Life

Charles Kekumano was born in 1919 in Kona

Kona District, Hawaii

Kona is the name of a moku or district on the Big Island of Hawaii in the State of Hawaii. In the current system of administration of Hawaii County, the moku of Kona is divided into North Kona District and South Kona District . The term "Kona" is sometimes used to refer to its largest town,...

 on the island of Hawai‘i. Educated at Saint Louis High School

Saint Louis School

Saint Louis School, located in the town of Kaimuki in Honolulu, Hawaii, is a historic Roman Catholic college preparatory school for boys founded in 1846 to serve the needs of early Hawaiian Catholics in the former Kingdom of Hawaii...

 in Honolulu, he studied for the priesthood and was ordained for the Diocese of Honolulu

Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu

The Catholic Diocese of Honolulu, officially in Latin Dioecesis Honoluluensis, is an ecclesiastical territory or particular church of the Catholic Church in the United States...

. He earned a doctorate in Canon law

Canon law (Catholic Church)

The canon law of the Catholic Church, is a fully developed legal system, with all the necessary elements: courts, lawyers, judges, a fully articulated legal code and principles of legal interpretation. It lacks the necessary binding force present in most modern day legal systems. The academic...

 from The Catholic University of America

The Catholic University of America

The Catholic University of America is a private university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States. It is a pontifical university of the Catholic Church in the United States and the only institution of higher education founded by the U.S. Catholic bishops...

 in Washington, D.C. and was appointed chancellor

Chancellor

Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...

 of the Honolulu diocese, secretary to Bishop James Joseph Sweeney

James Joseph Sweeney

James Joseph Sweeney was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was the first Bishop of Honolulu, serving from 1941 until his death in 1968.-Biography:...

, and later rector

Rector

The word rector has a number of different meanings; it is widely used to refer to an academic, religious or political administrator...

 of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace

Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace

The Cathedral of Our Lady of Peace — also known by its original French name Cathédrale de Notre Dame de la Paix, its Portuguese variant Catedral de Nossa Senhora da Paz and its Hawaiian derivative Malia o ka Malu Hale Pule Nui — is the Mother Church of the Diocese of Honolulu and houses...

. In 1961 he was named an honorary chaplain of the Papal household, with the title of Monsignor

Monsignor

Monsignor, pl. monsignori, is the form of address for those members of the clergy of the Catholic Church holding certain ecclesiastical honorific titles. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian monsignore, from the French mon seigneur, meaning "my lord"...

, by Blessed John XXIII, the first native Hawaiian to hold such an honor.

Shortly after Father Joseph Anthony Ferrario

Joseph Anthony Ferrario

Joseph Anthony Ferrario was the third bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Honolulu and served from 1982 to 1993.-Early life and priestly ministry:...

 became bishop, Kekumano left the diocese of Honolulu, to work in the diocese of Juneau

Roman Catholic Diocese of Juneau

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Juneau is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in the northwestern United States, comprising the southeastern part of the state of Alaska. It is led by a prelate bishop which serves as pastor of the mother church, Cathedral of the...

. He retired in 1984 and returned to Honolulu. Kekumano was involved in many civic organizations, including the American Red Cross, the Duke Kahanamoku

Duke Kahanamoku

Duke Paoa Kahinu Mokoe Hulikohola Kahanamoku was a Hawaiian swimmer, actor, lawman, early beach volleyball player and businessman credited with spreading the sport of surfing. He was a five-time Olympic medalist in swimming.-Early years:The name "Duke" is not a title, but a given name...

 Foundation, the Association of Hawaiian Civic Clubs, the Hawaiian Civic Club of Honolulu. He also served on the University of Hawaii

University of Hawaii

The University of Hawaii System, formally the University of Hawaii and popularly known as UH, is a public, co-educational college and university system that confers associate, bachelor, master, and doctoral degrees through three university campuses, seven community college campuses, an employment...

 Board of Regents, the Honolulu Police Commission, the Maui Charter Commission, and the Hawaii Commission on Children and Youth.

In 1997 he was co-author of the essay "Broken Trust" which criticized Kamehameha Schools

Kamehameha Schools

Kamehameha Schools , formerly called Kamehameha Schools/Bishop Estate , is a private co-educational college-preparatory institution that specializes in Native Hawaiian language and cultural education. It is located in Hawaii and operates three campuses: Kapālama , Pukalani , and Keaau...

, the largest private landowner in Hawaii, resulting in their reorganization.
He died of cancer on January 18, 1998 in St. Francis Hospice in Honolulu, at the age of 78.