Gaspar’s got it good

A good job, a good track record, good memories and a great attitude

George Gaspar goes to work each day because he likes to, not because he has to, and isn't that lucky for the Hilton Hawaiian Village? The Waikiki resort -- which has more than 3,000 rooms in six towers on 22 acres -- has been Gaspar's employer for almost 45 years, and executives there clearly think highly of the Waipahu High School graduate, as shown by the fact that they have selected him for various honors through the years, including "Outstanding Lodging Employee of the Year," which he was named in January by the Hawaii Hotel and Lodging Association.

George Gaspar Title: Maintenance supervisor at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Job: Supervises a staff of about 20 maintenance employees

Gaspar joined the hotel in 1961 after he had served two years in the Air Force and worked briefly as a fireman and then for a construction supply company. Now he is the hotel's maintenance supervisor, overseeing about 20 people who help keep the property's extensive operation in shape. Gaspar, 68, is married to the former Bertie Lau, with whom he lives in Kaneohe and has six adult children -- three sons and three daughters.

Question: I heard that you're in your 45th year at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and that you're the second-longest serving employee at the hotel.

Answer: There's about three of us, I think, that have been here quite a while. This May will be 45 years for me. I started in May '61.

Q: Who's the longest-serving employee there?

A: There's a girl; she's in the banquet department. Her name is Ethel Correia. She has been with the hotel 48 years. And then the second-longest one is my partner, Larry Monje.

Q: What's he do?

A: He's a maintenance man like me. He takes care of the pools and ponds on the property. He's been here since about a month before me.

Q: So he's hitting 45 years right now.

A: Yeah. He's still working. We're too young to retire. I feel great. I'm in good health. So I just keep myself busy.

Q: You've seen a lot of changes there. Are you nostalgic at all for the early days?

A: You mean seeing all the entertainers go by, from the olden days?

Q: Well ...

A: Well, there's no stone walls on the property anymore. We have a few here and there, but its all covered up already.

Q: You mean the property used to be lined with rock walls?

A: Yeah, (developer Henry J.) Kaiser built them around here, but there's no moss rock walls anymore on the property. Everything's strictly concrete now.

Q: And also a lot more buildings, too, yeah?

A: Yeah, and a lot more buildings. But the aloha spirit is still here. We have a new slogan here on property: Be hospitable -- to everybody.

Q: Speaking of the old entertainers, didn't Alfred Apaka play there?

A: Oh yeah. And Hilo Hattie. Trummy Young -- he used to play in the Shell Bar. He had his own jazz band. All the entertainers. Al Harrington started here. Kaniala (Danny Kaleikini) started here. He was the speaker at the imu ceremonies.

Q: What were you doing for a job before you joined Hilton Hawaiian Village?

A: I came out of the service (the Air Force), and went into the fire department at Hickam for about three months. Then I got riffed from there -- got laid off -- so after that I went to work for MidPac Lumber in the plumbing department. Stayed there for about nine months.

Then, my uncle, he used to work at the Village -- he's deceased now -- my uncle brought me in. So I was lighting the torches at night -- 'cause no gas torches in those days; was kerosene and wick -- and we used to clean the beaches in the evening. My shift was 2 in the afternoon to 10 o'clock at night. Then after that, all through the years I worked my way up to where I am now.

I had a lot of influence from my boss, Mr. Fred Ing. He was the engineer over here.

Q: What happened to him?

A: He retired. He retired after 49 years and seven months.

Q: When was that?

A: About a couple or three years ago.

Q: He's still alive?

A: Yeah. He's living in Niu Valley.

Q: Who's your boss now?

A: My boss is Robert Cortez. He's an engineer, and second in command is John Clarke. He's an electrical engineer.

Q: And now you supervise about a hundred people?

A: Nah. (Laughter) I would say about 20 people in my gang; 17 to 20 people.

Q: What kinds of jobs do they all do?

A: Electrician, plumber -- you know, regular grounds crew: the painter, glazier ...

Q: You guys reglaze the bathtubs?

A: They fix tile work, mason work, welder ...

Q: Do you ever hire outside people to come in and do jobs?

A: Just big things that we can't handle. Other than that, we try to do the work ourselves.

Q: Your folks take care of the yard, too?

A: No, that's a different division.

Q: Have you done all those jobs yourself at one time or another?

A: Yeah, sure.

Q: Who goes around making sure that they are all doing their jobs properly?

A: Me! I do. (Laughter)

Q: What's the worst part of your job?

A: The worst part of my job is fire. I've seen burn before, that's why. The Tapa Room fire, and then the old Waikiki Hotel burned. So that's the most dangerous thing that I'm afraid of. Water and electricity, we can shut it down. I'm not too worried about water. Fire is my biggest worry. So safety is the main thing anyway.

Q: I was thinking maybe the worst thing is when you have to fire somebody.

A: No, I don't have that kind of heart. Everybody gotta eat. But if somebody stray, we try to set 'em straight before we let 'em go.

Q: Hotels are a 24/7 kind of business ...

A: Yeah, 24/7 ...

Q: So what kind of hours do you keep at work?

A: I keep 8 to 4.

Q: Do you get interrupted at home a lot?

A: Yeah. (Laughter) Sometimes I do. But I try to get away from it all, after all these years.

Q: Do you have your own office?

A: Yes, I share one office in property operations.

Q: Do you have your own secretary?

A: No. (Laughter)

Q: So you gotta do all your own paper work?

A: Yeah. I gotta do all my own paper work.

Q: Are you in charge again this year of building the hotel's Aloha Festival parade float?

A: Well, yeah, I do mostly everything, like the Mikoshi Parade, that Japanese parade we had recently that goes through Waikiki. Then for the charity walk, I made all the props for it. All the activities on the property, they get me in on it. I go to the meetings and we put our heads together so we can make something nice for it.

And then the Aloha Festival Parade, that's one of the biggest things on the property. All the employees can come out and help decorate the float and have a good time.

Q: How long before you retire, you figure?

A: I don't know, I figure maybe I'll go a couple years more.

Q: What are you holding out for?

A: I don't know. I just enjoy my work. I enjoy the camaraderie with the other departments.

Everybody knows my name. Just be nice to everybody. I just still enjoy coming to work. I'm still in good health, the doctor says. (Laughter)

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