Travel – Page 4 – Where’s Fran?

Numbers and Names on Pohnpei

I was sitting in the back of a village church waiting to say mass when a teenage girl asked how old I was. When I told her that I was 76, she scrunched her eyes in disbelief, looked at me again, and then said ?I thought you were much older. You look at least 90.?

I really did feel like 90 a couple days earlier after three one-on-one games with a basketball buddy from the Philippines. I felt at least that old many times during this trip to Pohnpei as I tried to remember the names that wouldn?t come, as friends came up to offer their good wishes. But, whether 76 or 90, I couldn?t help but be rejuvenated by the return to my old stomping grounds. At times, I felt as if I were 24 again?my age when I first arrived here in 1963.

What is the mission of the church today, and how can we best carry it?out in the islands today? Those were the driving questions behind the?diocesan workshop that was held in Chuuk towards the end of July.?Following their retreat, most of the local priests attended, but many?others were also on hand?about 80 people in all. They didn?t sit silently?and just listen, either. Joe Saimon from Pohnpei, Santi Asanuma from?Palau, Deacon Joseph Albert from Chuuk, and Deacon Burdensio?Andreas from Pohnpei were just some of the many who contributed to?the active discussion in the workshop. At the end of the week, we did?some minor editing on the old vision statement for the church in?Micronesia before we adopted it. We can hope that it will help us focus?on our task in the years ahead.

This photo posted on my Facebook needs a little explanation. So let me explain. I was in Washington for two days in response to a request to help find a way to bring together Pacific Island representatives in Washington to engage in a discussion of issues that are important to them. After all, Micronesia has three ambassadors in DC (FSM, Palau and the Marshalls) not to mention the other Pacific Island embassies within the Beltway. But there are also three members of US Congress from the islands?Guam, CNMI and American Samoa. Why not try to get them together to meet occasionally on Pacific matters?

April 6, 2015
Francis X. Hezel, SJ
Compact, Culture, Economics, Migration, Travel, Videos

Max Yarawamai

Max Yarawamai?s story is that of an island boy who made good. Today he owns a landscaping company on the Big Island of Hawaii that employs over 200 people and has big projects underway all over the state. Despite his success, he has not lost contact with his own people. Max, born in Ulithi, has set up clinics on his own atoll and has built a park that provides basketball, volleyball and other freetime activities for other migrants.

April 2, 2015
Francis X. Hezel, SJ
Compact, Culture, Economics, Migration, Travel, Videos

Innocenta Sound

The move to Honolulu didn?t come easily for Lukunor-born Innocenta Sound. She was uprooted suddenly to care for her father, the former lieutenant governor of Chuuk, when he went on dialysis in Hawaii. The former policewoman became a social activist even as she began full-time work with fellow migrants in a low-income neighborhood of the city. She lives out the ideal of islanders taking care of their own.

April 1, 2015
Francis X. Hezel, SJ
Compact, Culture, Economics, Migration, Travel, Videos

Lowery Lowery

Lowery Lowery, born in Kosrae, had an interest in security from the outset. After graduating from PATS, he joined the US Marines and served in Iraq. Later he became a key figure in a local security company in Hawaii. Like so many other community leaders, he has been asked to play a key role in helping his fellow migrants. Besides serving as a lay leader in his church, he has been asked to preside at community events.

March 31, 2015
Francis X. Hezel, SJ
Compact, Culture, Economics, Migration, Travel, Videos

Alice Ehmes

Many knew Alice Ehmes back in the islands, when she worked for the College of Micronesia and then served with the National Government. The competent administrator then is still the same, but now she is working for the University of Hawaii in Honolulu. You?ll see her at the computer tending her website, advising women applying for jobs, and on her favorite means of transportation.

March 30, 2015
Francis X. Hezel, SJ
Compact, Culture, Economics, Migration, Travel, Videos

Serpian Yaliweisei

There?s more than enough room in a family for two or even three cultures, as Serpian Yaliweisei?s story shows. The boy from Ifaluk who once thought he might be a navigator ended up as the quality control manager for a large heavy equipment company in the outskirts of Dallas. His family redefines the term cultural melting pot; there is room for both Mexican and Micronesian music and dance. Read More

Francis X. Hezel, SJ, is a Jesuit priest who has lived and worked in Micronesia since 1963. At different times he has served as high school teacher, school administrator, pastor, and regional superior to the Jesuits of Micronesia. He spent thirty years directing the Micronesian Seminar, a non-profit, non-governmental organization based in Pohnpei, Micronesia.

He has written and spoken widely about social change and its impact on island societies. He has also written several books on Micronesian history, including The First Taint of Civilization, Strangers in Their Own Land, and The New Shape of Old Island Cultures. His most recent book, Making Sense of Micronesia: The Logic of Pacific Island Culture, is available through University of Hawaii Press.