Christian minister the Rev. Shiro Sokabe (1865-1949) arrived in Hawaii at a time when exploitation of Japanese plantation workers ran rampant and caused many social problems. For more than 50 years, Sokabe, assisted by his wife, Shika, served the spiritual and social needs of the new immigrants.
Christian minister the Rev. Shiro Sokabe (1865-1949) arrived in Hawaii at a time when exploitation of Japanese plantation workers ran rampant and caused many social problems. For more than 50 years, Sokabe, assisted by his wife, Shika, served the spiritual and social needs of the new immigrants.
Sokabe, affectionately remembered as the “Samurai Missionary,” built the Honomu Gijuku (a dormitory and orphanage that sheltered more than 1,500 individuals from 1898 to 1917), established a school and founded mission churches in neighboring plantation towns along the Hamakua Coast.
Through Sokabe’s efforts, Honomu became a center for Japanese theater, music and sports. It also was a shelter for abused women and children, runaways, the unemployed and anyone who needed a hot meal and a roof over their head.
Sixty-seven years after Sokabe’s passing, the famous couple’s remains have been relocated from Homelani Cemetery to the place where they called home — the present site of Hilo Coast United Church of Christ in Honomu. The service of dedication blessing the new memorial site took place Aug. 28. Attending the dedication were Akiko Hoshino and her brother, Masahiro, descendants of Sokabe from Japan.