Roy Digma, a quiet surfer known as "Smiley," died Wednesday after being pulled from the water where he had been surfing off Kewalo Basin. He was 56.
Digma, of Ewa Beach, fell in love with the sport after picking it up at about age 9, learning in the waters off Hau Bush in Ewa Beach, said his sister Lorna Pinol.
"I’m going to miss him very much," Pinol said by phone Thursday. "He’s the best brother I ever had."
Police said Digma became unresponsive in the water and was taken to a hospital, where he died at about 9:45 a.m. An autopsy is pending.
Several homeless people said they witnessed other surfers trying to revive Digma as they brought him back to shore on his board.
Kaimuki resident Kevin Okimoto, who met Digma while surfing off Kewalos about 20 years ago, said Digma regularly surfed a spot there called Straight Outs.
Digma kept to himself but smiled frequently, garnering him the nickname, Okimoto said.
"He would just come out, catch his waves and go home," he said. "He was always smiling."
Pinol, Digma’s sister, said she didn’t know why her brother traveled so far to surf, but said that he was experienced.
"I know he loved to go to the beach and surf," she said.
Digma didn’t speak much at home, where he lived with his sister. He hadn’t worked since being injured in his 20s while working as a forklift driver for Dole Cannery.
Pinol said the hospital staff told her that her brother may have had a heart attack or stroke while catching his last wave.
Digma graduated from Campbell High School in 1976.
He is survived by his sister and brother, Arthur, also of Ewa Beach.
