SHS principal to present school’s story since the fires at Lahaina Rotary meeting, Sept. 3

Sacred Hearts School principal Tonata Lolesio will be the speaker at the Rotary Club of Lahaina Sunset meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 3. Lolesio will share information about “Sacred Hearts School — A Year of Unity, Faith Resilience and Hope since the Lahaina fires.”

Lolesio’s family immigrated from Tonga in 1982. She spent her entire life in West Maui, attending public schools and graduating with the Lahainaluna class of 1994. She is a member of the Rotary Club of Lahaina and Lahaina Land Trust and currently serves as a Maui County commissioner for Children and Youth of West Maui. Lolesio is an active Maria Lanakila Catholic Parish member and taught at Sacred Hearts School in Lahaina, eventually becoming principal in the spring of 1995.

Following the destruction of her school in the Aug. 8, 2023, wildfires, she set up a temporary school at Sacred Hearts Mission Church in Kapalua, which successfully graduated a 2024 class this past May. The school has since been moved to Kāʻanapali while awaiting the reconstruction of the school in Lahaina. She recently was bestowed with the prestigious “Lead. Learn. Proclaim” Award by the National Catholic Education Association for her leadership, presented the Gold Pineapple Award for the Hawaiʻi Catholic Schools Administrator of the Year and recognized by the Maui County Council in their June meeting with a resolution for community service.

The meeting will be held at the Aston Paki Maui Resort Aliʻi meeting room. Join at 5 p.m. for a meet & greet and feel free to bring your own beverage. Program begins at 5:30 p.m. and will last one hour. To attend in-person, email Club Service Chair Laura Stanton at lstanton127@outlook.com. To join the meeting via Zoom, click here.