Maunalua Bay, which edges Hawaii Kai, is dotted with Michael Kim’s favorite fishing holes, each one nicknamed, where he whiles away the hours in communion with the ocean and shoreline surroundings.

“I caught a lot of fish in my lifetime. I grew up in this bay,” said Kim, whose boyhood goes back to the 1940s when Hawaii Kai was called “Koko Head.” Back then, he said, the area seemed packed with fish — “up to the kazoos!”

A member of New Hope Hawaii Kai for the past decade, Kim, 68, is part of the congregation’s “fishing ministry.” Citing Matthew 4:19 — “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” — Kim said he is heeding the call of Jesus, whose disciples had been fishermen.

Kim is in charge of the sixth annual New Hope Keiki Fishing Tournament, set for 8 a.m. to noon July 16 at Maunalua Bay Beach Park. It features lessons in fishing basics, but its real purpose is to create some quality time for parents and their children. The first one drew 36 kids. This year the tournament has 158 entries. Registration for the free event is underway at 808ne.ws/29tiJiz Opens in a new tab.

The event’s fishing will be limited to 9 to 10:30 a.m., out of consideration for short attention spans. All equipment and lunch will be provided, including shave ice. Keiki will be divided into three age groups, with winners based on the length of the fish caught, not its weight. There will also be raffles and prizes.

Each child must be accompanied by a parent for safety, and “it’s a learning process for both of them,” Kim said.

Barbless fishhooks will be used because they’re easily removed in case they get caught in fingers. Bamboo poles will be provided and can be taken home for future fishing excursions.

“It is also a catch-and-release event to ensure the environmental ecosystem is maintained,” but whatever is caught will be put in two holding tanks first so kids can “show and tell,” Kim said. “It’s so much delight to see all of that.”

Kim said his fishing ministry’s mission statement employs the word “fishing” as an acronym: “Find lost souls, Invite them, Share the Lord’s story, Help them to believe, Involve them with the church, Nurture their belief in God; God is good.”

When the annual tournament first began taking shape, Kim helped children make invitations to give to their friends or relatives. He remembers feeling that the event was on the right track after spotting a little boy’s invitation addressed to “Daddy,” with the hope his father would take him fishing. “I thought, ‘Thank you, Lord, you just guided me, you shined the light.’”

Regarding the bonding that occurs between parents and their kids, Kim said, “I could sit here for hours and tell you what’s happened in this park.” For example, he said, a fisherman from Ewa Beach, who competed in adult tournaments, once brought his 8-year-old boy to the church’s tournament. When the event wrapped up, he said, ‘Uncle Mike, I learned something today. I learned I got to get a lot closer to my son.‘”

Kim’s father and neighbors taught him how to fish when he was 6 to 8 years old. “Back then we lucky had fish line, fishhooks. We had to scrounge them up. Spears — we used to make ’em out of hangers!”

While some fisherman are known for relishing their tales about the big one that got away, Kim most enjoys fishing as relaxation — “just being out in the environment, the water.” And these days, Kim said, he’s always ready to go — “locked and loaded, I call it” — with his gear stowed in his car.

“I taught my boy how to fish. My son is 36 now. He said, ‘Dad, I won’t go hungry.’ He always catches something.” While Kim’s adult children don’t have any kids, he said, “I got a whole bunch of grandchildren at church,” who are always eager to tell him that they can’t wait for the next tournament.