After producing more than 300 different koa wood artifacts, commemorative gifts and trophies, Rowland Fujii is closing the business that has been his passion for more than three decades.

Fujii, 67, was diagnosed in February with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a neurodegenerative disorder that affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord and has robbed him of the use of his arms and hands.

But you’d never know it.

Fujii, born in Pahala on Hawaii island, is as pleasant and positive as he’s always been, friends say, not once complaining about having to live with the debilitating disease that is forcing him to shut down RKF Enterprises Inc. on Jan. 11. He founded the company in 1978.

His focus now is on finding a partner or someone to take over the business that he says has fulfilled his life and brought joy to those who receive his one-of-a-kind, handcrafted koa clocks, boxes and awards, often with personalized engravings for special occasions.

"It’s his lifeblood. He’s here seven days a week working," said Judy Okawa, a friend who is helping him wind down the business he runs at a warehouse at 291 Mokauea St. in Kalihi Kai. "We all adore him. He’s just always smiling. He doesn’t make an issue about anything — it’s just amazing. He’s a saint about it. He just tries to be positive."

Some of his most memorable creations were gifts for Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, who received memorial plaques from Adm. Thomas Fargo and Gov. Neil Abercrombie, respectively.

"I’m kind of sad about (closing)," said Fujii, a graduate of the University of Hawaii and University Laboratory School. "I just have to keep a positive attitude that I’m going to find somebody to continue my legacy."

Mostly Fujii is concerned about his four employees, two of whom are both mentally and physically disabled and have worked for him for at least 30 years.

The company, whose first clients were Liberty House and Duty Free Shoppers, produces koa wood items for corporate, military and retail customers worldwide, including the state and city, that rely on the company to make retirement and service awards.

It also sells directly from the warehouse, which is having a close-out sale Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"People rely on him," Okawa said. "They come in for orders, and he doesn’t charge much for these beautiful (creations). My husband and I have been going through all these things, and you see the life of his work emerging. His original clock came out of one cupboard — a little round clock 6 inches in diameter — to a beautiful square clock that Liberty House used to sell."

While Fujii is the "idea guy" behind the designs of his products, including a 12-inch clock in the shape of a University of Hawaii baseball for $60, his staff does most of the koa wood working, he said.

To Fujii the koa wood traditionally used for furnishings in palaces of Hawaiian royalty and characterized by its lustrous grain and rich colors, is a symbolic way to express the "highest levels" of aloha.

Fujii has put his heart and soul into designing products that embody the aloha spirit.

"I just loved to make special things for people that brings joy to their heart," said Fujii, whose slogan is "Say it with koa."

"I enjoyed making people happy."