Daughter of Don Ho dies on North Shore

Police call the case an unattended death after Dayna Ho-Henry is found in Waialua

THE FAMILY of the late Don Ho is mourning another death, after the entertainer's 52-year-old daughter was found dead yesterday morning in the Waialua home of a friend.

Dayna Ho-Henry was found unresponsive at 8:04 a.m., and she was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency medical personnel.

"All we know is that it was an accidental death," said Dwight Ho, Dayna Ho-Henry's youngest brother.

Her death comes less than a week after a memorial service attended by thousands was held in Waikiki for her father, Don Ho, who died of heart failure on April 14.

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The 52-year-old daughter of the late Don Ho was found dead yesterday in a Waialua home, less than a week after a massive memorial was held in Waikiki for her father.

Dayna Ho-Henry was found unresponsive at the Kanoena Street home of a friend at 8:04 a.m. Emergency medical personnel pronounced her dead at the North Shore home. Foul play is not suspected, and police have classified the case as an unattended death.

"All we know is that it was an accidental death," said Dwight Ho, one of Don Ho's 10 children and Dayna Ho-Henry's youngest brother. "We're just trying to make some sense of it at this time, and we're asking for privacy."

Her death comes less than a month after her father, the legendary Hawaiian entertainer, died of heart failure on April 14. Last Saturday, thousands of people gathered in Waikiki for Ho's memorial service and a concert in his honor.

At the memorial, Ho-Henry swam in the waters off Waikiki amid dozens of outrigger canoes and boats as the Ho family spread her father's ashes into the sea.

When asked if their father's death had hit Ho-Henry particularly hard, her brother said, "We're all grieving. We're all just going through the grieving process. It's been a tough couple of weeks. My father meant a lot to all of us."

During the '70s, Dayna Ho danced hula in her father's show. She graduated in 1973 from Kamehameha Schools.

Ho-Henry also performed as a guest vocalist for Loyal Garner at Don Ho's 70th-birthday bash in 2000.

She recently had been a caregiver for seniors.

"It really was her nature to take care of people and the family," Dwight Ho said. "She just had a gift of mercy and could empathize with people when they were hurting."

Dwight Ho said the family might make a statement later when they find out more about the circumstances of his sister's death. The city Medical Examiner's Office will perform an autopsy Monday to determine the cause of death.

Dayna Ho-Henry was one of eight children from Don Ho's first marriage, with Melva May Ho, who died in 1999. Ho-Henry is survived by her two children, Mahina, 21, and Kulia, 11.

She is also survived by siblings Donnie Jr., Donalei, Dondi, Dori and Dwight Ho, and half siblings Kea and Kealii Ho, Hoku Clements and Kaimana Farris.

Ho-Henry was married to Chuck Henry, from whom she had been separated for a few years.