Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 19, Number 3, 1 March 2002 — Myron "Pinky" Thompson remembered [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Myron "Pinky" Thompson remembered

This month, OHA Chairwoman Haunani Apoliona and Trustee Colette Machado eomhine there editorial space in tribute to the late Myron "Pinky" Thompson, Hawaiian community leader, who passed away Dec. 25.

Aloha mai kākou, e nā 'ōiwi o Hawai'i. This 16th article in a series of 48 highlights the eulogy presented by Hardy Spoeher of Papa Ola Lōkahi at the memonal services held for Myron Pinky Thompson at Kamehameha Schools on Jan. 3. £ MT yron Bennett Th.om.pson, l\ /I or "Pinky" as he is ▼ JL known to all of us, was a bass player, The bass is not an 'out front' instrument; it's the steady background instrument that keeps the tune in time and moves it from start to finish. For Pinky, as he played his life's tune over the four strings his rhythm was that of a vision woven within a cultural fabric and firmly embedded in the tone of his strings. These strings were his values; values of whieh we all are familiar: aloha, kōkua, laulima, and mālama, whieh Pinky so wonderfully kept in tune as he moved his life's work towards a vision for Hawai'i whieh perpetuated the unique qualities of his island home through the guiding principles of the society of his forbears, On occasion, Pinky would relate to us stories whieh usually revolved around these values and, now in reflection, tell us the story of Pinky's life work, Aloha; the first string — The concept of aloha has to do with the basic essence of the person, Pinky would on occasion relate his story of being on a troop ship headed for Normandy in the early morning hours of June 6th, 1944, He was thrown in with hundreds of others, none of whom were Hawaiian, He tells the story of how a Catholic priest was asked to bless all the men prior to their departure from the ship, The priest asked all the men to eall upon the elements of their own spiritual beliefs and ask for their help and guidance, īt was this instance whieh influenced Pinky to open with pule as he did calling upon the group to bring forth its spiritual

beliefs and for those with aumakua to ask them for guidance in achieving the task at hand, Kōkua; the second string — The value of kōkua or giving is a mutual relationship between the giver and the one requesting help, Often one needs to be aware of what is not said, Pinky would relate the story the building of the current home for the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center at Hālona Street, As the newly hired executive director at QLCC, Pinky was asked to oversee the construction of the new home for the center, A cultural context was deemed important, Pinky related how many designs eame back from loeal architects depicting architectural plans incorporating palaee like designs, īnstead, Pinky chose the design submitted by a mainland architect who had taken the time to find out as mueh as he could about how traditional homes functioned, He used the concept of the marae and construction reminiscent of the Hawaiian hale, His directors weren't sure this was the right ehoiee, but Pinky, being true to his values, said that unless this design was chosen he would leave the center, The board ratified Pinky's ehoiee, Laulima; the third string — The value of laulima was crucial for survival in older days, īt took the combined efforts of many to make things happen, Actually, this is as true today as it was then, Pinky's accomplishments with the Kamehameha Schools, Polynesian Voyaging Society and with Hui Nalu Canoe Club relate directly to his ability to get 'many hands' workings towards agreed upon goals and objectives, These are the ones to tell the stories of Pinky and the impact he has had on their lives, Through Pinky's efforts in education, voyaging, and paddling, the Pacific world today is a very dif-

ferent one than the one he found thirty years ago, There is a heightened and enriched sense of culture and commonality, Mālama; the final string — The value of malama - to care for or to take care of - were part of Pinky's character and best exemplified by his 'ohana, his family; his wife Laura, his children Lita and her husband Bruce, Myron and his wife Sakura, and Nāinoa and his wife Pi'ikea, and his grandchildren, Tia, Nai'a, īan, Samantha, Kalani and the 'ohana of his brother Henry and sister Kamaoli, Pinky learned about malama at a very early age, He related the story of Paoa Lane, At a family gathering in the area whieh now is the Hilton Hawaiian Village, Pinky as a young child went missing, After a protracted search by frantic parents and aunties and uncles, he was found outside, asleep on the ground clutching his blanket whieh had been hung up on the line to dry, When brought back into the warmth of the family, his grandfather declared to all — "kapu ke keiki," Pinky was a special child; one who was cared for, His understanding of the meaning of malama continued through his high school education at Punahou and the war years, Upon graduation, Pinky enlisted in the Army, What is not commonly known is that he had to revise his date of birth to enlist, He was seriously wounded in Normandy and, after being medivaced, ended up in Maine for two years of recovery and rehabilitation, There he met his wife to be Punahou classmate Laura Lucas, At war's end, Pinky enrolled and got his degree from Colby College in Maine and he and Laura returned to Hawai'i shortly thereafter where in 1953 hereceived his Masters degree from the School of Social Work at the University of Hawai'i; the topic of his thesis - "A Study of the Growth of the Boy's Training School in Hawai'i " (1865-1939). His underlying finding: "Since proper treatment must

follow proper diagnosis, it is basic that the delinquent boy be individualized and he and his problems treated on an individual basis,,,," Pinky's efforts to help address long-standing socio-political issues in the Native Hawaiian community ean be gleaned in the lines from his thesis, His tireless efforts to bring resources to bear for those in the Native Hawaiian community, all with the understanding that what was beneficial for Native Hawaiians was also beneficial for all those in the state of Hawai'i, Pinky's tireless efforts in Washington, D,C,, for the past 30 years are legendary, īn his latest effort, Pinky brought together those agencies and organizations concerned with early child development in an effort to coordinate the provision of services for perinatal, neonatal, and early child development, The group adopted the name "Kapu nā Keiki," Pinky's life had now eame full circle, It began with his grandfather recognizing him as a 'special child,' "Kapu ke Keiki," and concluding with his efforts to have all children recognized as being special children "Kapu nā Keiki," And so how do we honor Pinky, we do so by keeping these values whieh he held so dear alive and well for our future generations, By keeping these efforts alive, we keep Pinky alive in all our hearts and minds, Let us annually listen to the tune of our strings and take an accounting of ourselves at this time of year on how we are doing with respect to mālama Hawai'i and makmg this, our island home a better plaee for our children and our children's children, This would give Pinky great delight and serve as a lasting legacy to one of Hawai'i's greatest leaders and one to who we all have been so privileged to have walked on congruent paths in our respective lifetimes, to have heard the tune of his strings, and to have played a few sets together, ■

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Haunani Apoliona, MSW 7rusfee, At-large

Colette Machado Trustee,, Moloka'i anel Lāna'i