AMERICAN GIRL'S POST AT HONOLULU BUREAU

Evening Star, Issue 23128, 30 November 1938, Page 17

AMERICAN GIRL'S POST AT HONOLULU BUREAU

Two arrivals in Auckland on Friday were Miss W. Murfin and her cousin, Miss Betsy Williams, both of Honolulu, who arc beginning a world tour with a trip through New Zealand. Miss Murfin is the daughter of Admiral Murfin, Pearl Harbour. Interesting sidelights on the serious side of life in Honolulu were given by these two girls. Miss Murfin spends her spare time in working for the Honolulu Social Service Bureau, an institution which is run by the United Welfare Fund.

Miss Murfin, who was intake secretary for the bureau, had, in her own words, a very interesting job. “it was my work,” she said, “ to interview people visiting the bureau and discover if possible their problems and difficulties. There was a great deal of variety in the work, particularly because of the different nationalities with which we had to deal. Our clients included Japanese, Koreans. Chinese, Portuguese, Filipinos, and Hawaiians, and before I started working 1 had to learn simple Hawaiian words as well as pidgin English.”

SOCIAL WORK. The work, as described by Miss Murfin, dealt mainly with the solving of problems arising out of social conditions. The bureau was established for the purpose of directing people in problems of all kinds of social matters and, when necessary, advising them on where and how to obtain medical or legal help.

Miss Williams also had an interesting post. During her three years in Honolulu she worked in the Bishop Museum, Honolulu, and was editor of the museum paper. Many Now Zealanders will be interested in her work because the director of the museum, Dr Peter Beck, is himself a New Zealander. Miss Murfin and Miss Williams will spend several days in Auckland before leaving for the south. They intend touring both the North and South Islands before leaving for Australia.