For most people, making the move from Hawaii to Carbon County would require an adjustment period.

Josephine Noll, however, is not like most people.

She arrived in the area in 1954, and by September of that year had joined the choir at SS. Peter and Paul’s Catholic Church in Lehighton. Over the 67 years that followed, Noll has done nothing but give back to the church community she so deeply fell in love with.

“It’s been such a great ride,” she said. “I’m getting older now and it’s getting more difficult to stay involved, but I love my church and the people in the parish. There isn’t a day that goes by that I am not thankful I ended up here.”

Noll, 85, was born and raised in the town of Wahiawa on the island of Oahu. She met her future husband William when he was stationed nearby. The two married and she moved back home with him.

Music was a focal point of Noll’s life before moving to Lehighton. She sang in the choir in Hawaii and was convinced by her sister-in-law to continue at her new church. Like many things in life, nothing stays the same, and Noll’s seen her share of changes over the years.

“It was around 1971 when the church started involving more instruments in the music and there was a big push to get more children involved,” she said. “I was fortunate enough to be able to lead those efforts, and it’s been very rewarding.”

That initial SS. Peter and Paul Folk Group, with Noll at the helm, included high school students and other young adults, including her daughter Mary.

The music program had a landmark moment when Noll organized Hawaiian-themed shows, the first of which took place at the Lehighton Armory and Marian High School.

“I had gone home in the summer of 1973 and I had just started thinking that we could do this type of show at the church,” Noll said. “I called a friend who was a teacher and we got all of the costumes together. We got all of the children we could get together and it was really very fun.”

When the church celebrated its 100th anniversary in 1985, more than 80 children and adults from the parish participated in “A Night of Hawaiian Delight” in what was then the Lehighton Area High School auditorium.

The event, which featured hula dances and Tongan war dances among other performances, was a family affair for Noll. Her mother, Toni Arial, helped with costumes, and her daughter, Mary Marzen, was choreographer and a dancer.

“You can’t put a price on those memories,” Noll said. “The children come and go over the years, but it was just so awesome to be a part of that. I look at volunteering as a gift. I was fortunate they allowed me to do it, not the other way around.”

The folk group is now called the SS. Peter and Paul Choral Group and will celebrate 50 years of music this month.

“We’ve had many different members over the years, but a few originals are still there,” Noll said.

While she’s arguably known best for her musical contributions to the parish, Noll didn’t stop there. If there is an activity benefiting the church, you’ll most likely find her there. Strawberry festival church picnics, the Altar and Rosary Society, Christmas festivals, basket auctions, and the Parish Retreat team are just some of the items on her volunteer resume.

“Anything that needs done,” she said of the different ways she contributes her time. “Bingo was always a big one and I liked helping out with that. It was very well attended. I’m hoping now as the pandemic winds down that we’re able to get back to doing a lot of those things we love.”

Noll said she couldn’t imagine her life without volunteering. It’s one of the ways she integrated herself so well into the community after moving from Hawaii.

“When I got here, I just wanted to be part of it all,” she said. “Life is what you make of it. If you don’t get out and you don’t get involved, you’re going to be sad all the time, and who wants that. For me, it’s just about being part of a family, and that is what the church has been like.”