As a child growing up on Molokai, Egon Horcajo was taught to make the most of what was available.
And so, when a powerful storm blew the roof off a Molokai Ranch storage building across from the family home, Horcajo and his brothers collected sheets of corrugated metal debris, flattened them with hammers and rocks, and fashioned a small seafaring vessel.
"The tin-pan boat was our means of holding our catch when we went fishing at Kaunakakai Harbor," said Horcajo, 63. "We’d paddle home when the tide was high. The outdoors was our life back then. You could put food on the table with that."
Horcajo’s father, a mechanic and commercial fisherman, taught his children not just how to hunt and fish, but also how to appreciate the bounty that surrounded them and how to preserve it for future generations.
"We learned to only take what we needed," Horcajo said. "I guess we’d call it sustainability these days."
Horcajo’s appreciation for the environment was further strengthened by his years as a competitive paddler under renowned coach August Rawlins.
After high school, Horcajo relocated to Oahu, where he worked as a contractor building homes in the developing Hawaii Kai community.
The desire to own their own home prompted Horcajo and his wife, Rena — whom Horcajo had met while working in the pineapple fields on Molokai — to move to San Diego.
There, Horcajo and his wife continued to indulge their shared love of paddling, first as members of the Kai Elua Outrigger Canoe Club and later as founders of their own Hanohano Outrigger Canoe Club.
Horcajo’s paddling expertise also led to his club’s involvement in dragon boat racing, an endeavor that in turn led to a string of international dragon boat championships and travels across Europe and Asia.
In 2003 the Horcajos returned to Hawaii, settling in Kona, but continued to compete in paddling events, including a half-dozen Molokai-to-Oahu crossings.
In 2012, after returning from an African safari, Horcajo was diagnosed with leukemia and underwent exhaustive chemotherapy. Just this year he was further diagnosed with throat cancer, resulting in more chemotherapy. Both cancers are in remission, but Horcajo says he’s taking nothing for granted.
A week ago Horcajo rode the escort boat to coach his nephew Ikaika Pidot through the 2014 Hawaiian Airlines Molokai Hoe, an experience that brough him as much satisfaction as any of his individual accomplishments.
"We don’t get mad at the world," Horcajo said of his family. "We do the best with what we have, and we never give up hope in anything. If you have no hope, what is there?"
Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@staradvertiser.com.
