By Eloise Aguiar
Advertiser Windward Bureau
KAILUA — With nothing more than free dirt, donated materials and volunteer labor, coaches at Kailua High School have built a playing field for student athletes, saving the state more than $150,000.
The process took longer than it would have if a contractor had been hired. But Mel Imai, athletic director at Kailua, said that when the coaches decided to build a girl’s softball field three years ago, state money was tight and little was going to athletic facility projects.
"We didn’t want to just sit and do nothing," Imai said. The field was badly needed. Although softball is one of the school’s most successful sports programs, the varsity team plays at Keolu Field.
Gender equity played a role in the decision to move forward, as did school pride, he said.
Two big contributors stepped forward three years ago to start the construction: Amazon Construction Co. and Luana Hills Country Club. The club has since been sold, but it offered a grader to smooth out the dirt brought by Amazon, Imai said.
Amazon hauled in about 2,000 yards of fill material, said Duston Onaga, vice president of the company. Onaga said he learned from one of his employees that the school was building the field with volunteers and donated material.
"My bookkeeper’s brother works there," he said. "We had material and we usually charge. We just wanted to help out."
The field isn’t finished yet, but last year the junior varsity girls were able to practice on it for a trial test. Imai learned that the field would have to be reconfigured, because the sun hit some players in the eyes.
Recently Ernest Buen Jr. volunteered to help complete the project and do the reconfiguration. Buen, whose son attended Kailua and whose daughter may attend next year, said it’s a project for the girl athletes.
He said he had solicited about $4,000 in donated material from Home Depot and Lowe’s hardware stores, and enlisted the help of two uncles who will do the excavating. Kevin Benning, Earl Armstrong and Buen will level the field, spread a layer of topsoil over it and with the help of the coaches build a backstop.
"They won more state softball championships than anyone else, and they don’t have their own field," said Buen. "I want every girl who wants to play softball to have a place to play softball."
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