Iwent to a get-together recently for someone I hope will be the next governor of . . . Maryland. Schoenke for governor
—of MarylandThought I'd say Hawaii, didn't you? You won't get me caught up in the local gubernatorial fight. But you heard me right. Maryland.
The candidate? Ray Schoenke, the former Punahou School and Washington Redskins' football star. He came to town to meet with relatives, friends and former Punahou football teammates Roy Imai, Harlan Cadinha, Alex Jamile, Al Narimatsu, Vernon Hoke, Milt Kanehe and Ben Samson.
Schoenke, a Maryland resident the past 30 years, is running against the incumbent governor, Parris Glendenning, and Eileen Rehrmann in the Democratic primary. He expects a difficult race.
At the gathering at the Pacific Club, one person told Schoenke, not so kiddingly: I think you'd be a better candidate for governor of Hawaii.
Not that Schoenke didn't think about it. After all, he still has roots here. And he's half Hawaiian and proud of his Hawaiian heritage.
"You do it (run for office) where you put your time in. That's Maryland," Schoenke said.
That's where he made his name and reputation.
NAME recognition also should help Schoenke in the Maryland and Washington, D.C. area. In 1987 he was named to the 50th anniversary "Greatest Redskin Team."
Drafted by the Dallas Cowboys, Schoenke played for the Redskins from 1966 to 1975. Before that he earned All-Southwest Conference honors as a guard at Southern Methodist University, where he also was a member of the National Honor Society.
Schoenke met his wife, Nancy, at SMU. They have a son, Eric, and two daughters, Page Chang, and Holly.
But Schoenke's more than just a former jock. He is chairman of the board of a successful insurance brokerage firm in Bethesda, Md. And he's been an active member of the Maryland Democratic Party for more than 25 years, first helping in George McGovern's presidential campaign.
"I bring not political experience, but people experiences. So my campaign is built on people's interests first," Schoenke said.
"I know the race is going to be hard. I know I'm going to be criticized. But I know I'm going to win."
"And I want to prove that Hawaiians can succeed in whatever they do."
Schoenke was born in Hawaii on Sept. 17, 1941. But when World War II broke out with the bombing of Pearl Harbor, his father, Ray Schoenke Sr., an Air Force lieutenant colonel, moved the family to Minnesota and then Weatherford, Texas.
HE came back here at the age of 13 and promptly excelled in football, baseball and track and field at Punahou. His prep shot put record was only recently broken.
Schoenke finished his senior year in high school back in Weatherford, where his father was transferred from Hickam Air Force Base. Schoenke also was the top shot putter in Texas.
But he hasn't forgotten his Hawaiian roots. One of his company's biggest beneficiaries is Bishop Museum. He also serves on a number of boards in the islands. His mother, Olivia, lives here and sisters, Lani and Marilyn, are active in Hawaiian affairs.
Wouldn't that be something? The state of Maryland's No. 1 man being someone who's more than Hawaiian at heart?
I had to ask Schoenke how he came to be a Democrat, especially since a lot of my Punahou friends -- with the exception of former mayoral candidate Arnold Morgado -- are Republicans.
"Some of us had to go to school on a scholarship," Schoenke said with a laugh.