ONE OF THE BEST all-around athletes ever to don the blue and white colors of Kamehameha is retired Army Col. Marvin Ferreira, class of 1949. Marvin was selected an all-star in football, basketball and baseball for the Warriors in his senior year. In football he played offense and defense and was a center, linebacker and guard.
Frank "Steiny" Steinmiller, Roosevelt’s top all-around athlete that year, who played against Marv in three sports, said he deserved every honor that came his way.
Marv went on to play for Santa Clara. He was a linebacker, and his assignment one season was to hit the University of San Francisco’s all-American running back Ollie Matson on every play, even if he was not the ball carrier. Ollie was an Olympic sprinter who went on to enter pro football’s Hall of Fame. In 1951, his senior year at USF, he led the nation in rushing yardage and touchdowns in taking his team to an undefeated season. He ran for much yardage in every contest, but Marvin, who suffered a broken nose in their game, kept Ollie from gaining many yards in their battle, although he said USF won on a late play.
Marvin, wife Marilyn, daughter Michelle Ferreira, who is a nurse, and grandson John Ferreira flew in from California on June 5 to participate in Marvin’s 65th high school reunion. Marv’s medical problems forced him to be hospitalized at the Queen’s Medical Center on June 6. He told family members to attend the reunion luau that same day. They did, and John replaced Marv onstage with the class members. Other children — Michael Ferreira, Marvin Gregory Ferreira and attorney Marlisa Ferreira — flew in from the mainland to provide assistance. They are helping to get Marvin stabilized so he can fly back home to Modesto, Calif.
Like Steiny, I played football for Roosevelt against Marv’s Kamehameha team. They beat us 21-0, with Don Ho scoring two touchdowns and kicking three extra points to win the league championship. I was Roosevelt’s quarterback and did not have a good game, to put it mildly. I spoke to Marv on Sunday in a call to the hospital, and we reminisced. He said I sounded good. I said I’m not as fast as I used to be. He said, "You were never very fast" …
SPEEDING ON: Andis Wines, a winery in Plymouth, Calif., owned by Andy Friedlander and his wife, Janis Akuna, was on a "short but sweet little segment," as Andy put it, on NBC’s "Today" show June 25. TripAdvisor.com travel advocate Wendy Perrin was with the show’s Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager. The segment featured five wine destinations across the country, off the beaten path, that offer city attractions the whole family can enjoy. Andis Wines is 45 minutes east of Sacramento. To view the "Today" segment, go to goo.gl/P7kMQU …
SERVICES for artist Hiroshi Tagami, who died June 13 at age 85, will be held Saturday at Unity Church of Hawaii at Diamond Head Circle at 10 a.m. I first met Hiroshi in the late 1960s when he was among many artists selling their paintings on the Honolulu Zoo fence near the Waikiki Shell. He was called Tom in those days. I bought a large, somewhat abstract painting from him of a bullfighter in action in Spain, dated 1970, for $300. It took much thought before I laid out the cash as 300 bucks was a very big expenditure in those days. The bullfighter, Jose Mata, died of bullfight injuries in 1971. I enjoyed occasional visits to Hiroshi’s home and gardens, sipping iced tea, in those earlier years. Condolences to members of Hiroshi’s family and his life partner, artist Michael Powell …
Ben Wood, who sold newspapers on Honolulu streets in World War II, writes of people, places and things. Email him at bwood@staradvertiser.com.
