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View from the Pew
Mary Adamski
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GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
A recently erected cross hangs in the atrium of the Koolau Golf Club, which is now home to the First Presbyterian Church of Honolulu.
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Clubhouse of worship
First Presbyterian is ready to celebrate its new home at the Koolau Golf Club
The 15-foot wooden cross was suspended over the atrium in the Koolau Golf Club on Wednesday, a sign of the change that has come over the grandiose clubhouse.
A 10 a.m. service today in the grand ballroom will dedicate the place as the First Presbyterian Church of Honolulu. "The Party at Koolau" will continue until 2 p.m. with a concert headlining Hapa and Amy Hanaiali'i Gilliom, entertainment for children including pony rides and 12 tons of snow, free food and guided tours of the facility.
The 1,200 church members expected as many as 1,000 people to join them for the open house. They include dignitaries such as the Rev. Robert Schuller, founder of the Crystal Cathedral in California and one of the best-known televangelists in America; the Rev. Joan Gray, moderator of general assembly of the Presbyterian Church of the United States; Lt. Gov. James "Duke" Aiona; and numerous local ministers and politicians.
Whoever they are, the guests are likely to come with questions that have been the buzz of the local church world since "First Pres" took the astonishing step of buying the 241-acre golf course last August. The church paid $20.5 million for the course and the 110,000-square-foot clubhouse, an investment that was offset considerably by the sale of its former Makiki site for $15.6 million. The course was developed about 15 years ago for more than $110 million as a membership club for affluent Japanese golfers, a scheme that went bust with Japan's economy at the time.
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
A simple partition separates the dining area of the Koolau Golf Club from worship space.
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Thousands of local residents and nongolfers are familiar with the place, which is one of the most popular wedding venues on the island. Spectacular mountain views from ceiling-to-floor windows are the backdrop for photos in albums of anniversary and birthday parties, company and nonprofit organization banquets. Smaller rooms are booked for workshops, seminars and business meetings by private and government agencies.
"We bring a spiritual element to all of those things," said the church's senior pastor, the Rev. Dan Chun. The cross "will show that all we do at Koolau is in the context of the love of God."
The cross raised this week came from the Keeaumoku Street church and "will be a coming-home experience for members, a centering in their souls." He said he envisions the clubhouse as a place for other churches and the community to use.
The religious service of music, scriptural readings and speakers this morning took place in a movable sanctuary, a phenomenon familiar to many modern congregations that meet in school auditoriums, warehouses and closed nightclubs. Cross and candlesticks, organ and grand piano were rolled in, and rows of padded seats were set up. Professional sound and light systems were assembled. And they'll all be whisked away by tomorrow when the grand ballroom is set up for a wedding or a banquet.
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
A makeshift television studio for KWHE TV 14 occupies the rear portion of the Koolau Golf Club.
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That was a change that some old-timers could not accept after 45 years in the traditional church in Makiki. Ron Matthieu, the church's executive director, estimated that 10 percent of the membership did not come along. Still, "the biggest thing we brought was our congregation," he said. "Typically, we could expect to lose 25 to 30 percent in a move."
Services have been held at Koolau since August, with some small rituals to link the old and the new. A puakenikeni bush, which was dedicated to the late founding pastor Robert Phifer five years ago, was transplanted outside the entrance. "Each member was asked to bring a handful of soil from the old property to sprinkle around it," Matthieu said. "At the last service there, each member was asked to bring along a Bible and hymn book, a way to connect" and save space in the moving van.
Visitors today are likely asking questions about changes in the operation. Matthieu provided some answers.
» Why change? "We want to bring people to Jesus and were stymied by parking," said the executive, a retired Navy captain. "It's all about making room for people who want to have God in their lives." There were 83 parking spaces in Makiki, plus a shuttle running from rented parking space at Roosevelt High School. At Koolau there are 450 parking spaces.
» Yes, it's business as usual at the clubhouse. "We formed Koolau Catering Inc., a for-profit corporation that runs the catering business, conferences and weddings." Church member Ted Otaguro is chief operating officer, work similar to what he did for years for the Army. Rooms are booked ahead for two years or more.
The golf operation is managed by American Golf Corp., which hires staff and maintains the grounds. The California-based company was the operator under the previous owners and submitted the winning bid to continue.
» Yes, "the church gets taxed" for the business operations, Matthieu said. "The lessee pays it. It's not coming out of the congregation's pocket."
But the church will pay taxes on the sanctuary space because it's the grand ballroom and scene of catered galas for six other days of the week. "We would rather err on the side of paying taxes," said the executive director. "There is no benefit to save a few dollars but lose with the perception of not having integrity."
GEORGE F. LEE / GLEE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Executive Chef Jim Gillespie cooks in the large kitchen of the Koolau Golf Club. Koolau Catering Inc., a for-profit corporation, runs the catering business, conferences and weddings.
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About 26 percent of the spacious building is designated for church use, thus tax exempt. "The state has been here measuring space with us." Most of that designated space is on the ground floor. A labyrinth of kitchen and storage space and locker rooms, which the public never sees, will be developed into classrooms, offices, meeting rooms. About 180 children gather in Sunday school rooms where golf club staff was formerly trained.
If there's any definitive example about the change at Koolau, it would be in the former furo bath room, where tycoons would have luxuriated in a traditional Japanese hot tub the size of a small swimming pool. The space, which looks out on rain forest, will be gutted and transformed into a prayer room for quiet meditation.
» No, there won't be a steeple rising from the roof of the clubhouse, which has a bland, nondescript style of architecture. "The building cannot be changed" under state Department of Land and Natural Resources restrictions because it is on conservation land.
» About the rumor that Honey's, the 19th hole for golfers and longtime setting for informal Hawaiian entertainment on Fridays and Sunday evenings, would be shut down or become alcohol free, the answer is yes and no. The free-standing bar was removed, but drinks are still served at the tables. "There is a restaurant atmosphere, not a bar atmosphere," said Matthieu, and in that context the entertainment will continue.
Some church members were concerned about allowing a liquor license to continue, particularly with Sunday school and youth groups on the premises. "We had a good, long discussion on it; we sought theological reasoning," he said. "Our church finds drinking OK but drunkenness is not. For us, drunkenness is a sin. We feel Scriptures are full of examples of putting down drunkenness. But Christ's first miracle was turning water into wine at Cana."
There will be no alcoholic drinks served before noon on Sundays. "We considered it an activity not appropriate during services," Matthieu said.