Dear Mr. Tayman:

Having read your book, I wanted to thank you for it. Reading it was a very special experience for me. During medical school in New Orleans, we had several clinical teaching days at Carville. Then, as a pediatrics resident at Tripler Hospital 1963- 1966 we residents spent a week at Kalaupapa learnnig and working with the sisters of St. Francis and attending to the medical needs of the patients. I even returned on several visits to fish with some of the residents of " the Colony", and returned later in 1995 for a fianl visit and tour with Richard Marks on his public tours. Many of the names you wrote about I knew. Thank you so much.

A. B. MD

Mr. Tayman,

I thank you so much for The Colony. I learned so much as I always wondered about Molokai's settlement, which you cleared up. I am sorry that those who objected to your selected terms, title and other issues would not complete the project with you. I thought you did well
with your consideration of the sensitive issue. At times you made tears come to my eyes and at others you made me laugh.

Again, Thank you.

D.S.

Mr. Tayman:

I just finished your book and enjoyed it so much. What made it "extra" special is that my mother is adopted. She found her biological family back in the 1950's. Her great uncle was Dr. Goodhue. She knew of him and a little about him, but the book adds such a dimension that our family didn't know. And how exciting to see the photograph! Also, her middle name - given by her adopted family - is Dole. She is related to the Doles of Hawaii through her adopted family. Interesting how the two intersect in my mother's life!

Thank you again for a wonderful book!

K.J.S.

Dear Mr. Tayman,

I want to thank you for publishing the untold story of the residents of Molokai. I first heard about your book on NPR one day when you were being interviewed and that sparked my interest greatly. Finally someone gave a copy to our library in Dickson and I was able to check it out and read it. The story is something that everyone should know about and realize how fellow humans were treated during such a period of ignorance.

You did an amazing job with fact finding and writing. It held my interest all the way through including the notes section.

Thank you again for bringing to light what never should have happened.

Sincerely,

L.M.E.
Dickson, TN

I just finished reading The Colony, and must congratulate you on the brilliant and exhaustive research you undertook. That the book is so well-written and manages to tell such a human story is likewise a reward for having taken a chance on it. You managed to achieve the near-impossible; namely, to allow so many people involved in the story to speak to their reader in their own voices. This is a tragic, heartwrenching, disturbing, heroic, painful piece of history that absolutely had to be told. I'm indescribably grateful that the man who chose to do so accomplished it with such excellence. Thank you for an unforgettable reading (and learning) experience.

J.E.
Tucson, AZ

John-

You may remember, I contacted you a couple months back. I am the grandson of Edwin Chung-Hoon, and wrote you that I was eagerly waiting to read your book and find out more about the disease, and those afflicted by it, that consumed so much of my Grandfather's professional life. I finished the book last night.

I think your book is one of the most important written concerning the history of Hawaii and the history of medical awakening in the 20th century. It is a tragic, yet inspiring tale of everything from survival to heroism, from ignorance to understanding, and from necessary evils to unwavering faith.

I think the way you wrote this, based on real letters, quotes and the historical documentation was the only way this could be told. You were clearly walking a fine line as you tried to use the terminology of the day, while respecting the strides we have made to shake the labels of the past. I was sorry to learn that some central characters expressed their displeasure. I understand their concerns, but in your closing notes, you said it was up to the readers to judge. This reader thinks you accomplished your goal.

Thank you for this book. You have given me a knowledge and understanding about what my Grandfather devoted his professional life to. Additionally, you gave me an insight to Hawaiian culture (my culture) that gives me a far greater understanding about our history and the political structure of the islands. I wish you all of the success.

Aloha,

G.S.
Janesville, WI.

Sometime last summer I remember telling my wife I would never travel down the Grand Canyon on the back of a mule. Some how or another last fall I found myself on Molokai, on the back of a mule, traveling down the twenty-six switchbacks to Kalaupapa. In November 2005 we visited the national park there. I found myself amazed by the island’s beauty, a bit terrified by the history, but felt a common human concern for its residents and their past treatment.

Not sure if you were aware, but upon our visit in November the first stop on the tour was Sister Maryanne’s gravesite. The ground looked like it had been recently disturbed. The tour guide, (who I think is mention in the book) stated that Sister was exhumed in May 2005. The new pope ordered her exhumed and remains sent to Rome for DNA testing. This is all part of her being moved to the second level of sainthood. Sister Maryanne was the first person that the new pope had recommended for the second level of sainthood.

Thanks for working so diligently on such a fascinating story. I can only hope your book aids in keeping Kalaupapa a national park and a historic site and helps people recognize it should not be commercially developed.

P.M.

I have been honored the past 5 years to portray Father Damien in the Aldyth Morris play: Damien. I have produced the play in Maui County, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and in New England. I tell you this because prior to and during the Damien productions, I did lots of research about him, Molokai, and the scourges of leprosy in Hawaii. Nothing I have read, however, has been as good as your book, The Colony. Congratulations for researching and writing such a wonderful history of the disease, those it effected, and the settlement was particularly moved with your chapters about Damien and Koolau. I teach a literature of Hawaii course and will surely include your book next year. Thank you for such a wonderful journey.

V.L.
Maui

Some years ago, my wife and I flew into Kalaupapa with a private pilot whose name I don’t recall. We were to meet our guide, Richard Marx, there, but he was a little late. As we waited, a leper said, “Hello”. Having been to Carville during my medical training, I knew that there was no danger, so I shook his hand in greeting. He was clearly pleased.

Then Richard took us on the tour. At that time, there were 110 residents. Richard told us this brief story of his life: At age 15, he knew that he was becoming a leper, so he lied about his age and joined the Merchant Marine to escape Kalaupapa. When the disease became obvious, he was admitted to Trippler Hospital on Oahu. The local authorities came for him there, but he demanded his right as a Merchant Mariner to be sent to Carville. While at Carville, he received sulfones and his disease was arrested. Somewhere along the line, he decided to go to Kalaupapa as a volunteer. When we were there, he was the sheriff, and his job was to ride around at 10 PM. If someone were sick, they would leave the porch light burning.

One of our stops was St. Philomena Church. While there, two visiting priests arrived to say Mass. My wife asked Richard if we could stay for Mass, and he enthusiastically agreed. The four non-Catholic tourists were told that they could attend Mass or cool their heels. Richard was unconcerned about which they chose or what they thought. I teased Richard about the fact that the Pope had recently stated that St. Philomena never existed. His crusty reply was that she was riding around heaven in a Rolls Royce while that Pope was in a Volkswagen.

On the flight back to Maui, the pilot told us that Richard had met Mother Theresa at a World Leprosy Congress and that he had spent 45 minutes with the Pope in a one on one meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to present the documentation for the canonization of Fr. Damien. I asked who had prepared the papers, and the answer was no surprise. It was the pilot and his mother.

As I listened to you on Book TV, I wondered if Richard was still alive, and, if so, if you had been fortunate enough to meet him. He was abrupt and prickly, but he was a special person and I will never forget him.

F. J. M.
Corpus Christi, TX

Thank you for The Colony! I couldn’t wait to get your book, after seeing a report in Time magazine while waiting for an appointment in my doctor’s office. Your book was everything and more in what I expected.

My wife and I visited Kalaupapa in the 70’s when I was stationed in Hawaii with the U. S. Coast Guard. Our visit came about like this. I was a Search & Rescue C-130 pilot stationed at Barbers Point on Oahu. One night when I was on duty, a radio call came in from Kalaupapa. The caller identified himself as the mayor of Kalaupapa. He said that one of the citizens of Kalaupapa was showing signs of appendicitis and he was asking for a helicopter to transport him either to the hospital on Molokai or to Honolulu. We launched a helicopter to evacuate the patient.

It was a nasty night with high winds, rain and poor visibility. There were no navigation aids at the little airport at Kalaupapa. As the helo approached Molokai, the pilot radioed that it was impossible to safely land at Kalaupapa and that he would land at the Molokai airport and proceed to Kalaupapa at first light.

I was on the radio at Barbers Point for a good part of the night relaying information to the mayor. We became friendly as the hours went by. I knew a little of the history of Kalaupapa and of Father Damien. I asked the mayor many questions. The upshot was that the mayor invited me to visit and said I could bring my wife.

Thank you again for the book!

M. D. H.
Captain, U. S. Coast Guard, Retired

I found your book to be a very satisfying account of a slice of history I did not recognize to be as powerful and thought provoking as you have recounted it. Congratulations on a job well done.

I am not convinced that the first “instinct” to isolate lepers is a result of biblical association so much as it is a result of innate human fears based on ignorance (at the time). In your book you make no mention of the isolation I presume was standard throughout the globe at the time, and in existence in societies that are not founded on the Hebrew biblical heritage.

I agree that the handling of HIV (to the extent it has not been criminalized, at least) in the West is a testimony to the small degree we have advanced in sophistication and, in a sense, humanity. Let us see how we all behave if and when the next pandemic flu outbreak occurs.

W. W.
Woodcliff Lake, NJ

I want to thank you for your efforts and amazing accomplishment of putting to rest the rumors and speculations of Molokai. Your book is wonderful. The research and history provided was the best to date.

I lived in Waikiki in the early 60’s, (when the first high rise Foster Towers was allowed to be built), I attended Catholic grammar school, and so started the mystery of Molokai. It was to remain a mystery for 46 years!

Many stories about Father Damien we were told, but no one really knew. I wound up back on the mainland. Forty years later I was able to return to Oahu, and then on to Hawaii to live with three of my children. I am back on the mainland and you have finally lain to rest all the questions I ever had about the inhabitants, the disease and the island itself.

R.B.

Nothing great comes without controversy. Your book is fabulous. I’m so grateful you took the time to research it, and then used your immense talent to write it so well. It comes across as balanced -- and frankly, the overwhelming support of the living survivors would have required you to give up that balance. It may be too much to say your book changed my life -- but not by much. There are important parallels in current society worth rethinking. I read much - but don’t often send authors a note of thanks. In your case, I had to make an exception.

L.T.

Yours is a book that I found I had to put down. Despite the fact that I was familiar with the subject matter to some extent, I cannot get over what our English profs used to call “Man’s inhumanity to man”. It’s one thing in a novel, but in non-fiction--as well documented as your book is, it is excruciating. How can people be so cruel? I was so moved by the earlier story because I always try to put myself in someone else’s shoes when I read. Whew!

Thank you for writing The Colony--a story that had to be told and an answer to many questions I have had over the years--I was particularly appreciative about learning about Father Damien’s background. You answered many questions I have had over the years. Of course now I’ll have still more questions, and I need to study microbiology to really comprehend more!

I truly want to thank you for this excellent book. I am sorry some of the people you featured were disappointed or upset. I found them to be sympathetic and incredibly strong people. Their descriptions were fascinating. I would happily shake their hands and learn more of directly from them. Their tenacity is something to be admired--to say the least. I wish you much success with this book and with your future work. As trite as this sounds, I feel you’ve made a difference.

D. A.
Washington D.C.

I recently read your book The Colony, and found it both very informative, and extremely sensitive. My husband works with a man whose aunt, uncle worked at the Molokai Colony over forty five years. She is about to celebrate her 90th birthday.

C. M.
Hawaii

I have just holed up indoors during our recent Noreaster here in New England and read your fine book, The Colony. My interest was huge as I had spent l0 days in The Colony in l959 at the behest of the Hawaiian Evangelical Association to cover two church Sundays after the death of Mother Alice. I had finished a B.D. degree from Eden Seminary the year before and was working both at Kamehameha Schools and the Waipahu Community Church. At age 29, everything was new and exciting. While the Kalaupapa experience was certainly very special, I didn’t manage to get it into the perspective it deserved. And impossible as it seems, life continued to have so many high points that I never managed the retrospective I had promised myself when I got older. Now, approaching 73 years of age, I am beginning to realize how truly special my experiences have been.

J.A.S.
Amesbury, MA

I was born on Oahu, and am of Chinese-Hawaiian descent. I try to read as much as I can about Kalaupapa and Father Damien, and was especially pleased to find your book at Border’s Express in the SeaTac Airport in January. Of course, I purchased and immediately began reading it. Your book is easy to read and very thorough. A wonderful book, and I have recommended it to quite a few people. You should win a Pulitzer award for it.

I have always had a morbid fascination about the lepers about Kalaupapa. It began when I was young after hearing my parents, aunts and uncles having quiet discussions not meant for a child’s ear about the lepers of Kalaupapa. When I was older and read about them in Michener book “Hawaii,” it confirmed my worst fears.

A relative, Au Wing, had the disease. Au Wing agreed to never return to Hawaii, otherwise he would remain in detention in the Kalihi leprosy receiving station. I’m sure it was cheaper for the federal and territory to encourage/force immigrants to return home rather than pay for their care and upkeep in Hawaii for the rest of their lives. Au Wing died overseas, and never returned to Hawaii.

My mother married Au Wing’s son in 1932 or so, which is after Au Wing returned to China. She was lead to believe that Au Wing had killed a man, so his brother, Au Yong, sent him back to China and Au Wing could never return because he was wanted by the law. Because he was a murderer, nobody was allowed to talk about him. Two (2) years ago, my step-sister asked me to find records about her father’s family, and that’s how I learned about Au Wing. My mother was stunned to learn the truth. I guess it was more acceptable to be a murderer than a leper in those days.

S. C.
Bellevue, WA

I’m about half-way through The Colony and enjoying it immensely. My specific interest in Kalaupapa goes back to my days as a federal physician on O’ahu in the mid-1990’s. For several years I had occasionally worked on leprosy issues farther out in the Pacific (Rep of the Marshall Islands and on Federated States of Micronesia). The Public Health Service and the state health dept invited me to start serving as consulting dermatologist for the remaining residents on the peninsula. Alas, that was not to be, for my wife was tired of living in paradise and compelled us to return to the Mainland where I am now chief of dermatology at Walter Reed (and spend my time pushing papers from one pile to another). I still consult in leprosy, most recently in Guyana, where roughly 1% of the population has the disease.

Because of my interest in chaulmoogra, I tried to locate the plantation designed to produce a local crop of chaulmoogra seeds. The plantation, or orchard, was in the upper reaches of the Waiahole Valley, on the windward side of O’ahu, a few miles north of Kane’ohe. With an amazing set of directions provided by a retired USDA forester who had visited the site 40 years earlier (“Cross the stream and go mauka until you enter a stand of hala trees ...”), I set out on an expedition to find the long-forgotten plantation. It was a real adventure -- encountering wild boars, wading streams, climbing trees -- but no remnants of the plantation were found. For whatever reason (lack of pollinators, perhaps), no traces remain. The individual trees at Kalihi and on the peninsula no longer exist. To my knowledge, the only remaining chaulmoogra (Hydnocarpus) tree on the Islands (and in the entire US, for that matter) is the one at Foster Botanical Gardens in Honolulu.

S.N.
Washington, D.C.

Many times, after reading a fine book, I intended to write to an author, but have never done so. However, having just finished The Colony, I knew I must write and thank you. It was a wonderful book on all levels -- interesting, informative, well written. Very deserving of the "starred review" in Booklist.

And I wanted to answer the question you posed in the notes -- on how well you succeeded. My answer is emphatically and enthusiastically YES on all counts. To substitute "Hansen's Disease" throughout the book would have been jarring and out of place for the history you were presenting. I also noted that the Library of Congress cataloging continues to use Leprosy as a subject heading. Your explanation of why you used the terms as you did makes sense. The presentation of the entire subject was objective and did not try to be a harsh expose of abuse, but to bring it forth in a straightforward manner and in the context of the time, especially of the scientific knowledge of the time. Again, you hit the right note. But to me the major hallmark of the book was its humanity. The people -- current and historical -- came across as real people -- and your use of only first names for Henry, Olivia, Makia and Bernard underscored that and felt appropriate. I would hope that Olivia and Makia feel differently having seen the book in print; high marks for keeping to your vision of your project despite their objections.

My wife and I visited Kalaupapa nearly 20 years ago. It was one of the most moving and indescribable experiences of my life -- an almost "out of body" feeling of blending the here and now with the historical. Your book added even more depth and dimension to that visit. I am sure Henry was our tour guide.

D.R.
Haddonfield, N.J.

I have just finished reading The Colony. My wife is employed by Barnes & Noble. She selected The Colony for me because we once lived in Hawaii. In 1988 we moved to Hawaii in order for me to become the first fulltime chaplain at the Queen’s Medical Center. There had been a wonderful history of volunteer ministers from the community serving as chaplains, but I was the first hired to direct the department of Hospital ministry. My four years at Queen’s were wonderful.

Part of our ministry at Queen’s was to be a part of an organization that offered chaplain training for seminary students, recent seminary graduates and local pastors. A significant part of the chaplain residents’ experience was their annual trip to Kalaupapa. When I came to Queen’s, it was during the time the AIDS pandemic was reaching public awareness. We often utilized the parallels between the victims of AIDS and leprosy in our work with chaplain residents.

Thank you for your good work in documenting the history of The Colony.

C.S.
Birmingham, AL

I am a librarian in San Antonio, Texas with a passion for things Hawaiian. I recently received a copy of The Colony and put reading Korn’s News from Molokai on hold to read your book. I thoroughly enjoyed the book and discussed it with a friend over coffee this evening. I hiked the pali to Kalaupapa in 1998 while visiting the Islands for my 50th birthday. Since this trip I have returned to the Islands 5 times and each time they feel more like home to me.

I enjoyed your bibliography as well and am familiar with and have read many of the items listed. I have also found new items to add to my reading list about Hawaii. I have ordered several copies of The Colony for our library system in San Antonio and hope that some of our customers will enjoy your book as much as I have.

R.B.
San Antonio, TX

I thank you for writing the book. It is of extreme interest to me because my aunt, Sister Mary Teresa, from New York, worked at The Colony for about 30 years. In my meeting with her, which was only twice, and when I was very young, she told me only about the goodness of the people that lived there. She was a nurse and worked mostly with the girls in the girl’s orphanage. I had no idea of what the place was even about. Her name was Katherine, Aunt Kitty to her family. Thank you so very much.

D.T.
Dallas, TX

My father has just finished reading your book The Colony and enjoyed it very much, especially as his great-grandfather William Walsh was the brother of the Donald Walsh (in your book) who worked with the lepers.

On a personal note I have to say I was also interested in what you wrote about the William Welsh who followed Donald at The Colony. I once read (online) a student paper which excoriated the Walshes for not speaking the native language and thus encountering problems. This was contrary to what I have known of the Walshes previously and I think the student may have confused Welsh’s failures with Walsh’s tenure. This branch of the family is really lost to us but we have the occasional mention from books, in one of which the Walshes are visited and found to be living themselves in abject poverty while working on Molokai. All their losses seem quite pitiable from this distance, at least to me.

C.G.

Congratulations on the publication and great success of The Colony. Your work is a much-needed addition to the literature on the settlement.

A. M.
San Francisco, CA

I heard your recent interview on PBS here in Dallas and have started reading your book. Kalaupapa has interested me for some time and I have visited The Colony (or what remains of it) a few years ago on one of my trips to Moloka’i. On my last trip there in Jan. 05 I discovered that it is now very difficult to take a tour. The official version is that the insurance for the mules, etc. has gone up and not enough guides and so forth.

D.W.
Dallas, TX

I just finished reading your book and found it one of the most extraordinary and best written stories I have ever read. I thought you wrote this history with great sensitivity and thoroughness. My aunt worked at The Colony as a teacher or a nurse for several years, I believe in the 1930’s, before she contracted tuberculosis and sent back to the mainland. My question is there some kind of registry of nonpatient workers and if so where is it located? I would like to inscribe her history in the book so our family does not forget her dedication. Again, congratulations on writing such a terrific book.

B.W.

I heard your interview on Fresh Air with Terry Gross and ran out immediately to buy your book. You did a fantastic job telling the story of The Colony. It was very hard to put the book down and go to sleep at night! I visited The Colony six years ago, when there were still about 40 people there, by walking down the pali and taking Richard Marks’ tour. It was an experience I’ll never forget, now made even more significant by all I learned from your book. Congratulations on a job well done.

K.T.
San Rafael, California