii earthquake, 1868 earthquake that damaged many stone buildings and plaster walls. Pews made from koa (''Acacia koa'') wood were installed in 1900. In 1902 Harry K. Naope Sr. founded the Haili Church Choir, which sang a cappella in the Hawaiian language. In 1908, two stained glass windows from Tiffany & Co., Tiffany Galleries in New York City were installed. A pipe organ was installed in 1929, and the tower and roof were rebuilt. Repairs were made after a July 1979 fire destroyed a portion of the tower and interior. The original 1859 bell was cracked in the fire, and is now on display in the church. Several eruptions of Mauna Loa (the 1984 eruption of Mauna Loa, most recent in 1984) have threatened the city of Hilo, but stopped short. Tsunamis devastated the areas along the coast, with the largest in 1946 and 1960 Valdivia earthquake, 1960, but the new site of the church was far enough inland to avoid destruction.


Today

Haili Church is still in operation and offers both in-person and virtual services. The congregation also operates another chapel in Hilo, named Kuhio ChapelHaili Congregational Church
official web site
and a primary school known as Haili Christian School. Some families have had members in the choir for four or five generations. The choir was honored in 2001 by the Hawaiian Music Hall of Fame. The church is located at 211 Haili Street and its current Hope Kahu is Daniel Kawaha. The Current Church Leadership (Council) Members are (Moderator) Lyndell Lindsey (Vice-Moderator) Enola-Gay Osorio (Secretary) LeeAnn Lindsey (Treasurer) Cindy Lee (Diaconate) Carol Hughes-Okada (Missions) Lorna Bufil (Evangelism) Daniel Kawaha (Delegate) Cynthia Akimseu It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 23, 2002, as site 02000387, and the state list as site 10-35-7417 on November 17, 2001.Historic Places in Hawaii County
on official state web site
Across the street (named for the church), the home of some of the early missionaries is now the Lyman House Memorial Museum.


References

{{Christianity in Hawaii Religious buildings and structures in Hawaii County, Hawaii Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in Hawaii Churches completed in 1855 United Church of Christ churches in Hawaii Buildings and structures in Hilo, Hawaii 1824 establishments in Hawaii National Register of Historic Places in Hawaii County, Hawaii