Kelii “KK” Padello had a singular purpose when he enlisted in the Hawaii Army National Guard a few years ago.
“I wanted to help people who couldn’t help themselves,” Padello said.
Padello was able to fulfill that promise when his unit recently was assigned to assist in evacuations, security and air-quality monitoring as Mount Kilauea’s fissures spewed gas and lava.
After 32 days on Hawaii island, Padello returned to Oahu — and to the University of Hawaii football team. Padello, a redshirt senior rush end, participated in Tuesday’s practice, the 10th of the Rainbow Warriors’ training camp.
“That’s just how he lives his life,” UH coach Nick Rolovich said of Padello. “He wants the best for everybody, and this team is included in that.”
In June, Padello was told to prepare for the possibility of being summoned to Hawaii island.
“I was all set to come to (UH’s training) camp,” Padello said. “Our lieutenant colonel warned us in advance we might get activated. Once we got the call, we’re all like, ‘We’ve got to go. We’ve got to help.’”
Padello, a specialist, said he was part of a roving team that checked the air quality and looked for suspicious activity near evacuated areas. He also worked at the check points, “making sure only authorized personnel could go past the barriers.”
He said his unit was headquartered in a gym near Hilo International Airport.
“Everybody was sensitive to the whole tragedy of people losing their homes,” Padello said. “Everybody just wanted to help. It was definitely mind-changing. It was tragic. It was something bigger than all of us.”
It was particularly emotional for Padello, who had lived in Kamuela — roughly the middle point between Kona and Hilo — before his family moved to Oahu.
“I was raised on the Big Island,” Padello said, “and seeing the whole difference of what the fissures caused, it was mind-blowing. The people who were affected by the fissures, they lost their homes. Their lives were changed. We were glad to help them out.”
Padello said the experience drew his National Guard unit closer. “It definitely changed me,” Padello said.
Now, he said, he is focused on football.
