Kauai churches face costly decisions following April flood

April’s record rainfall, which triggered flooding and landslides on Kauai’s north shore, has disrupted the way 500 or more people worship and could have profound economic impacts on four churches in Hanalei.

The aftermath of the flood has drawn renewed attention to changing demographics that have seen some church members move from Hanalei to other parts of Kauai — or even to the mainland.

Each of the four churches — Amazing Grace Baptist Church, Wai‘oli Hui‘ia Church, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Hanalei Chapel and St. William Mission — attracted nearly equal numbers of tourists and local residents to their services.

All were flooded when the storm of April 13-16 hit.

Only Wai‘oli Hui‘ia Church was able to hold a service on the Sunday following the floods, by temporarily pushing aside commercial-grade blowers and dehumidifiers even as the windows and doors remained swelled with water.

Since then each church has responded differently as it considers its options.

Amazing Grace Baptist Church

“We’re back,” said the Rev. George Milgrim of Amazing Grace Baptist Church, which has resumed Sunday serv­ices at Hanalei Elementary School.

But two years before the flood, Amazing Grace already was “sort of in a rebuilding process,” Milgrim said.

After 30 or so families left the North Shore, attendance dropped from about 70 to 80 people each Sunday to 30 to 40 just before the rain hit.

“That was half our congregation,” Milgrim said. “Some moved to other parts of the island. Some 20 or so moved to the mainland. It’s just so expensive to live here.”

Wai‘oli Hui‘ia Church

Wai‘oli Hui‘ia Church, which was founded by missionaries, lost its flood insurance a year before April’s heavy rain poured into its three buildings, causing an estimated $300,000 in damage.

Two of the church’s buildings are on the state and national registers of historic places.

The church normally sees 120 people on Sundays, but only 30 to 50 are local residents. And some of them lost everything in the flood, said church treasurer Susan Ferrell.

“Our small membership of 50 people is not financially able to provide the repairs for all three historic buildings,” she said.

So the church set up accounts on Instagram, Facebook and GoFundMe hoping that the thousands of visitors who have enjoyed serv­ices, gotten married or renewed their vows at the oft-photographed “little green church” come through with donations, Ferrell said.

She has also applied for local and federal aid.

“We’re doing anything and everything we can,” Ferrell said. So far, she estimates the church has raised $50,000 toward its $300,000 rebuilding goal.

Tourists who visit Wai‘oli Hui‘ia Church will play a critical role in the renovation effort.

“They’re going to have to be a very big part,” Ferrell said.

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ Hanalei Chapel

The LDS chapel in Hanalei has not reopened since it was inundated with about 8 inches of water, said Greg Gonsalves, the island’s stake president. An LDS stake is made up of at least five LDS congregations.

Church officials are considering a range of options, including selling the Hanalei property to help finance a bigger church on approximately 5 acres of LDS land in Kilauea, located much closer to LDS families.

“We’re still debating whether we’re going to rebuild it or build again on higher ground in Kilauea,” said Aley Auna Jr., who oversees all LDS churches in Hawaii.

“We’re putting together some statistics as to where most of the members reside,” Auna said. “It’s millions of dollars to build a new chapel versus several hundred thousands dollars to rebuild in Hanalei. Hanalei has been there for decades. But over the years people have been moving away, and the majority now live up in Kilauea.”

Sunday services are now held in the LDS Kapaa church, which uses a Kauai County base yard to accommodate as many as 50 additional vehicles that cannot squeeze into the church’s parking lot.

Along with worshippers now coming over from Hanalei, services often hold as many as 200 visiting and local LDS members.

“Most Sundays, our membership cannot fit into our chapel, so we use overflow areas and have live audio and video feeds to other areas,” Gonsalves said. “It’s a small building and a small parking lot. We’re kind of bursting at the seams on Sundays there, and we have been for a number of years. There are way more people in Princeville and Kilauea attending church, not necessarily in Hanalei Valley.”

Even though the Hanalei chapel has been around since 1965 and survived 1992’s Hurricane Iniki, Gonsalves said, “Hanalei’s become very much a tourist town, and people have moved out. Kapaa, Kilauea are all definitely part of the conversation. They’re tied to this whole Hanalei chapel situation.”

St. William Mission

Catholic officials from the Kauai parish that includes St. Catherine Church in Kapaa, St. Sylvester Mission in Kilauea and St. William Mission in Hanalei have decided to renovate, and they hope to resume services by early November, said the Rev. Anthony Rapozo.

Rapozo hopes church members displaced by the flood come back when the mission reopens.

Only about half of the local Hanalei parishioners — 25 or so — are showing up regularly at Sunday services 8 miles away at St. Sylvester Mission in Kilauea, Rapozo said.

Insurance will cover about $185,000 toward more than $200,000 in damage, said church member Sam Knepper, a retired contractor who is helping in the rebuilding effort.

The church will have to use its roof repair fund to make up some of the shortfall, Knepper said.

The big-ticket item will be replacing 50 or so damaged pews with custom-made ones from the mainland, Rapozo said.

“No one makes them here,” he said. “It’s not like you can just go into a furniture store.”

The new, solid red oak pews will be better than the particle board ones that were damaged in the flood — and had been replaced after Hurricane Iniki, Knepper said.

“And the kneelers will have an anti-microbial agent that’s cleanable with 20 percent bleach,” he said. “It’s perfect for places with mold.”

Kneppler is among the faithful waiting for the day when he can return to St. William Chapel in Hanalei and his home church.

The reason is simple, Kneppler, 75, said.

“It is a very welcoming culture,” he said, “which is consistent with my Catholic faith.”