Hundreds gathered in West Maui for the Lahaina Obon Ceremony, a remembrance for those lost in the devastating August 2023 wildfire. Among the attendees at the event on August 10 was University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Center for Oral History Director Mary Kunmi Yu Danico.
“I was so inspired by the love and support that folks were giving,” Danico said. “It was a mourning and a celebration of life.”
The event was organized by the Lahaina Hongwanji Mission, Lahaina Shingon Mission and Lahaina Jodo Mission, whose temple was destroyed in the blaze. The ceremony, which took place at Lahaina Cannery Mall, featured traditional dancing, food vendors and a sense of community healing. It was also part of an initiative put on by Kuhinia Maui.
Danico volunteered at the Jodo Mission booth, selling T-shirts with calligraphy by the temple’s reverend and images of a Buddha statue that survived the fire.
“People who came to the booth shared their memories of the Jodo Mission,” Danico said. “One woman came and asked, ‘Will the temple be rebuilt? I was married there.’”
The Lahaina Jodo Mission has been a cornerstone of the community since 1963. Rev. Gensho Hara, who arrived in Lahaina that year, later rebuilt the temple after a 1968 fire with support from locals and Japan.
Preserving memories, history
The event coincided with a $30,000 National Endowment for the Humanities grant awarded to the Center for Oral History. The funds will support oral history projects preserving memories of Lahaina, Lahaina Jodo Mission and its impact.
“Those who came to the booth expressed gratitude for preserving the history of the peoples of Lahaina and Jodo Mission,” Danico said.
The center’s work builds on previous collaborations, including interviews conducted by Associate Director Micah Mizukami with Hara for a Maui Arts and Cultural Center exhibit earlier in 2024. Danico is now working with Hara’s daughters, Yayoi and Maya, to identify key individuals for oral histories related to the temple.
As the community continues to grapple with loss and recovery, events like the obon ceremony provide a space for reflection and unity.
“It was a joyful occasion,” Danico said, emphasizing the resilience of Maui’s people in the face of tragedy.
The Center for Oral History is housed in the UH Mānoa College of Social Sciences.
