In memory of Cathy Lowder— lifelong advocate and founder of Hawaiʻi Island Group

By Debbie Ward, Hawaiʻi Island Group Executive Committee Member | Reading Time: 2min

Cathy Marie Lowder left her childhood home in Western North Carolina searching for ways to “give back” to the natural world.

Professionally, Cathy’s leadership in social work led to work with the judiciary, including the Children’s Advocacy Center and guardian ad litem work at the county and state levels. Her passion for nature never strayed, and Cathy led hikes on the trails of Hawaiʻi for nearly 50 years.

Lorin Gill recruited her for leadership in the Sierra Club’s High School Hikers program around 1971. When her state duties transferred her to Hawaiʻi Island, she decided it was time to form a Sierra Club branch there, of which she became Chair. Meanwhile, back in San Francisco, the Sierra Club National Office recognized Cathy’s leadership and appointed her to national committees and advisory groups, in addition to her role as Hawaiʻi’s delegate to the governing conference.

Cathy and similarly inclined hikers, who called themselves the “Mongoose,” began joining Sierra Club National Outings and then pioneered their own forays into nature around the world. At home in Hilo, Cathy organized Sierra Club service projects and led hikes. Debbie Ward remembers traveling to Hawaiʻi Island as a co-leader with Lorin Gill for a hike in North Kohala, where she met Cathy for the first time and bonded over the rare and giant Gunnera in the 1970s. Knowing she had one friend, Cathy, on the island, Debbie decided to move her family to Hilo after graduate school. Leader Gloria Amaral remembers Cathy as an awesome organizer and such a pleasure to work with. She highlighted a service project on Pohakuloa where they cared for rare plant species at the Multi-Purpose Range Complex, which was shut down as a result of a successful case filed by Dr. Lani Stemmermann in the 1990s.

Ken Kupchak recalls that the Flora and Fauna Study in the 1970s, under the guidance of Mike Scott, with many others among Cathy’s Friends of the Trail, such as Jack Jeffrey, Sharon Scott, Ron Walker, Jim Jacobi, and Pete Stine, led to the establishment of the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), authorized by Congress in 1985. Cathy and the Mongoose soon began volunteering at the new refuge, planting and weeding, converting pasture of exotic grasses into reclaimed native forest designed to provide crucially important additional habitat for native forest birds. Hakalau Forest was the first NWR of its kind, a refuge dedicated to endangered forest birds.

As Hakalau Forest NWR recently reached its 40th anniversary, Cathy proudly reflected that the fruits of her tireless labor were coming of age. Native endangered and threatened birds are now nesting and colonizing the trees that she had helped propagate and plant for years. It was great to hear her say, “My keiki are now home to these beautiful birds.” In 2006, Cathy and other long-time volunteers formed the Friends of Hakalau Forest NWR. Naturally, Cathy was sought out and elected to the first board, and she served in many roles over the years.

If you feel moved to make a contribution as a sort of thank you to Cathy, she listed some charities that would probably appreciate your remembrance. Cathy was an active advocate for many causes. Memorial contributions can be made to any of these organizations, which were among her favorites:

● Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi: P.O. Box 2577, Honolulu, HI 96803
● Friends of the Hakalau Forest, Jack Jeffrey Fund: P.O. Box 6065, Hilo, HI 96720
● Hawaiʻi Community Foundation: 827 Fort Street Mall, Honolulu, HI 96813
● EarthJustice: 50 California St., Suite 500, San Francisco, CA 94111