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Kokua Line June Watanabe |
Hawaii sports legends
have official island homeQuestion: Where is the location of the Hawaii hall of fame for sports? No one seems to know. A printed article would help.
Answer: There are all sorts of sports halls of fame in the islands and elsewhere, including the Hawaii Golf Hall of Fame, the Big Island Sports Hall of Fame and the new International Surfing Hall of Fame on Kauai.
We take it you are referring to the most comprehensive, yet most elite, of them all in the islands: the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame.
Established in 1997 by executive order of Gov. Ben Cayetano, the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame does not have its own physical structure. Instead, it can be found at Bishop Museum, Honolulu Airport, Aloha Stadium's Hospitality Room and on the Internet, at www.alohafame.org.
The Bishop Museum's Paki Hall is the main repository of memorabilia and tribute to the current 94 members of this exclusive club, who either achieved world-class prominence or who were pioneers or major contributors to developing a sports program in the islands.
Before 1997, there had been many "starts and stops" in attempts to establish the hall of fame, noted Gil Tam, a member of the organization's executive board and its administrator.
Tam, a senior vice president with Waimana Enterprises, credited broadcaster and MidWeek columnist Larry Price, a former coach of the University of Hawaii football team, with finally getting it established.
"Larry Price actually took it by the horns and went to see the governor and got this thing off the ground," Tam said. "Larry was the force behind this."
Gov. Linda Lingle signed a law establishing the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame "as the state museum for sports history in the islands," he said.
It provides a venue for showcasing Hawaii's world-class athletes, as well as allowing youngsters a chance "to see the achievements and perhaps emulate the achievements," Tam said.
While the state does provide access to state facilities at the airport and stadium for the nonprofit organization, it does not provide any funding. A banquet, held each February to induct new members, serves as a fund-raiser, as does a golf tournament held yearly in September.
Those two events, plus the support of volunteers, account for all the hall of fame's financial support which, so far, are sufficient to meet its needs (about $25,000 a year in expenses), which include hosting the induction banquet and providing plaques, photos, etc.
"We try to cover all the activities, plus," Tam said. Among the "plus" items on the agenda is repairing the deteriorating display at Honolulu Airport.
Mostly, the hall of fame is all about volunteers "who believe in this" and most of whom "are there because of Larry Price," Tam said.
The executive advisory board, made up of nine volunteers, accepts nominations, does the research on the athletes, then passes the names on to a selection committee. The nine-member committee, made up primarily of sportswriters in the state, meets once a year in December to pick its choices, which are then passed on to a five-person commission, which makes the final decision.
Current commissioners are Russ Figueroa, of RM Towill Corporation; Eric Soto, of PER Inc.; Lily Yao, retired First Hawaiian Bank executive; Henry Katsuda, of Theo H. Davies and Co.; and Star-Bulletin publisher Dennis Francis.
There are no plans to find a single, permanent home for the hall of fame. Taking it to that level would require a major fund-raising effort, as well as a full-time staff, Tam said.
For now, "It makes more sense, if you look at Bishop Museum and the number of people who pass through there and it being a part of Hawaii's history, it really makes sense to have it the way we have it now," he said.
The Web site, which attracts a lot of interest from the Japanese, also is a major way of honoring Hawaii's elite sports figures, Tam notes.
Tam noted that many people are nominated, but most don't meet the criteria for entry into the hall of fame.
To qualify, an athlete must be either an Olympic medalist; a world record holder; inducted in a recognized international or national hall of fame; a professional voted to an association all-pro team or member of a world championship team; and have a "strong local connection."
Among non-athletes, nominees must be pioneers or major contributors to the development of an athletic program, such as former University of Hawaii baseball coach Les Murakami, who started with a club team and took it to the College World Series.
According to Price, "Hawaii is the only state that has a state Hall of Fame. Many cities have their own halls, but Hawaii is the only one with a legitimate educational repository for its world champions, Olympic medal winners and world record holders."
The current members of the Hawaii Sports Hall of Fame (check the Web site to find out about their individual accomplishments) are:
Alexander Cartwright; Clarence MacFarlane; Ikua Purdy; Duke Kahanamoku; J. Ashman Beaven; Steere Noda; Pua Kealoha; Warren Kealoha; George "Dad" Center; Mariechen Jackson; E. Fullard-Leo; Otto Klum; Clarence "Buster" Crabbe; Francis I'i Brown; Henry Hughes Jr.; Thomas Ka'ulukukui; Keo Nakama; Emerick Ishikawa; Herman Wedemeyer; "Sad" Sam Ichinose; Henry "Bozo" Wakabayashi; Salvador "Dado" Marino; Mackay Yanagisawa; Thelma Aiu; William Smith; Allen Stack; Wally Yonamine; Charles Ane; Herman "Buddy" Clark; Ford Konno; Tommy Kono; A.E. "Toots" Minvielle; Yoshinobu Oyakawa; Soichi Sakamoto; William Woolsey; Carl "Bobo" Olson; Jackie Pung; Norman Tamanaha; Father Kenneth Bray; Richard Cleveland; Ephraim "Red" Rocha; Pedro "Pete" Velasco Jr.; Hiroto "Hiro" Hirashima; Aileen Riggin Soule; Paul Fujii; Ted Makalena; James Austin; Fanny Hopeau; Thomas "Daddy" Haine; Rachel O'Sullivan; Fred Hemmings; Jesse Kuhaulua (Takamiyama); Ben Villaflor; Dr. Peter George; Rell Sunn; Chuck Leahey.
Also, Junior Ah You; Kevin Asano; Jesse Sapolu; Andy Ganigan; Stan Harrington; Evelyn Kawamoto-Konno; Les Keiter; Kotaro "Taro" Miyasato; Jon Stanley; Derek Tatsuno; Mosi Tatupu; Jeris White; Chris Duplanty; Sid Fernandez; Peter Fithian; Russ Francis; Maiola Kalili; Manuella Kalili; Salevaa Atisanoe (Konishiki); Mike Lum; Duncan MacDonald; Harold "Odd Job" Sakata; Lenn Sakata; Danny Ongais; Chad Rowan (Akebono); Kurt Gouveia; Les Murakami; Margo Oberg; Ed Parker; Derek Ho; Bobby Lee; Jesus Salud; Jack Scaff; John Desoto Jr.; David Ishii; Robby Naish; and Sharon Peterson.
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