On the campus of his high school alma mater next to the university where he met his wife of more than 50 years, legendary University of Hawaii sports broadcaster Jim Leahey was remembered by a couple hundred family and friends at a celebration of his life Sunday at Saint Louis School.
Mayor Rick Blangiardi and longtime TV broadcast partners Pal Eldredge and Artie Wilson, along with Jim’s three children and one grand daughter, all took turns sharing heartfelt stories of the man who was the “voice of University of Hawaii sports.”
Leahey died at age 80 on Jan. 30.
“I worked with the greatest play-by-play guy there’s ever been in Hawaii, without a doubt,” said Wilson, who was right by Leahey’s side for some of his iconic UH basketball calls over the years.
“How sweet it is. How sweet it is,” was how he described Tes Whitlock’s game-winner over the arch-rival BYU men’s basketball team in 1995.
“Excuse me while I kiss the sky.”
“And so if you ask yourself, is this the year? Is this the year? You better believe this is the year.”
Those are just a few of the famous phrases that will live on forever, but Sunday’s gathering was about more than just a legendary career.
It was about being a caring and giving husband to his wife, Toni, who he first met at Chaminade. Jim was dedicated to his craft, but if there was a broadcast to be done on his anniversary, it was the one time you wouldn’t find him in the booth.
“He and Toni would go down to the Halekulani hotel every year and celebrate their anniversary together,” Eldredge said. “I loved that. How cool that was how much he loved Toni.”
The celebration was also about his time as a father to his three children, Katy, Kelly and Kanoa. Sure, there was that Christmas Day when he made his two daughters work to clean up the backyard, and yes, he was serious when he set his curfews at the time based on what grade his oldest daughter was in, but there was also a genuine love that was always there.
“A few years ago before he did get sick, I was about to leave (to return to the mainland) and we had gone to Henry Loui’s in Mapunapuna and we had a meal there … and he says ‘I’ll walk you to your car,’” Kelly Leahey recalled. “He held my hand and said ‘do you know I always miss you when you leave truly truly and I love you very much.’ And that was one of the most special moments I’ll remember in my life.”
Jim also had a grand daughter, Malia, who even his youngest son, Kanoa, had to admit took No. 1 in the rankings among the next generations of Leaheys.
“He was an amazing man and it’s very special to me that a part of him was shared in all of your lives in some capacity,” Malia said after asking her grandfather for a gift of gab to help her with her speech. “I don’t think I will ever experience someone like my grandfather.”
Kanoa Leahey, who is now the lead play-by-play commentator for Spectrum Sports in Hawaii, opened the celebration with an emotional welcome in remembrance of his father.
In addition to the countless number of games called between the two, they also shared the screen together for nine years co-hosting the Leahey and Leahey show on PBS.
“I do believe he is here with us in spirit. I used to think that notion was a little cheesy — the idea of people with us in spirit,” Kanoa said. “Going through the loss of my dad, I definitely felt him. When I picked my father up from the mortuary he was in his urn. I placed him in the front seat of my truck, I buckled him in and I drove home.
“I could sense his presence. I could feel him near me and it was comforting. I could almost hear him speaking, and you know what, the guy was still telling me how to drive.”
