Hashimoto loved Kaua’i, its land and ways

LIHU’E – Jackie Hashimoto, 71, lived many lives before he succumbed to leukemia

on Aug. 30.

Hashimoto, who was part-Hawaiian and part-Japanese, saw himself

as a protector of aina (land). He was a taro farmer and a throw-net

fisherman.

Hashimoto also was a Korean War veteran trained as a tracker in

combat, worked at and operated the Wainiha hydropower plant 45 years before

retiring in 1993, and was a devoted husband and father.

Remembered at a

memorial ceremony scheduled at Wanini Beach in Kilauea last Saturday, Hashimoto

had a deep love for Kaua’i. While in Korea, he longed for his military tour to

end so he could return home to his island’s beauty and its rural lifestyle,

said his wife, Tanya.

Hashimoto’s upbringing in a tight-knit Hawaiian

family defined his values as an adult, she said. He was raised to respect the

kupuna (the elderly) and Hawaiian values and teachings that focused on pule

(prayer), kupono (honesty), ho’aho (patience and bravery), ho’ona’auao

(enlightenment), kokua (help) and hanalima (work with the hands), his wife

said.

Hashimoto loved the ocean and loved to fish. His wife recalled he

would finish up work at the hydropower plant at 11 at night and sometimes go

fishing.

Hashimoto’s father taught him how to use a throw net, a skill

which Hashimoto passed on to his grandson. When Hashimoto didn’t use his throw

net, he found equal joy in using a road and reel, Tanya said.

Hashimoto’s

upbringing also impressed on him the importance of protecting the land, she

said. As the operator of the McBryde hydropower plant that sells electricity to

Kaua’i Electric, Hashimoto did not use herbicide to kill weeds along waterways

that fed water to the plant, fearing the chemicals could pollute the

environment.

And he didn’t use pesticide in his taro patches.

When he

worked at the Wainiha plant, he “loved being in the valley and kept a watchful

eye out for the o’opu, the vi, and watercress,” his wife said.

After

retirement, he routinely volunteered to clean up trails in Koke’e and

participated in the restoration on the loi in Limahuli Valley, Hashimoto’s wife

said.

[

HREF=”mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net”>lchang@pulitzer.net]Hashimoto was taught

the value of hard work by his parents, she said. As a youngster, he worked on a

family taro farm in Limahuli Valley in Ha’ena. As an adult, he had his own taro

farm in Hanalei.

Hashimoto first worked at the hydropower plant while he

attended Kaua’i High School in the mid-1940s. When he graduated 1947, he quit

the job, joined the Army and was sent to Korea.

When he returned from the

service, McBryde gave Hashimoto his old job back, and later he became the sole

operator of the hydropower plant. The job meant Hashimoto was on duty 24 hours

a day.

“We would get phone calls in the middle of the night, and he would

go up there to clear debris from the streams,” she said. His effort ensured

that waterways were clear to bring water to power the hydropower plant.

His truck, fitted with a winch and a crane, was prepared for any

emergency, his wife recalled.

It was job that meant being alone for long

periods at a time, but Hashimoto didn’t mind, she said, because of the solitude

and because he had time to ponder life.

“He was a quiet man, but a very

deep person,” she said. When he went to work, he also took his Bible with

him.

She said her husband liked to work with his hands and strived to

complete any job put in front of him.

“One of his sayings was, ‘You gotta

do what you gotta do,”‘ she said.

When he retired from the hydropower

plant in 1993, he took his energy in a new direction: Voluntarism and service

to the community.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Iniki, he participated in a

Kaua’i Habitat for Humanity project to build seven homes in seven days for the

needy. He worked on many other Habitat projects after that.

In 1995, he was

recognized by the Kaua’i Taro Growers Association for his work with

taro.

In March 1996, he was given the Mayor’s Laulima award for his work in

the Ho’olokahi program.

In 1998, he was recognized for his volunteerism and

given the Governor’s Kilohana Award.

He also supported the work of the

Kaua’i Burial Council and the Kaua’i Historical Society.

When he wasn’t

performing community service, he devoted his time to the apple of his eye – his

4-year-old granddaughter, Kendra Ualani Vega.

“He loved being a

great-grandfather, Hashimoto’s wife said.

Staff writer Lester Chang

can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 225) and lchang@pulitzer.net