Leadership development top concern Among the parishes in West Hawaii, Maui and Kauai that have so far participated in the town hall Road Map meetings, “leadership development” has emerged as the top issue, while homelessness barely registered and land asset management came up empty. The year-long strategic planning process came up with six top issues. In these follow up meetings, parishes are being asked to pick from those six their top three and to get to work on one. Out of 19 parishes represented at the meetings, eight picked leadership development as their number one concern. Six of those eight were on Maui. Six parishes, four of which are on Kauai, picked “youth and young adults” as their top concern. Faith formation claimed the top spot for only three parishes, one on the Big Island and two on Maui. Two parishes, both in Kona and affected by the recent Big Island earthquake, picked facilities maintenance as their number one priority. Only one parish, on Kauai, listed homelessness as one of its top three priorities, ranking it second. Land asset management and acquisition did not make any parish’s list of top three concerns.

The Road Map is on the road. The two heads of the committee charged with putting into motion Bishop Larry Silva’s strategic plan for the church in Hawaii have been holding “town hall meetings” this summer across the state to activate the plan at the parish level.

Colleen Sathre, chairwoman of the Implementation Commission of the plan — officially called “Witness to Jesus: Diocesan Road Map for Pastoral, Program, and Facility Needs 2008-2013” — has been sharing inter-island flights with co-chairman Father Marc Alexander to meet groups of Catholics in each of the state’s vicariates, or geographical divisions.

Gatherings were held on the West Big Island on May 20, Kauai on June 10 and Maui on June 17. According to Joy Bulosan, Father Alexander’s executive assistant, the meetings were “well attended.”

Future meetings are scheduled for:

• Windward Oahu: 7 p.m., July 9, St. Anthony Church, Kailua
• Central Oahu: 7 p.m. July 30, at Resurrection of the Lord Church, Waipio
• West Honolulu: 6:30 p.m., Aug. 12, Co-Cathedral of St. Theresa
• East Honolulu: 7 p.m., Aug. 14, St. Pius X Church, Manoa
• Molokai: 6 p.m., Aug. 25, St. Sophia Church, Kaunakakai

The purpose of the meetings is to encourage parish action on the Road Map, which has six main objectives: leadership development, youth and young adult ministry, faith formation, homelessness, repair and maintenance of facilities, and land asset management and acquisition.

Parish leaders are being asked to pick three of the objectives they think are most important, to list the resources they need to pursue them, and to start working on at least one of them.

Anyone may attend these meetings. Those encouraged to go are parish pastoral council members, parish ministry leaders and local Diocesan Pastoral Council members.

For more information, contact the executive assistant to the vicar general, Joy Bulosan, at 585-3356 or jbulosan@rcchawaii.org.