Royal Tour of Washington DC – June 2021:
Visiting St. Mary Mother of God Church to honour Saint Damien of Molokai & the Blessed Emperor Karl of Austria.
Attending a Charity dinner for the Daughter’s of Hawai’i
Their Royal Highnesses Prince Darrick and Princess Anna paid homage to a relic of Saint Damien of Molokai at the St. Mary Mother of God Catholic church in Washington DC.
Father Damien was a Hawaiian Catholic Priest and missionary who ministered to those with leprosy and were confined to the island of Moloka’i during the period of the Kingdom of Hawai’i.
HM King Kalakaua of Hawai’i bestowed on Father Damien the honour of Knight Commander of the Royal Order of Kalakaua for his service to the Hawaiian people.
Father Damien has been described as a ‘martyr of charity’ and is considered the spiritual patron for leprosy and outcasts.
He was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on 11th October 2009 and is the patron saint of the Diocese of Honolulu and Hawai’i.
The St. Mary Mother of God Catholic Church is also home to a diocesan shrine honouring the Blessed Emperor Karl of Austria
Charity dinner for the Daughters of Hawai’i
Their Highnesses attended a most successful charity dinner to aid the ‘Daughters of Hawai’i’.
The ‘Daughters of Hawaii’ maintain and operate the Queen Emma Summer Palace on the island of O’ahu and the Hulihe’e Palace and the birthplace of King Kamehameha III on the Hawai’i Island. Founded in 1903 ’to perpetuate the memory and spirit of old Hawai’i and of historic facts…preserving the Hawaiian language”