Today’s column is going to be a little different, as it will actually be my last one for The Garden Island.
Well, it should be noted that I have said that before and then my face still showed up in here again a few years later, so I guess nothing is definitive.
When I came to Kauai in April of 2009, I got to be the full-time sports writer with an awesome staff. I took it upon myself to attempt to really understand and become a member of the community.
The energy in the local sports scene was instantly evident. Feeling the metal bleachers vibrate during a Waimea baseball game or the sound waves bouncing back and forth inside the Kapaa gym are some of my favorite memories of those early days.
When I began to learn about the surf scene, I, admittedly, knew next to nothing. Andy Melamed let me know it, but in the most kind and helpful way possible, so I’m still thankful to him for that.
Others were less tactful.
But hopefully I’ve gotten better through the years. To think that I’d be more interested on a day to day basis about the projected swells around the globe than about the projected NBA matchups that evening would have been a long shot a decade ago. But that’s exactly what happened and I’m extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to learn about something that has since become a passion.
I got to work with a lot of great people over the past decade with this publication.
The editorial department at the start really helped to guide me as a journalist and showed me that a small paper with small resources doesn’t have to have small goals.
Thank you to the current staff, including Bill Buley, Nick Celario, Paul Curtis and Richard Stein, who have the most involvement in assisting with what I type twice a week.
I feel extremely fortunate to have had my opinion valued for this long and I haven’t taken that opportunity for granted. It’s a great feeling to be heard, whether on a small or large scale.
So thank you for reading and interacting with anything I’ve had to say, whether good or bad. It has all helped me grow, both as a writer and a person. Hopefully we all continue to value one another’s opinions while still doing our own due diligence. We live in a time when that is becoming rarer and more important.
Aloha, TGI.
