Oahu church, school have most abuse allegations ADVERTISING Oahu church, school have most abuse allegations HONOLULU (AP) — A Catholic church and school on Oahu generated the most allegations across the state of priests and teachers sexually abusing students decades
Oahu church, school have most abuse allegations
HONOLULU (AP) — A Catholic church and school on Oahu generated the most allegations across the state of priests and teachers sexually abusing students decades ago.
Court documents say Saint Anthony Church in Kailua and Damien Memorial School in Kalihi each recorded 21 sexual abuse complaints from the 1950s through the mid-1980s. Across the state, accusations have been made by 63 people against 26 priests, teachers and others. In all, 18 schools and churches have faced 40 lawsuits.
According to the lawsuit, the late Father Joseph Henry faced the most sexual abuse allegations. Eighteen men filed complaints saying Henry molested them from 1952-72, with most of the alleged incidents occurring at Saint Anthony Church.
Henry was the pastor and superintendent of St. Anthony Church and School until he died in 1974.
Other complaints at the church were against Father Joseph Ferrario, who was accused of sexually abusing boys in five cases between 1969 and 1981. All the alleged incidents occurred before Ferrario became bishop and headed the Catholic Church in Hawaii from 1982-93. He died in 2003.
The lawsuits show that at Damien Memorial School, religion and history teacher Brother Robert Brouillette was accused in seven abuse cases from 1972-87.
At least 30 of 40 sex abuse lawsuits have been settled by the Catholic Church.
Volunteers work to rebuild forest damaged in fire
LIHUE, Kauai (AP) — A group of volunteers is helping restore the Hikimoe Ridge, three years after the forest was damaged in a fire that burned several thousand acres on Kauai.
About 30 volunteers planted seedlings Wednesday across 2 acres of the Hikimoe Ridge. Officials say they plan to plant 20,000 seedlings along the entire area that was destroyed in the 2012 blaze.
“It’s great to have the chance to come back and heal the land,” said Michelle Clark, a biologist with US Fish and Wildlife Service
Hikimoe Ridge, in the Kokee Area Forest Reserves, was one of three ridges charred in the fire that spread across the Na Pali-Kona, Puuka Pele Forest Reserves and southern Poki. Almost 3,000 acres of eucalyptus trees were burned to the ground.
The Department of Land and Natural Resources, which has been behind efforts to rebuild the forest, is replacing the eucalyptus trees with koa trees, which are native to Hawaii. Eucalyptus trees are from Australia.
“We want to support the community, beauty and recreation, but we also want to stabilize the soil and create a habitat for native plants and animals,” said Sheri Mann, state forestry program manager for the DNLR Division of Forestry &Wildlife.
Officials also plan to use the burned remnants of trees as a source for renewable energy on the island.
Planting koa trees in the Kokee Forest has also brought some challenges for state officials, who are concerned the seedlings won’t grow as easily in the island’s dry conditions.
But Suzanne Case, DLNR, remains hopeful that the recovery and restoration efforts will have a positive impact on the forest land.
“We hope in not too many years the scars left by this series of wildfires will no longer be evident, thanks to the replanting efforts and everything that led up to it,” said Case.
