Irene Pacol

April 5, 1938 - October 30, 2021

Irene Masocol Pacol passed away peacefully on October 30, 2021 at the age of 83, surrounded by her loving family and a dear friend. She was born in Lana’i City, Lanai and spent her growing years both in Lana’i City and Pepe’ekeo, Hawaii Island. She is survived by her beloved husband of 61 years – Rudolph Pacol, Sr. – and her 5 children: Renette (Ernest Medeiros) Kauhane, Razelle (Tom) Perkins, Rudolph (Doug Gariss) Pacol Jr., Roberta (Leonard) Pacol-Monte, and Rhonda Rasbach; as well as 12 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren; 3 sisters Janet (Julio) Tomas, Caroline Ducosin, Judy (Fred) Parker, and 1 brother, Frank Masocol. Irene is also survived by her many, many friends whom she held dear in her heart. Irene graduated from Hilo High School in 1956 and obtained her nursing degree in 1959 from the St. Francis School of Nursing. She worked at St. Francis Hospital in Honolulu for 41 years in Isolation and Medical/Surgical Unit, Critical Care, ICU, and the Emergency Room (respectively), retiring in 2000. Irene enjoyed volunteering for the Homebound Ministry through Our Lady of Good Counsel Church. Her service to the church included weekly Wednesday Adorations. Irene was featured in The Lana’i Connection in 2014, highlighting her 3-year medical missionary work in the Philippines with Aloha Medical Mission. She devoted much of her time in caring selflessly for her childhood sweetheart and husband, Rudy for the past few years. An avid traveler, nature and animal lover, Irene was able to travel to her last world UNESCO site in September/October 2021. She hiked 12,000 ft. in Ecuador, swam in the cold Eastern Pacific Ocean, visited and hiked at the Galapagos Islands with her friends Nancy, Fiona, and Bruce. She enjoyed learning about new places, immersing herself in the history, the people, the culture, and the food. Her travels took her to many places around the world including Australia, New Zealand, Europe, France and Italy in 1996; Peru and Brazil in 1997, Africa in 2004; Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam in 2008, Taiwan, Singapore, and Indonesia in 2009, Burma in 2017, Rome, Naples, Sicily, Malta, and Gozo in 2019, and many more places all of which included UNESCO World Heritage Sites – her absolute favorite places to visit in the world. Along with traveling, Irene found herself in her not-so-long-ago younger years, in everything outdoors. At age 50, she did her first Waikiki Rough Water Swim (which she ended up doing many times after that.) She ran several 10k Honolulu Marathons, with her first run ever being the 9-mile Norman Tamanaha Run. Irene loved to hike and backpack/camp. She hiked when she traveled - taking her to high places such as Machu Picchu in Peru and the Medford Trek in New Zealand, and many other places. Locally, she hiked the Kalalau Trail six times, climbed the Haiku Stairs three times, and favorited the Lanipo Trail, Maunawili Trail, and St. Louis Heights to name a few. Services for Irene will be held when gathering restrictions lift in 2022. Please check back at this site for updated information regarding date and place for her services. In the meantime, if you are interested, kindly donate to any of Irene’s favorite charities: Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, Hawaii Food Bank, River of Life Mission, Institute of Human Services (IHS), Salvation Army, International Catholic Migration Commission, St. Labre Indian School (Ashland, Montana), St. Joseph Indian School (Chamberlain, SD), American Red Cross, CARE (Atlanta, GA), and Northern Plains Reservation Aid.