Kin of visitor who died here grateful for aloha

On Tuesday, Sept. 17, our brother, Robert "Chris" Dernetz, died while snorkeling off Kahe Beach, near Nanakuli.

The specific cause of his death is not certain. The Medical Examiner’s office rightly deferred its determination, pending results of forensic analyses. We applaud its diligence.

While snorkeling with Chris 250 yards offshore, he spotted a pod of dolphins surfacing nearby. Chris swam out toward them. Concerned, we called him back. The wind had picked up and the sea surface was choppy. As Chris headed back toward us, he seemed to struggle against the outgoing current from the power station outfall. We swam to help him out of the current.

As we assisted Chris toward shore, he experienced difficulty breathing. Halfway in, Chris’s last words to us were, "I can’t breathe." Forty yards from shore, Chris passed out.

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Peter Leigh of Hickam Joint Air Base heard our calls for help and came to assist. A strong swimmer, he took Chris the rest of the way in.

On shore, people immediately started CPR and called 911. Within 10 minutes, emergency medical technicians, lifeguards and police arrived. They worked hard to revive Chris, but it was too late. He was pronounced dead soon after arriving at Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center.

We don’t know the names of the many people on the beach who tried to save Chris, but we want them to know, especially Staff Sgt. Leigh, how grateful we are for their heroic efforts. We also want to thank each of the responding EMTs and lifeguards who worked very hard and very efficiently in their efforts to revive Chris.

We received helpful and kind treatment from the responding Honolulu police officers, including Sgt. James Nobriga and officer Kent Lareau. They understood our grief and performed their tasks in a most sensitive way.

The people of Oahu have every reason to be proud of the emergency responders for the City & County of Honolulu.

We also want to thank the Visitor Aloha Society of Hawaii (VASH). Perhaps not all island residents know of this special nonprofit group whose mission is to share aloha with island visitors who become victims of crime or other adversities.

Jessica Rich, VASH president and executive director, helped us through the emotional shock and provided invaluable information. She secured lodging for us, and for Chris’s son and daughter who flew in during the Aloha Festival.

With help from VASH, we were able to arrange for Chris’s remains to be returned with his son and daughter to his home, his grieving widow and grandchildren. VASH even helped us arrange a small surfside ceremony in Makaha with a local kahu, who provided a very healing and meaningful service before our departure.

Chris was a 33-year veteran U.S. Customs inspector in the Port of Baltimore. He is survived by his wife, Louise; son, Chris; daughter, Melissa; and five granddaughters.

Chris was a long-time volunteer/supporter with the USA Youth Hockey program, and held several offices in the Southeastern District. He also was instrumental in developing the first sled-hockey program for our wounded warriors — a program now replicated in several locations that serves many of our wounded veterans.

As a tireless volunteer for this USA Warriors program, designed to give veterans who have been injured in military action the chance to play hockey in a environment suited to their needs, Chris remained behind the scenes, always saying the real heroes were the men and women on the ice. Nonetheless, the USA Warriors program is now honoring his memory by creating the Chris Dernetz Volunteer Award, to be given annually to a volunteer whose support reflects the dedication that Chris had to the program.

He will be missed.

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Wayne and Liz Dernetz live in Del Mar, Calif.