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A candlelight vigil will be held tonight at Sandy Beach to honor the memory of Honolulu police officer Kaulike Kalama, whom friends and family have described as a “quiet hero,” whose calm presence made him the “rock” that others looked to as a source of strength.
The event, which will be held from 6 to 7 p.m., follows last week’s vigil held for Honolulu police officer Tiffany Enriquez, 38, at Kaimana Beach in her Waikiki district. It also comes after a Sunday motorcycle convoy, organized by Kalama’s brother, where participants rode down Hibiscus Drive with flags adorned with a blue line.
The 34-year-old Kalama and Enriquez were killed responding to a Jan. 19 altercation at a Diamond Head home. According to the city, he died from a gunshot wound to the chest and she to the torso. Their deaths brought the historical count of Honolulu Police Department officers killed on the job to 50.
The incident also resulted in the death of homeowner Lois Cain, 77, and escalated into a fire that destroyed five homes, seriously damaged two more and caused minor damage to several other properties. Another woman, Gisela Ricardi King, Cain’s upstairs tenant, also was wounded after a beating with a garden tool.
The suspected gunman was Cain’s basement tenant Jerry Hanel, 69, who is alleged to have killed the police, beaten Cain and Ricardi King, and set a fire that has altered the architecture of a historic neighborhood on the edge of Kapiolani Park.
Two sets of human remains were later found in the ruins of Cain’s home. The Honolulu Medical Examiner’s Office identified both but released only Lois Cain’s identity. The other name was withheld pending the notification of next of kin, although the remains are believed to belong to Hanel.
Cause and manner of death for the civilians has yet to be released, but the city said the standard time frame to complete such a report is eight to 12 weeks.
Ohana Baptist Church pastor Wayne Surface, a spokesman for the Kalama family, said “KK” or “Like,” as his friends and family called him, would have been embarrassed by all the attention that he was getting in the wake of the fatal shooting.
“He would not want all the focus to be on him. He would tell you that every police officer there that day was a hero, it just happened that two didn’t come home,” Surface said. “He (Kalama) loved his family, his wife, his 14-year-old son and his community. He was the rock that held everyone together.”
Surface said Kalama’s family wants him to be remembered as a “local boy who loved Hawaii and serving his community as a police officer, but more importantly as a faithful husband, father, son, brother and friend.”
The candlelight vigil is being held at Sandy Beach in Kalama’s East Oahu policing district. The waterman liked to body-surf and paddle, and enjoyed other outdoor pursuits like camping and paintball. When indoors he was known as the family’s Xbox champion.
Surface said Kalama’s family would like to thank the officers of District 6 and 7 and all of the support teams (EMS, hospital, dispatchers, special operations) for being there for him through his service and on Jan. 19 especially.
Surface said funeral services for Kalama still are pending.
Funeral services for Enriquez will be Thursday at Diamond Head Memorial Park. A private viewing will be from 7:30 to 8:30 a.m. with public visitation from 8:30 to 10 a.m. Services will begin at 10 a.m. After the services, public visitation will open again until 12:15 p.m.
The public also is invited to attend a final salute to Enriquez, which will be held Thursday at approximately 1 p.m. in front of HPD headquarters, 801 S. Beretania St.
These events follow the Jan. 21 candlelight vigil already held for Enriquez, where hundreds of her friends and family remembered her as “a fearless police officer,” “champion bodybuilder,” “amazing cook” and “joyful person.”
She also was mother of three daughters and had one grandchild and another on the way.
Star-Advertiser reporters Rob Shikina and Rosemarie Bernardo contributed to this report.
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