Editor’s note: This is the third installment in a series of profiles on the Big Island Sports Hall of Fame’s Class of 2015.
Luella Aina loved going to work because she was always around youngsters and saw the potential in each of them of becoming a crown jewel.
She spent 34 years as a recreation director with the County’s Department of Parks and Recreation, working at different stops at Kawananakoa Gym, Shipman Gym, and Andrews Gym.
“I enjoyed my job to the fullest,” she said. “The kids were my enjoyment.”
Aina was a constant volunteer. When her working day was done, she kept finding more things to do. And everything she did benefited the community.
She volunteered at the Special Olympics from 1975 to ’83. In 1977, she was certified as a National Volleyball Official and was active for 11 years at home, around the state, and across the country.
In 1970, she was named the Sportsman of the Year for Hawaii County. In 1971 and ’72, she received leadership awards from the Hilo Jaycees and Hawaii State Jaycees, respectively.
One of her greatest achievements is Kawananakoa Gym, which took 15 years of Aina’s persistence to turn a dilapidated building into a shining gem in the Keaukaha community with a grand opening in 2003.
Aina, along with Chris Leonard, Don Memmer, and Elson Mori, will be inducted into the Big Island Sports Hall of Fame at 10 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 15 at Prince Kuhio Plaza.
“I’m happy, honored and overwhelmed,” Aina said. “I’m very grateful.”
The Kawananakoa Gym project required a lot of pushing and time, the one resource Aina offered in abundance without a second thought.
She continued her mission year after year taking personal, vacation and after-work hours to lobby the state Legislature, OHA for grant clearance, and the Historic Preservation Division to demolish and build a new gym.
Aina was a team leader. She had to work with lawmakers and with the community Action Group Committee. There were grants to write, meetings to coordinate, and endless details that needed attention.
She retired in 2005 at Kawananakoa Gym, after she created the Keaukaha Men’s Homestead Basketball League, helped secure funds for a game room and weight room, started an after-school program utilizing computers, and Kupuna center with sewing, hula and aerobics, ceramics, and lei making classes.
Aina, 75, still volunteers each year to serve on the Hoolaulea Committee. When she gets a chance, she’ll swim at Carlsmith Beach Park.
The former Leinani Luella Ahuna and the late Alvin Aina (who died in 2010 and was a tug-boat captain) have three children: Tammy (Evangelista), Daniel and Duke.
When Aina, a 1957 Hilo High graduate, was in school, there weren’t team sports such as basketball, soccer, and volleyball around just yet.
She pointed to her three children, who all live in Hilo, as an inspiration to create programs. Still, she never stopped opening the door for other youngsters or offering her free time.
When Aina was at Shipman Gym, she created the Drain Pipe surf meet at Kalapana because both her sons surfed. She noted that both still surf, a reason for their good health.
“When they got involved with activities, I was there as a coach or team mom,” Aina said. “When they were in track, I would run around the oval coaching the team. I was always there with them.”
The Drain Pipe surf meet didn’t last, but one program that did is the Horseshoe tournament at Onekahakaha Beach Park. Aina volunteered on weekends to help run tournaments while she still worked in Keaau.
When she transferred to Andrews Gym, she started new programs in arts and crafts, and sports activities such as volleyball and clinics for baseball, basketball, and volleyball. If Aina wasn’t coaching, she was volunteering as an official.
Viking days
Aina is the only BIIF girls volleyball coach who won a HHSAA state title when there wasn’t statewide classification, which started in 2005.
She credited her late husband for always being supportive.
And during her Hilo High tenure from 1969 to ’74, the Vikings captured the BIIF championship every year.
Hilo brought home state titles in 1972 and ’74, going in unseeded against top seeds Punahou, coached by Sharon Peterson, and Kalani, coached by Dave Shoji.
The Viks were state runner-up in 1971 to Radford and in 1973 to Punahou.
Aina’s daughter Tammy was on both state championship teams, both victories over Punahou, making for a memorable family moment.
In 1972, the state tournament was held on Molokai and Hilo had lost a key starter with an injury.
After Kalani was upended, Shoji asked Aina if she was surprised that the Vikings won.
“I told him, ‘No.’ We had a few tricks up our sleeve,” she said. “That’s when Hilo gained respect. Back then there was no rally scoring (a point per serve). The games would go long.
“It was a big surprise at the time, beating Dave Shoji. My ulcers were burning at the time.”
Big influence
One of Aina’s best friends is Shirley Kagawa, the Kamehameha tennis coach, and grandma of Shaun Kagawa, a 2013 Kamehameha graduate and a sophomore at Georgia Tech.
Aina read about a Nike football combine on Oahu in February of 2012. She told Shirley to send Shaun and he finished with the second-highest rating, opening a window to his football opportunities.
In 2011, Aina, Kagawa and Alberta (Ahuna) Nicolas organized Hula Halau O Kawananakoa to gain exercise and participate in Office of Aging competitions.
“We’d go twice a week because of the camaraderie and it was good exercise,” said Kagawa, a 1967 Hilo graduate. “She started coaching me in volleyball when I was in high school. She’s such a knowledgeable person, not just in sports, but sewing, ceramics, lei making.
“Her youngest sister Wanda was my best friend in high school. I started to play volleyball under her. In the early years, she was my coach and then she mentored me through my adult life.”
One of Aina’s favorite memories is giving subtle advice to her grandson Daniel Aina Jr., when he was a Kamehameha sophomore in 2010.
Kamehameha was down 2-0 to Waiakea in the BIIF championship. On the switch over, Aina told her grandson to serve at a specific spot.
It didn’t appear that he was listening. He didn’t look up, grabbed a sports drink and headed back to the court.
When it was his time to serve, he hit his intended target. He heard every word, followed her advice, and Kamehameha won. Aina still draws a good chuckle at the memory.
Of all the youngsters Aina has touched over the decades, one name still rings with significance: Tanya Kamau.
She was raw as a volleyball player, barely spoke a word, but listened to anything Aina had to offer.
Kamau played volleyball at Waiakea, then went to San Jose State. As a senior outside hitter in 1998, she found herself competing against the Rainbow Wahine in the WAC semifinals.
The Spartans lost in three. But no doubt, it was a priceless memory for Kamau, who’s a school teacher in San Jose.
For decades, the most precious gift Aina gave her youngsters was her spare time. When she pushed and polished hard enough, Aina turned anything she touched into a crown jewel.
Banquet
A banquet will be held at 11:30 a.m. following the unveiling of the new wall on Sunday. Tickets may be purchased by calling Ellsworth Fontes at 895-64-67 or Tony Misiaszek at 333-6936.
• Wayne Subica is creating a book with the background of each inductee.
He needs help in obtaining more information, and requests that Hall of Fame members or their families contact him at wsubica@gmail.com or 443-7679.
