Hamada’s legacy reaches beyond athletics and ‘Iolani

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Courtney Ochi
February 3, 2010
Filed under Features

Coach Eddie Hamada was ” a man of all seasons.  Everyone has a different story about him,” said Mrs. Sheila McKibbin, a former history teacher at ‘Iolani.  Most remembrances of Mr. Hamada, who died Jan. 3 at age 81, are stories filled with football victories or kind smiles and humble gratitude.

But Mrs. McKibbin’s fondest memories of Mr. Hamada were established in the late 1940s in a place far across the Pacific Ocean.

Mrs. McKibbin and her brother, Gene, grew up on Long Island. Gene was Mr. Hamada’s roommate at Kansas State Teacher’s College in Emporia, Kansas, which both attended on the GI Bill.  The two young men, along with four other Hawaii students, hung out together as often as they could.

Gene, Eddie, and the others were commonly referred to as “the city slicker from New York and the five Mexicans,” Mrs. McKibbin said.  Most people in Kansas had never seen people from Hawaii and were far from understanding towards their minority race.  Although Mrs. McKibbin’s brother stuck out from the group like a sore thumb, he felt a close relationship with the rest of the group, all of whom had served together in the war.

During breaks from college, the football, basketball, and baseball stars gathered on Long Island to work at the largest concrete pipe plant east of the Mississippi. Mrs. McKibbin’s family ran and owned the plant.  Through continual visits, Mrs. McKibbin grew close with her brother’s friends and they all became like family.

Years passed. Mrs. McKibbin married, and she and her husband George had eight children together.  Tragedy unexpectedly brought Mrs. McKibbin into contact with Mr. Hamada in July of 1966, when George died at age 41.  With eight kids, she questioned what to do next.  Her brother, Gene, helped her gather together the loose ends of her life and made a call to the Hawaii gang from Kansas State.

So 18 suitcases, five surfboards, and three bicycles later, Mrs. McKibbin found herself and her eight children reunited with Mr. Hamada on the tarmac at Honolulu International Airport.  He and the rest of the friends picked her and her family up with two ‘Iolani school vans.  They took them to a home near Kahala where the grown men and their wives served the McKibbins their first Hawaiian meal.  Her children, ranging in age from 5 to 15, were awestruck by their new home, excited about the culture, and enticed by the ono food.

Although surrounded by unfamiliar faces and sites, Mrs. McKibbin found Mr. Hamada always provided the help and support she needed when making the transition from the mainland to Hawaii.  As her children grew up, the man they knew as Uncle Eddie showed up to all of their games to cheer them on.

“He filled a tremendous void in their lives,” she said.

Mrs. McKibbin was hired to teach at ‘Iolani in 1972, and for the next 32 years until her retirement, she got to see Mr. Hamada every single day.  She would wave to him in the athletic office during her morning laps across the pool and stop to take a glimpse at the twinkle in his eye that was always present when he was expressing a kind word.

“He represented ‘Iolani so well to the rest of the community,” said Mrs. McKibbin.  “If Dave Coon was the heart of ‘Iolani, Eddie was the soul.”  She called him a gracious gentleman, a life-transforming person.

The last time Mrs. McKibbin saw Mr. Hamada was about a year ago at a party at the home of Lester Leu, class of 1974 and president of the ‘Iolani Boosters club.  Mr. Leu put on the gathering for many alumni and friends.  Although there may have been almost 200 hundred people there, Mr. Hamada was never too busy to hug everyone that came through the door.

“I have never seen him so happy,” said Mrs. McKibbin.

Mrs. McKibbin holds dearly her last memory of Mr. Hamada. It sits next to relics of early memories of him on Long Island and instances of gentleness and care.  Her stories show a unique expression of the impact that Mr. Hamada had on the lives of all that he touched.  The football coach truly changed Mrs. McKibbin’s life on a different playing field. He will never be forgotten by her and her family.