{"id":664,"date":"2026-06-19T10:06:38","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T10:06:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=664"},"modified":"2026-06-19T10:06:38","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T10:06:38","slug":"mr-waianae-established-culture-that-made-community-proud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movingtohawaiiguide.com\/?p=664","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Mr. Waianae\u2019 established culture that made community proud"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Decades after their football careers ended, former players still are following the lessons from \u201cMr. Waianae.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Ocean View man pleads not guilty in death of pedestrian<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Decades after their football careers ended, former players still are following the lessons from \u201cMr. Waianae.\u201d<\/p>\n

Larry Ginoza, one of the most successful coaches in Hawaii high school football history, died Saturday. He was 89.<\/p>\n

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As Waianae High School\u2019s head coach for 20 seasons through 1984, Ginoza won 189 games, third most on Oahu behind Cal Lee and Wendell Look. The Seariders won four Oahu Prep Bowls, including the inaugural championship in 1973, and nine OIA titles.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone knew how good he was as a coach,\u201d said Kurt Gouveia, who had a dual role as quarterback and free safety for the Seasiders. \u201cBut he also was a great man. The man\u2019s going to be missed a lot. He was stern but fair. He understood we were teenagers and we were going to make mistakes. But he taught us how to work hard and learn from our mistakes. And he was important to our community. He was Mr. Waianae.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ginoza relied on a wishbone offense, attacking defense, and a code of conduct and style.<\/p>\n

The Seariders sat in silence on the bus rides to Honolulu Stadium or Aloha Stadium.<\/p>\n

The players wore black cleats and white socks.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you score a touchdown, you give the ball to the referee,\u201d former quarterback Michael Beazley said. \u201cIf the ref\u2019s not around, you put the ball on the ground. You celebrate with your teammates on the sideline and you leave the other team alone. You don\u2019t piss them off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Win a game, shake hands with the opposing team. Lose a game, the Seariders congratulated the victors.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut,\u201d Beazley said, \u201cwe didn\u2019t experience too many losses.\u201d<\/p>\n

With every successful season, the next generation hungered for its turn.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we were in elementary school, we all wanted to play for Waianae,\u201d former lineman Tom Tuinei said. \u201cWe all wanted to be Levi Stanley and Tui Ala. They were the guys who came before us. They showed us the way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Entering his freshman year, Tuinei said the focus was to earn playing time. Ginoza offered a long-range plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn actuality, he was setting us up for later in life,\u201d Tuinei said. \u201cHe taught us to be humble. When things go hard, you have to keep pushing. He built up your character. I was in trouble, but you push through, and that becomes part of your character. Work hard, try your best, don\u2019t give up. He really cared for the young men of Waianae. He taught us well. He was so good at saying a lot in a little.\u201d<\/p>\n

And Ginoza made sure his players did their best in all areas. Deficient grades kept players in study hall instead of practice.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you don\u2019t practice, you don\u2019t play,\u201d Beazley said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to get it right in the classroom. Coach said there\u2019s no way you can be a good teammate and be productive if you\u2019re a knucklehead in the classroom. By the time (a player joins the team), you know what to expect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Another delay in Big Island fireworks-smuggling case<\/a><\/p>\n

Back in the 1960s, there was a hardscrabble side to Waianae.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne way in, one way out,\u201d former All-State safety Nathan Palakiko Fletcher said.<\/p>\n

But from his first Waianae season in 1965, Ginoza established a culture that would illuminate the best of the Leeward community.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe got more than football from him,\u201d Beazley said. \u201cThe whole community was winning when football was winning. The school was winning.\u201d<\/p>\n

More than 100 players showed up for training camp. Ginoza was pained to make cuts, believing that after-school energy was best spent in a structured activity.<\/p>\n

Ginoza also tried to make sure the roster was composed of 96792 residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was no recruiting,\u201d Beazley said. \u201cYou just take in the backyard guys and put it together. We were just kids playing and enjoying football and loving it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ginoza\u2019s program did not go unnoticed. The top OIA coaches at the time \u2014 Leilehua\u2019s Hugh Yoshida, Kaiser\u2019s Ron Lee, Radford\u2019s John Velasco, and Castle\u2019s Don Mahi \u2014 bonded with Ginoza. Despite Kaiser and Waianae being rivals \u2014 they met three years in a row in the OIA title game \u2014 Lee borrowed Ginoza\u2019s pre-game routine.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really watched how Larry coached,\u201d Lee said. \u201cI learned a lot on how he ran his program. Larry was way ahead of his time. The discipline, the preparation. We tried to simulate his style.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Seariders might have been the original social influencers.<\/p>\n

As Beazley related, \u201cI have good friends from Waimanalo tell me, \u2018Mike, they used to pack us up and take us to Waianae football games. They loved the brand.\u2019 And they didn\u2019t even know anybody in Waianae at the time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Beazley added: \u201cIt was special to be on that team. When you go around outside Waianae, you can\u2019t wait to meet new people. You\u2019re waiting for people to ask you: \u2018where are you guys from?\u2019 We were proud to be from Waianae. It\u2019s like that cheer: \u2018We\u2019re from Waianae, everywhere we go, people want to know, who we are, so we tell them \u2026\u2019 Those were special times. Coach G was a special coach.\u201d<\/p>\n

Retired sports editor Clyde Mizumoto had a front-row view of Ginoza in the 1970s.<\/p>\n

\u201cBeneath that gruff, and somewhat intimidating exterior, was a warm and welcoming man,\u201d Mizumoto recalled. \u201cI was warned by a veteran sports staffer before going to a practice for a summer all-star game in 1974. \u2018Good luck trying to get anything out of him.\u2019 I was somewhat anxious as this was my first assignment as a part-time staffer for the Advertiser.<\/p>\n

\u201cI introduced myself, and Coach patted the stands next to him indicating to sit. And we talked, while he offered comments on the players. It was the beginning of a great relationship with this coaching legend. I once asked Coach how he was able to motivate the players \u2014 making sure they stayed out of trouble, did well in the classroom, played hard on the field. He had a simple answer: \u201cWe (coaches) have what they really want \u2026 and that\u2019s to play football for Waianae. That\u2019s plenty (motivation).\u201d\n<\/p>\n

Read more Shohei Ohtani\u2019s homer sends Dodgers to 1-0 win over Rays<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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