The former unofficial mayor of Laie spoke of the responsibilities that attend the community's unique historic and prophetic ties to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Theresa Bigbie, former associate dean of the BYU-Hawaii Division of Continuing Education who also served voluntarily for 10 years as president of the Laie Community Association (LCA), told the July 8 devotional audience that Laie is "a subject that is most dear to my heart."
Bigbie, whose ancestors helped build the community, noted that President Gordon B. Hinckley has acknowledged "Laie is a sacred site," and BYU-Hawaii President Eric B. Shumway, in a 1990 letter given to the LCA board of directors on which he was then serving, wrote:
"Laie is not just any community on this island or on this planet. It is sacred ground, as sacred as Mount Sinai when Moses stood in the presence of God; it is a place of prophecy, and a place of God. It is sacred not because of any ancient Hawaiian significance, but because prophets of God set it apart as a gathering place for righteous Saints and established in our midst the fullness of the Gospel and a House of the Lord.
"President David O. McKay said that we must all have a burning testimony, an assurance (not a mere belief, but an assurance) that 'God has His hand' over Laie."
"The thing we must remember is that this is not our land, but God's land. It's not our community but Heavenly Father's community, and He has hallowed it and allowed us to be here! We are not Hawaiians, Samoans, Tongans, Chinese, haoles, etc., but children of God. We have no ultimate ownership rights, but we are stewards, representing God's servants who are stewards over the whole Church. As Heber J. Grant has said, 'Through you (through us) shall these prophecies by fulfilled.'"
Noting the many improvements currently being made to the community, Bigbie quoted Carl Fonoimoana, a former resident who visited during the PCC's 40th anniversary last year: "The community is as much a representation of what the church stands for as the PCC, Brigham Young University Hawaii and the Temple. The development of the Laie community to be an attraction, at the level of the other three attractions, is really the final step in fulfilling the prophecy of President McKay. We must now do our part and more for ourselves.
"What can we, as BYU-Hawaii ohana [family] do to fulfill the request of a prophet of God?" Bigbie asked. "Your meaningful participation in contributing to a better quality of life has direct impact on what happens to the future of Laie. We ask that you be an active participant to the degree that you can."
For example, Bigbie described how the community recently staged the July 3 Laie beautification day -- a scrap metal drive that would be a fundraiser for improvements at Laie Park. A committee identified the need to tow away over 150 old cars.
"About 70 of those vehicles were removed from private properties and moved to the Cackle Fresh Farm as a staging area, thanks to HRI and a local towing company, Amazing Towing. Hawaii Metal Recycling sent five trucks, making three trips each during the day, to remove the cars."
She added the project "included full time workers, many volunteers, heavy equipment, operators, trucks, and drivers from Church entities, from the community, and also 30-40 BYUH students from BYUHSA, contributing many hours of community service."
"By 4 p.m. the company had weighed at their Campbell Industrial Park facility more than 100 tons, that's 200,000 pounds of scrap metal and cars that came mostly from Laie. And this does not include several outstanding bins and junk vehicles yet to be weighed in, during the next few weeks."
"Hawaii Metal Recycling was delighted with the community support and the amount of scrap metal collected, and they have agreed to return in October to remove the rest of those vehicles yet in the community,' Bigbie said. 'None of these people from the company are members of the Church, yet they were touched by the marvelous turnout and the unity they saw among the volunteers. Laie had not only exceeded the record in one day, but surpassed the two communities who had recently conducted similar activities in Waianae and Haleiwa.'
"The project's most valuable contributors were our people---people like you and me, who represented Church entities and the community. They made a difference that day!"
Bigbie said the car portion of the project included special efforts by crews of 10-20 volunteers who drained approximately 500 gallons of oil, gasoline and other fluids out of the 70 cars on short notice. "As I watched them work, I saw how deliberate and focused they were. There was little talking, just action. By 3 p.m. on Saturday the draining was completed, in time for the trucks to remove the cars. It was a labor of love and of sacrifice," she said.
"Laie is a community that has the capacity to not only draw upon all of the resources of the people and institutions, but also to draw down the powers of heaven, to achieve small and great things. It always has."
"Each home that is painted, each tree that is planted, each yard that is mowed and landscaped, each piece of scrap metal or other refuse that is disposed of, including cars -- every effort to beautify Laie and make it an attraction -- helps to build the Kingdom," Bigbie continued.
"We are the message of the Kingdom. May we each ponder the sacred privilege we have to live and work here, and the attendant responsibility we have to represent Heavenly Father's work by the way we present ourselves, that by so doing, we may glorify our Father in Heaven and His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ."