COURTESY SHARA KANE Gary Poretsky of the Big Island was killed March 22 in Thailand.

Dead, not forgotten

Gary Poretsky's pals say he amounted to more than an obituary

HILO » Big Islander Gary Poretsky was a boisterous but kind-hearted man who would help other people before he would take care of his own needs, his friends say.

Self-neglect by the 46-year-old Puna district bachelor led to a need for major dental work, which Poretsky decided to resolve by traveling to Thailand, where dentistry comes cheap.

On Feb. 29 his plane left Honolulu, said his friend Raelynn Akui.

On March 22, Poretsky was killed by a gunshot to the face and two shots to the body at a bar in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, police there said.

A suspect, William Douglas, 65, originally from Australia but a longtime resident of Thailand, turned himself in to police after the shooting.

Police said an argument preceded the shooting.

Some of Poretsky's friends on the Big Island are not satisfied with the sketchy accounts of what happened. "I don't have closure," said Akui.

More important, they feel that no one has painted a picture of Poretsky's basic goodness.

Isaiah Ahin, 21, appreciated Poretsky so much he had a tribute to his friend tattooed on his back after the shooting.

ROD THOMPSON / RTHOMPSON@STARBULLETIN.COM Isaiah Ahin, 21, of the Big Island was so saddened by the death of his friend Gary Poretsky in Thailand that he had a tribute to Poretsky tattooed on his back.

Poretsky bailed him out, took him to court appearances, then spent time with him to keep him occupied and out of trouble, Ahin said.

Another time, a woman Poretsky knew was arrested and held for 48 hours. Poretsky fed and cared for her two children, said Ahin's girlfriend, Malia Hoffmann.

Akui said Poretsky would "stand up" for her, urging her not to let anyone abuse her. "He was the sweetest, sweetest person," she said.

People knew him as "Gary Two Dogs" because of the two pets that followed him around until they died last year.

Friend Sharon Porter said Poretsky would spend hundreds of dollars on a sick kitten, then give the kitten to someone when it was well.

Poretsky had suffered job injuries in construction over the years, so he could do only light work, Porter said. But he did jobs as a carpenter, auto mechanic and fisherman, as well as having skills as an artist and musician. He wanted to have a boat and be a sailor, she said.

"He was an intelligent man. He was constantly trying to better himself," she said.

Originally from the East Coast, he arrived on the Big Island in the mid-1980s, Ahin said.

His East Coast outspokenness and sarcastic humor got on some people's nerves, Porter said.

And alcohol could be a problem.

"He used to drink, but when he does drink, he gets too crazy, so he doesn't drink," Ahin said.

Thai police said Poretsky and his attacker were drinking when the shooting took place.

Poretsky's ashes have been sent to his mother in Florida, Hoffmann said.

A seaside gathering of friends is tentatively set for April 20 fronting the Seaview subdivision where he lived, she said.