When Haumea Ho danced hula to John Rowles singing Kui Lee‘s "I’ll Remember You" Oct. 24 at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, it was one of the rare times she had been on stage since her husband Don Ho‘s death on April 14, 2007, at age 76.
On Dec. 16 she announced she would be Henry Kapono‘s operations manager.
"I’m finding myself again," said Haumea, 52.
She had been vice president of Don Ho Enterprises, overseeing his show and his businesses for some 20 years. She was also his solo hula dancer. After Don’s death, Haumea’s mom, Johnny Frisbie, a former Polynesian dancer in Waikiki at Don the Beachcomber and Queen’s Surf, returned to Honolulu from the Cook Islands to live with Haumea.
The three of us had lunch at Murphy’s Bar & Grill recently and talked about the good old days of old Waikiki in the 1950s and when Don gained national fame at Duke Kahanamoku’s in the ’60s.
Haumea entered the Honolulu picture in 1981. She was born in Rarotonga in 1962 and raised in New Zealand.
Her mom was single when she met Carl Hebenstreit, known as "Kini Popo," on his Honolulu TV show. They had four children together. Ropati, now 57, and Carla Humphrey, 55, were born in Honolulu. After the family settled in New Zealand, Stirling, 47, came along.
Haumea was a versatile athlete in her teens in New Zealand, particularly in springboard diving. She was invited to Woodlawn, Texas, to work out with U.S. Olympic diving team hopefuls in ’81 and stopped in Honolulu to visit her dad, who had moved back here. She never made it to Texas. While here she saw an ad for a dishwasher at Ho’s showroom and got the job.
"I didn’t know who Don Ho was," she said. "When he found out who my parents were, he took me out of the kitchen and put me on stage as a line hula dancer. The rest is history. Twenty-five years later we were married."
She and Don wed Sept. 12, 2006, after a lengthy relationship. "We were like Siamese twins together," Haumea said. "We needed each other."
They often had lunch together at Don Ho’s Island Grill at Aloha Tower Marketplace. They played in several of my golf tournaments in the 1990s and 2000s. Don and then-Gov. Ben Cayetano shared first place in the 1997 tournament.
Haumea joined the Rotary Club of Honolulu 2 1⁄2 years ago with the encouragement of Linda Coble, a retired TV news anchor.
"I’m going to Cambodia next year to help build a school, an international Rotary project," Haumea said.
She is also the board chairwoman of the local chapter of Best Buddies International, which creates opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The program’s main purpose is to allow volunteers to be paired with a buddy with a disability and provide friendship and mentoring.
She was approached by actress Maureen McCormick, who played Marcia on "The Brady Bunch," to join Best Buddies, founded in 1989 by Anthony Kennedy Shriver.
Don and Sam Kapu were guests on a "Brady Bunch" episode in 1972 and sang "Sweet Someone." Haumea is also on the board of directors for the Bobby Benson Center, a facility offering youngsters help in overcoming substance abuse. Keep up the good work, Haumea! …
LOCAL BOY Alvin Ing, Roosevelt High School class of 1950, has a supporting role in "The Gambler," starring Mark Wahlberg, which opened Christmas Day. Ing, 82, portrays a Korean owner of a casino.
He was on the red carpet for the Dec. 10 New York premiere of "The Gambler." Others in the picture are Jessica Lange, John Goodman, George Kennedy and Brie Larson. Larson starred in "Short Term 12," written and directed by Maui-born Destin Daniel Cretton.
Ing, who has been in three shows on Broadway, arrived home for the holidays Monday …
More than 90 people streamed in and out of Murphy’s on Dec. 3 for an evening of revelry, reminiscence and humor. Ted Sturdivant and Jean Dickinson organized the "Old Timers" gathering, which attracted folks from advertising, publishing, media, public relations and business …
Elizabeth "Murph" Dailey, the first lady of Hawaii Polo, turned 96 on Dec. 9 …
"WOOD CRAFT" is on the move again. Look for my column every other Friday in the Today section, starting Jan. 9 … Happy New Year everyone! …
Ben Wood, who sold newspapers on Honolulu streets in World War II, writes of people, places and things. Email him at bwood@staradvertiser.com.
