For Maui Catholic churches, selling special bread a sweet fundraiser

Published: 2006-02-28

HONOLULU (CNS) -- A local islander visiting one of the other Hawaiian Islands would be remiss if he or she did not bring home a particular treat for which that island is known. That might be candy from the island of Hawaii, bread from Molokai, a particular brand of cookies from Kauai, or Chinese dumplings from Oahu. Thanks to small, dedicated groups of Catholic parishioners on Maui, Portuguese sweet bread is quickly becoming the food of choice to stash in a suitcase when returning from that island. The fluffy golden loaves, baked and sold by women's groups to raise money for their parishes, are on their way to becoming a tasty Maui trademark. Dorothy Gomes of St. Joseph Parish in Makawao has been making some of Maui's best Portuguese sweet bread for more than three decades. She is a descendent of Portuguese immigrants who first started arriving in Hawaii in the late 1800s, bringing with them their strong Catholic faith, their prodigious baking skills and a small musical instrument that would later be renamed the ukulele.

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