The people’s farewell

Thousands honor the "people's mayor" as a man dedicated to serving Kauai with humility and humor

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LIHUE » The Kauai County Council was to select an interim mayor today, the day after Mayor Bryan Baptiste's funeral. County Clerk Peter Nakamura said yesterday that county officials were set to meet after the funeral to discuss any problems that might arise at today's meeting and also with the election of a successor this fall.

"His heart failed him but he never failed his heart." Irma Baptiste Soares Bryan Baptiste's sister

Under the Kauai County Charter, the Council must select one of its own as the interim mayor until the election.

Meanwhile yesterday, Baptiste was remembered as a man of dedication, humility and humor at a ceremony that drew thousands to the Kauai War Memorial Convention Hall.

"His heart failed him," said his sister Irma Baptiste Soares, "but he never failed his heart."

The event stood in contrast to Baptiste's last appearance there, a Superferry meeting last September, when Gov. Linda Lingle was booed and heckled. This time, the governor was greeted with warm applause as she remembered her friend.

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LIHUE » Kauai Mayor Bryan Baptiste was remembered yesterday as a man of humility, perseverance and mischief at the celebration of his life at the Kauai War Memorial Convention Hall.

"His heart failed him," said his sister Irma Baptiste Soares, "but he never failed his heart."

The mayor's eldest son, Brandon, said his father always focused on other people, be it in the family or in the community.

"He picked up rubbish on the side of the road when no one was looking," he recalled.

The three-hour service was filled to capacity after thousands came to pay their respects to his wife, Annette, and four children, waiting for more than an hour as the procession stretched around the building and all the way to the sidewalk.

Baptiste, 52, died June 22 of an apparent heart attack less than halfway through his term.

Inside the convention hall, where Baptiste sang and danced in plays while a student at Kapaa High School, dozens of friends and family members shared humorous stories about the "people's mayor," as he was known.

The solemn but good-natured event stood in contrast to Baptiste's last appearance there, a Hawaii Superferry meeting last September, when Gov. Linda Lingle was booed and heckled.

"I could see Bryan in tears with so much frustration that night," said state Rep. James Tokioka (D, Lihue). "His pride was broken."

This time, Lingle was greeted with warm applause as she described her friend.

When in Honolulu, he often stayed at her official residence, plodding around in shorts and slippers and suffering through a breakfast of granola, or "twigs," as he called it, Lingle recalled.

"When he came to Honolulu, he always wanted something for Kauai," be it a bridge, road or homeless shelter, Lingle said. "But he did it in a way that made us want to deliver for him and the people of Kauai."

The Rev. Ryan Clayton said, "He was a generous man, but there was limits to his generosity."

Clayton joked that when the two of them went to a movie a number of years back, Baptiste got the jumbo popcorn. Clayton expected his friend to share, "but the buggah never shared one kernel."

Gary Heu, the interim mayor, said he did not even know Baptiste when the newly elected mayor asked him to become his administrative assistant. He tried to say no.

"But when it comes to business, he was not one to mince words" -- or take no for an answer, Heu added.

But it was Baptiste's children that gave a rare glimpse into the family life of the man.

"He never wanted to be mayor," said the mayor's eldest son, Brandon. So why did Baptiste run?

"Because nobody else would," he said his father told him.

He said his father's biggest dilemma was trying to help one person, knowing it might hurt another.

"He had this way of looking at a person and loving the crap out of him," the younger Baptiste added.

Lauren Baptiste, 20, said "not a lot got to see the lighthearted side" of her father, known for his practical jokes and self-deprecating humor.

"He always wanted people around him," she said. "He loved the noise."