The Laie Hawaii Temple was dedicated on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 27, 1919. This year the temple celebrates its 100th anniversary
In his book “Stories of the Temple in Laie: Hundredth Anniversary,” Clinton D. Christensen says, “The spirit of gathering to Utah affected the Hawaiians just as it did the British and Scandinavian Saints in the nineteenth century, though immigration policies made it more difficult for Hawaiians.” Despite this, Hawaiians still wanted to experience temple blessings. They were willing to leave everything to be near a temple.
Christensen continues, “Today, we think of Laie as the gathering place for Hawai‘i, but a group of Hawaiians journeyed to Utah to receive temple blessings and eventually started a colony called Iosepa named after Joseph F. Smith. From 1889 to 1917, Iosepa was the home for two hundred Polynesians. They gave up their isles of paradise to live in the harsh West Desert of Utah.”
Today, the descendants of the Iosepa community honor the early Saint’s faith.
Lynette Akiona Valdez, a stake history specialist in the Hilo Hawaii Stake, says in the book, “We cannot forget the sacrifices and faithfulness of the early Saints who left their island homes and settled in Iosepa to be close to the temple. Whether they were from Hawai’i, Samoa, or another South Pacific Island, these Saints marked the beginnings of temple participation for our people. Leaving everything behind to be ‘close’ to the temple,...they had to walk 150 miles round-trip to attend temple sessions.”
One who sacrificed to come to Utah was David Keola Kailimai. Christensen says, “In 1913, Keola sold all of his land and belongings to purchase passageway for his family on a boat to California and make the land trek to Utah, arriving in August 1913. He was sealed to his wife and hanai (adopted) son, David, in the Salt Lake Temple, but he only stayed in Utah for three months.
“President Joseph F. Smith told him, ‘Keola, you go home. A temple is going to be built soon in Hawai‘i. I need for you to go home and help build it.
“Kailimai returned to the Big Island with only three dollars to his name and started again... At the time of the temple’s dedication, David Keola Kailimai was privileged to offer the benediction at the first session on November 27, 1919.”
There is an annual celebration at Iosepa in Skull Valley, Utah, to remember the once a thriving Polynesian community. Iosepa ended when the saints learned of the opportunity to return to Hawai‘i to build and serve in the temple.
The Iosepa community still has an impact in Laie today. Along with some being direct descendants from those who traveled to Utah for temple blessings, the Polynesian Cultural Center honors the legacy of the community. One of PCC’s attractions, the 57-foot traditional wa'a kaulua, or twin-hulled Hawaiian sailing canoe, is named the Iosepa.
According to Matthew Kester’s book “Remembering Iosepa: History, Place, and Religion in the American West,” the idea to have the Iosepa reside at the PCC came after William Wallace, a former director of BYU–Hawaii Hawaiian Studies, who had a vision.
In his vision, Wallace was in the Hawaiian Village at the PCC, and said he realized the home of the Iosepa was supposed to be there to honor the kupuna [ancestors].
On Nov. 4, 2006, at the dedication ceremony for Iosepa, BYUH Newsroom reported Wallace said, “There's no doubt in my mind that once Iosepa is here, it will help unlock the windows of heaven and that blessings will descend upon this place, to help the work go forward.”
For full stories, read Christensen's book set to be published later this year.
Writer: Noah Shoaf and Clinton D. Christensen