He Ho'omana'o - In Memoriam

By Ka Wai Ola Staff

Henry Nalaielua - Photo: Courtesy of Monte Costa

Henry Nalaielua
1926-2009

Henry Nalaielua wanted to see Kalaupapa "stay sacred." Although the former resident of the Kalaupapa leprosy settlement didn't live to see a monument bear his name, his legacy is ensured. A worldly man of many artistic talents, Nalaielua was one of the remaining group of 20 or so former patients who chose to live out their lives in Kalaupapa. He died April 17 in Kalaupapa.

"Don't desecrate what happened here, not because of my lifetime, but because of those who came before me," Nalaielua once said when considering Kalaupapa's future. "I would really like to see this place stay sacred … in honor of those who died here because of the disease, those who fought for allowances, fought for their clothing, fought for their medication, fought for their freedom."

His words have guided Ka 'Ohana O Kalaupapa – a group of former leprosy patients, families and supporters – as it helps plan the future of Kalaupapa, said longtime friend Anwei Law, who visited Nalaielua at Straub Hospital in Honolulu two days before he returned home to Kalaupapa and passed on. His impact on people was evident by the group of about 20 people who gathered at the hospital to say their goodbyes, she said.

Nalaielua was diagnosed with leprosy in 1936 at age 10 and sent to Kalaupapa in 1941. His autobiography, No Footprints in the Sand, written with the help of Sally-Jo Bowman, told the story of a man who lived life to the fullest.

Law recalls traveling to Belgium with Nalaielua and other Kalaupapa residents to visit Father Damien's tomb after many of the residents participated in the 1988 International Leprosy Congress in the Netherlands. Nalaielua's experiences also include serving as the first president of the Kalaupapa Historical Society, a Kalaupapa tour guide, a participant in OHA's kupuna program, and being appointed by Gov. George Ariyoshi to the state Board of Health.

"Anyone who knew him was impacted by his wisdom, personality and friendship," Law said. "You look at him and you just wonder, 'What would any of us do being taken away at the age of 10? How would we manage?' And you look at Henry and you see that the story wasn't so much what was done to Henry, the story is what Henry did with what was dealt to him."