To Maui residents, she was surfer, community volunteer and lobbyist. BEATRICE NALEILEHUA COCKETT KAHANU /
1919-2002Dedication to community service
See also: Obituaries
defined life’s legacy
By Leila Fujimori
lfujimori@starbulletin.comTo her family, Beatrice Naleilehua Cockett Kahanu left a legacy of community service.
The community servant remained active until her death at the age of 83. Kahanu died of a heart attack Sept. 17 at her family home in Kuau, Maui.
"She was still holding offices and committee chairmanships, and she was still going, going, going," said daughter Antoinette L. Lee.
Kahanu belonged to numerous organizations and was dedicated to furthering education of Hawaii's youth by offering scholarships.
She lobbied for property tax reform so Hawaiians would not lose family land handed down from generation to generation.
"She was a diligent member who did her homework and always was supportive," said Gladys Baisa, executive director for Maui Economic Opportunity Inc., an organization that serves the disadvantaged and where Kahanu served as a board member and past president.
The Saturday before she died, Kahanu was honored by the Kamehameha Alumni Association Maui Region for her years of community service.
"She leaves us a tremendous legacy," Lee said. "She's taught us well. We are continuing in her footsteps," she said of herself and siblings.
Born in Honolulu on Feb. 25, 1919, Kahanu moved to Kuau as a child. She attended school on Oahu and returned to Maui after her retirement in 1979.
Kahanu was a 1935 graduate of Kamehameha Schools. During her school years she was hanging 10 in Waikiki with the likes of Duke Kahanamoku.
She attended the University of Hawaii and went on to work for the federal government for 30 years. In between those years, she also worked at the state Legislature.
Kahanu was a volunteer with Kalana O Maui and a member of Ahahui Kaahumanu, Royal Order of Kamehameha Women's Auxiliary, Hale O Na Alii, Committee for More Equitable Taxation, Alzheimer's Association and American Heart Association.
She was a charter member of the Pearl Harbor Hawaiian Civic Club; past president of the American Legion Women's Auxiliary, Post 1, the American Legion Auxiliary Department of Hawaii and the American Federation of Government Employees; and legislative chair and program coordinator of the National Association of Federal Retired Employees.
Kahanu also is survived by husband George Hawae Kahanu; sons Ernest Dias, Gerald M. Gomes and George Kahanu Jr.; daughters Valerie N. Crabbe, Kehaulani K. Nakamoto and Ellen K. Raiser; 18 grandchildren; and 10 great-grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. tomorrow at the Bishop Memorial Chapel on the Kamehameha Schools' Kapalama Heights campus. Visitation begins at 2 p.m. The family requests flowers be omitted and aloha attire be worn.
A private service was held on Maui, and her ashes were scattered in the waters of Kuau fronting her family home.