2015 INDUCTION CEREMONY & DINNER

Hawai'i Swimming Hall of Fame's sixth event was held on October 10, 2015, at the Hale Koa Hotel.  Guy Hagi was the guest emcee. 18 people were inducted that included newly added categories.  To view a slideshow of the event, scroll down to the bottom of the page or click HERE.
SWIMMING:
Fray Heath
Ronald Honda
Bob Ramsey

​CHANNEL SWIMMING:
William "Bill" Goding
Mike Miller
​SYNCHRONIZED SWIMMING:
Joanne Marie Royer Medeiros

​​​WATER POLO:
Brandon Brooks
Maureen Cole
Bob Ramsey
​​COACHES:
​Keith Arakaki
Michael Brown
Harvey Chilton
Brian Lee
Larry Oshiro
Fred Tester
OCEAN SAFETY:
Ralph Goto
​
​CONTRIBUTORS:
Keith Arakaki
John Clark
Mary Ann Sears Midkiff
Dr. Allen B. Richardson

CLASS OF 2015

KEITH ARAKAKI
Keith T. Arakaki, born and raised in Hawaii (Kaimuki ’69), has been a swim coach since 1971 at various public and private high schools in Hawaii and at the age group level.  He has been a member of USA Swimming, the OIA Coaches Association, ILH Coaches Association, Hawaii Swim Club, and a director of the Hawaii Swimming Hall of Fame.  He was instrumental in using the internet for swim meet administration and developing the hawaiiswim.org website for swimming education and information.  He is a retired educator from the State of Hawaii DOE and from the Hawaii National Guard.  He is married to Marcelle Arakaki, HSHOF Class of 2021.
BRANDON BROOKS
Brandon Brooks, born in Illinois, graduate of Punahou and UCLA, was a premier goalkeeper in water polo.  Playing highlights:  NCAA Division I Water Polo All-American four times, 1999-2002; three-time All-MPSF, 2000-02; member of NCAA National Champion water polo team, 1999 and 2000; member of US Olympic Team, 2004 and 2008.  Coaching:  UCLA Women’s Water Polo coach since 2007, MPSF Coach of the Year, 2012, MPSF Women’s Champions, 2010 and 2012, NCAA National Champion, 2007, 2008 and 2009.  He was also assistant coach for the UCLA Men’s team in 2004, 2006-08.
MIKE BROWN
Mike Brown, born in Colorado, came to Hawaii in 2000 to be head diving coach at the University of Hawaii.  Previously he was head diving coach at the University of Texas (1976-94), as well a US National Team Coach (1979-96).  In his coaching career he was a 3-time National Coach of the Year, 9-time MPSF Women’s Co-Coach of the Year, 5-time MPSF Men’s Co-Coach of the Year, 7-time WAC Women’s Coach of the Year, 2-time Conference USA Men’s Coach of the Year, 2-time NIC Men’s Diving Coach of the Year, PCSC Men’s Co-Diving Coach of the Year.  He mentored 29 All-Americans, 18 U.S. National Team members and five Olympians between UH and Texas and coached a total of nine individual NCAA champions.  He is married to Anita Rossing, HSHOF Class of 2018, who is co-coach of the University of Hawaii diving team. 
HARVEY CHILTON
​Harvey Porter Chilton was born in the kingdom of Hawaii and coached swimming in Hawaii for 45 years in the early 20th century.  As the coach for Hui Nalu Swim Club he trained Olympic champions Duke Kahanamoku, Sam Kahanamoku and Ludy Langer.  As the coach for Hui Makani Swim Club he trained Olympians Warren Kealoha, Pua Kealoha, Henry Luning, Charles Pang, Manuela Kalili and Maiola Kailili.  In the days before there was a Waikiki Natatorium or Olympic-sized swimming pools in Hawaii, he had his swimmers train in the ocean at Honolulu Harbor and Waikiki Beach where he diligently monitored and instructed them. He passed away in 1959 at the age of 73.
JOHN CLARK
John R. Kukeakalani Clark, born and raised in Hawaii, was a lifeguard, fire fighter and deputy fire chief of the Honolulu Fire Department.  He is the author of numerous books about Hawaii’s beaches, surf spots, and ocean lore, including Hawaii’s Best Beaches, Hawaiian Surfing, and Hawaii Place Names.  He conducted technical research for the City and County of Honolulu, the State of Hawaii, and the federal government on ocean resources, beach erosion and restoration, and ocean environmental impacts, and ocean safety.  In addition, he founded, organized, and directed many ocean swims and biathlons throughout Oahu.  He is a US Army veteran, 1968-70. 
MAUREEN COLE
Maureen Cole, born in South Carolina, graduated from Punahou (‘99) and UCLA (‘05), where she was a member of 3 NCAA Championship water polo teams, a 4-time All-American and on the USA National team (2000-04).  She became head coach of University of Hawaii Women’s Water Polo in 2012 and led them to three 20-win seasons.  Coaching highlights:  four NCAA Tournament trips (2013, '15, '19, '21), Big West Coach of the Year (2015, '19, '21), mentored 20 ACWPC All-Americans, 37 all-conference selections and four Big West Player of the Year winners, led 57 Rainbow Wahine to ACWPC All-Academic awards and 44 Big West All-Academic awards.
BILL GODING
William “Bill” Goding came to Hawaii after serving as a US Air Force Pararescueman from 1971 to 1997.  He is a premier open water and channel swimmer who has swum 7 of the 9 major channels in the Hawaiian Islands, including the treacherous Kaiwi Channel between Molokai and Oahu, and the Auau Channel between Maui and Lanai (which he has completed 22 times).  He now advises other swimmers on how to prepare to swim the Kaiwi Channel crossing and frequently accompanies them on their escort vessels.  Bill was a lifeguard for the City and County of Honolulu, 1997-2013.  
RALPH GOTO
Ralph Goto, born in Japan, raised on the mainland, came to Hawaii to attend the University of Hawaii and retired 30+ years later as the Ocean Safety and Lifeguard Services Administrator for the City and County of Honolulu.  He supervised nearly 300 water safety officers on Oahu and oversaw life-saving rescue, first aid, and accident prevention programs to millions of visitors and residents.  In 2007, he was selected as the City and County of Honolulu’s Manager of the year.  In 2012 he was awarded one of the prestigious Paragon Awards for water safety by the International Swimming Hall of Fame.
FRAY HEATH
Francis “Fray” Rives Heath IV, born in Hawaii, attended UCLA (’69) where he was member of the swim team and a player on the water polo team.  He was named the UCLA most valuable freshman swimmer in 1966, NCAA All-American swimmer in 1968 and 1969, PAC-8 conference and NCAA national champion in the 100-yard free in 1969 and was on the AAU 400-yard medley relay team which was national champion in 1970.  He was a carpenter, general contractor, and retired as president of Heath Construction Services, Inc., which was responsible for managing construction and renovations for many of Hawaii's museums and historic places.  He passed away in 2020 at the age of 72.
RON HONDA
Ronald Y. Honda, graduate of Roosevelt, was a Territory of Hawaii swim champion in 1952, 1953 and 1954, then attended Indiana University where he qualified for the NCAA Championship Finals in 1956, 1957 and 1958 (with highest finish, second in the 100-yard butterfly in 1957) and was named an NCAA All-American swimmer (1956-58).  He qualified for the US Olympic Trials in 1956.  He continued swimming through his senior years in the US Masters winning 3 gold medals in the 1990 Hawaii Championships and two golds in the Nationals, 1997 and 1998.  He is a retired educator for the State of Hawaii DOE.
BRIAN LEE
Brian Lee, graduate of Aiea High and the University of Hawaii, began coaching swimming at the Aiea Aquatics (1970-76), the University of Hawaii Women’s Team (1976-78), Aulea Swim Club (1978-86), Rainbow Aquatics (1986-89), then founded and coached the Iolani Swim Club in 1989. He coached Iolani to 6 Boys State Championships and 4 Girls State Championships, and his swimmers have broken many state and high school records. He has helped many swimmers achieve success at the Jr. National, National, and Olympic Trial level over the past 30 years. Brian was a multi-year USA National Team coach.  He also coached at the Olympic level as coach of the Sri Lanka Olympic Swim Team in 1988.
JOANNE MEDEIROS
Joanne Marie Royer Medeiros, born and raised in California, graduate of Long Beach State ’56, moved to Hawaii to be an educator in the State of Hawaii DOE in 1968 until her retirement in 1992.  She was a pioneer in the sport of synchronized swimming starting at age 10, and by 17, she achieved national stature.  In 1951 her team won the Junior National Synchronized Swimming Championships, and in 1952 she won First Place Solo at the Southern Pacific Association of the AAU Synchronized Swimming.  Joanne was on the team that demonstrated the sport at the 1956 Olympics, and she was thrilled that the sport was recognized as official Olympic sport in 1984 in Los Angeles.  She passed away in 2019 at the age of 84.
MARY ANN SEARS MIDKIFF
Mary Ann Sears Midkiff was a swimmer, surfer, paddleboarder, movie stunt double (for Dorothy Lamour, Elizabeth Taylor, and Esther Williams, among others), and an all-around waterwoman.  She swam all distances from the 200-meters to the mile and was a National Junior Champion in 1934, AAU National Champion in 1936, and she swam in the 1936 Olympic Swim Trials.  She also won many surfing and paddleboarding contests in California.  She came to Hawaii in 1956 to work on a movie then stayed for 30 years until her retirement.  She started the Mary Ann Sears Swim School in 1965 to teach infants and toddlers how to be water safe.  She passed away in 1993 at the age of 74.
MIKE MILLER
Michael Miller, originally from Florida, is a world-class open water swimmer who has completed major marathon swims throughout the world.  He is a member of the Half Century Club, a club that is exclusively limited to individuals who have successfully completed a marathon swim at age 50 years or older, and the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming, which requires completion of the English Channel, Catalina Channel, and the Manhattan Island Marathon Swim.  Mike crossed the Kaiwi Channel in 1979, the Catalina Channel (two crossings, 2003 and 2011), the English Channel (two crossings, 2008 and 2014), the Manhattan Island Swim (2004).  He has completed many other marathon swims throughout the world, and in 2009 he coached his daughter, Mackenzie, in her successful crossing of the Kaiwi Channel.
LARRY OSHIRO
​Larry T. Oshiro, born and raised in Hawaii, graduated from McKinley High, then the University of Oregon, where he was an All-Conference butterfly swimmer.  He began coaching swimming in 1966 at Palama Swim Club, then at McKinley High in 1972, where he was named OIA Coach of the Year.  He coached with famed coach Harry Mamizuka, when he formed the Manoa Aquatics in 1979, and became head coach upon Harry’s passing.  He also coached the Western Zone Age Group “Team Hawaii” 17 times. 
BOB RAMSEY
Robert Ramsey, originally from California, was an outstanding swimmer and water polo player at UCLA who earned NCAA All-American honors in swimming, 1969-72; placed in the NCAA Division-I championships, 1970; placed in the AAU National Finals, 1970; swam in the 1972 Olympic Trials; was selected as an NCAA All-American in water polo, 1969-72; was on the NCAA championship team (UCLA, 1969 and 1971); and was an AAU National Indoor Champion, 1977.  He taught at Kamehameha Schools for 36 years until his retirement.
ALLEN RICHARDSON
Dr. Allen B. Richardson swam for Punahou, was an All-American swimmer at Yale, and earned his medical degree at UCLA.  He was considered the Dean of Sports Medicine in Hawaii, was team physician for Rainbow Wahine volleyball for 25 years and was the first surgeon in Hawaii to perform arthroscopic knee surgery.  He also served as the sports medicine chairman for the US Olympic Team at six Summer Olympics, 1976-2000.  He was inducted into the University of Hawaii Hall of Fame in 2003.  He passed away in 2003 at the age of 57.
FRED TESTER
Fred Tester, born and raised in Wisconsin, had a distinguished career in the US Navy before retiring in Hawaii in 1979, then began coaching swimming, first in Guam, then in Hawaii at Kalaheo High, Aulea Swim Club, Kalani High, Lokahi Swim Club, and Iolani Swim Club.  He was awarded Coach of the Year while at Kalani High.  He pioneered the use of computer technology in swimming administration, assisting in data entry administration for OIA swimming and diving at league and state championships, and he provided logistical and technical support for the Special Olympics in Hawaii.

Slideshow of the 2015 Dinner Event: