After years of planning, construction and careful consideration, renovations are giving the heart of Sacred Hearts Academy—its Chapel—a new life while honoring its history and tradition.
The Academy’s President Brandy Ann Sato said the goal is to make the St. Margaret Mary Chapel “into a beautiful, sacred space where we can praise, worship and pray.”
She added that the project is expected to be completed by the end of this year or early next year.
“We need the entire church to look it’s best in the celebration of our graduating seniors and families,” Sato said, referring to the Baccalaureate Mass in May.
Students have noticed the scaffolding around the Chapel and have wondered what changes are coming.
“At the very start of my freshman year, I’ve been watching them work on these projects, and I would wonder how long it would take until we saw the finished project,” senior Cassandra Morete said. “I remember last year when we were in Mr. Barthel’s classroom (located across the courtyard from the Chapel), it was very loud, and it disturbed a lot of students who were trying to learn.”
The renovation focuses on renewing old materials and restoring the Chapel’s stained-glass windows. These tasks have proven both challenging and costly. Sato said managing expenses and finding skilled workers have been difficult, as there is only one stained-glass specialist in Hawaii. This person is the same artist who also designed the windows at the Sacred Hearts Church at Punahou School.
Timelines have also shifted because of limited worker availability and the care required to preserve the Chapel’s historic features.
“We want to make sure we take our time to protect and restore these pieces,” Sato said.
When Sato began her presidency last year, she toured the campus with Sister Katherine Francis, Chief Operating Officer Randy Iwashita and other staff members to discuss upcoming renovations.
Sato said, “We dreamed very big about forthcoming renovations.”
The Chapel project stems from a major capital campaign started under the Academy’s previous head of school, Scott Schroeder. Initial repairs focused on upgrading the air-conditioning system, which was completed last year. In the past two years, efforts have shifted toward restoring the Chapel’s aesthetics, especially preserving its historic stained-glass windows and steel framework to ensure they last for another century.
This construction has been made possible through support from the Atherton Family Foundation, which awarded the school a grant, and from funds raised through the capital campaign led by Schroder.
