David Matlin believes that we never are really on our own.

“There are so many people that help us along on our journey,” the University of Hawaii athletic director told the Honolulu Quarterback Club recently. “We’re all in this together.”

His life is a living testament to it.

Matlin was born in Honolulu. His father, Lewis, was general manager of the Hawaii Islanders AAA baseball team in 1963.

“When I was 2 weeks old, my dad took another job with the Vancouver Mounties in Canada,” Matlin recalls. They were in the Pacific Coast League with the Islanders.

“We did a lot of moving until I was 6 years old. We went from Honolulu to Vancouver to Seattle to Milwaukee to Michigan. That would be the Islanders to the Mounties; Seattle Pilots, which became the Milwaukee Brewers; and from Michigan to the Detroit Tigers.

“I had three kindergarten classes and two second- grade classes. As a result I never learned cursive handwriting. Thank goodness we have computers now.”

Matlin grew up in Michigan and went to high school there. “I attended the University of Michigan, where I met my wife-to-be, Dana Hatate, in my junior year at a fraternity ‘South of the Border’ party.”

Matlin said he tried to impress her with his vast knowledge of Hawaiian. “The three words that I could remember, besides ‘aloha,’ were ‘akamai,’ ‘opu’ and ‘okole.’

“That’s all I remembered, but she went out with me anyway. We soon found out we were born at the same hospital (Kapiolani) and delivered by the same doctor. Our parents lived about one-half mile from each other, yet we met 21 years later at the University of Michigan. It’s a small world.”

The Matlins got married shortly after college, and Dave went to work for the Houston Astros, starting out as a temporary hire and eventually working his way up to director of sales.

“I was there from 1987 to 1993. It was an amazing, phenomenal experience. All I wanted to do was work in baseball and follow in my dad’s footsteps.

“But after six years my wife had other ideas. Local girls want to come home, so we moved here in 1993.”

Matlin says it was challenging. “I had left my dream job with the Astros, and I couldn’t get a job here. I didn’t have any local experience. It was tough. My mother-in-law, Lillian, recommended I reach out to Jim Donovan, who was the assistant athletic director under Hugh Yoshida.

“I finally got a meeting with him, but it was three days after I had an emergency appendectomy. I had difficulty walking. Maybe I looked sympathetic. Donovan said he didn’t have a full-time job, but he could start me as a casual hire. I could run the Midnight Ohana, which back then was the kickoff of the basketball season in Klum Gym.

“Donovan felt bad that he didn’t have anything more permanent. ‘I can only pay you $6 an hour.’ He said, ‘You know what, I’ll pay $12 an hour, but you gotta work twice as many hours.’”

After six months working as a casual hire, Matlin took a full-time job with another firm. Within eight months, though, he had an opportunity to move back to the athletic department’s ticket office.

“Edith Tanida was the ticket manager. She was a gruff woman with a big heart that she hid well. A job opened in her department. I applied and was hired to computerize the old manual ticketing process.

“Two years later I found out that Edith Tanida had worked with my father back in the old Islander baseball days, and she actually had thrown a baby shower for my mother when she was pregnant with me. That’s a pretty crazy, small-world story. Edith had even suggested ‘Alexander’ as my middle name, after Alexander Cartwright, the Father of Baseball.

“I think because of that she felt an obligation to me, and that’s how I ended up with a job at the University of Hawaii. I owe Edith a debt of gratitude for that, and I know that I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for her.”

In December 2014 Ben Jay, the previous athletic director, stepped down. “I applied for the job two minutes before the deadline because I wanted to do it for the right reasons and not for the wrong reasons,” Matlin recalls.

“It’s an incredible opportunity to care for 500 student athletes on 21 sports teams. And every year we get 125 new students.

“And it was a chance to make a difference for the University of Hawaii. I think UH athletics helps brand the entire university system and add to student enrollment.

“To have a job where you can make that kind of difference, not just with the team, but with the entire state, fits with my theme that we’re all in this together. It’s never about one person. You never do it alone. It’s pretty amazing.”

Matlin tells many of the basketball and football recruits that the University of Hawaii is in a unique position. “We don’t have professional sports teams in Hawaii. It’s different from any other school in the country.

“You’re not just playing for your team or your school, but for the whole state. That’s an incredible privilege, and it can help you in the future in the job market. And if that’s not something you want, you shouldn’t come here.”

Matlin thinks we have great coaches. “Nick Rolovich is a players’ coach. He loves this place. Millennials are attracted to him and want to play with him. And last year we won our first bowl game since 2006.

“Every day with Rolovich is interesting. Nick likes to live right on the edge. If there’s the line you don’t want to cross, Nick can always be found right on that line.

“Laura Beeman is so much more than a women’s basketball coach. She’s also a sounding board for me. She went to the postseason her first four years. She’s embraced Hawaii and made it her home. She’s had a lot of opportunities. If it was just about money, she’d be gone.

“Charlie Wade took the men’s volleyball team to the NCAA tournament two out of the last three years.

“A lot of people don’t know that his team’s cumulative grade-point average is 3.4, and that is phenomenal. He got an award for having one of the highest cumulative grade-point averages in the country. He shows that you can get it done in the classroom as well as on the court.

“Our mission is to support student success on and off the field,” Matlin said. “A lot of people behind the scenes make it all work.

“Like I’ve said, you never do it alone. There are the people in the ticket office, the academic folks, coaches, athletic trainers, media relations, administrative support and so many others who all pull together.

“I’ve been blessed with so many people who’ve helped me along on my journey, starting with my parents and my wife, Dana. Everyone you meet along your path is put there for a reason.

“I think the idea of a self-made man is a myth. The whole state is part of our organization, and we couldn’t do it without everyone.”

Bob Sigall, author of the “Companies We Keep” books, looks through his collection of old photos to tell stories of Hawaii people, places and companies. Email him at Sigall@yahoo.com.