Honorable Mention
Meals on Wheels volunteers pitch in

By Zenaida Serrano Espanol
Advertiser Staff Writer

From left, volunteers George Teruya, Ed Hayashi, "Mit" Murakami and James Yamauchi bag bread and butter to be delivered with Meals on Wheels plate lunches from the Lanakila Rehabilitation Center. Bruce Asato •The Honolulu Advertiser Ed Hayashi Age: 71 Hometown: Kahala Occupation: Retired certified public accountant; Lanakila Meals on Wheels volunteer for 10 years Mitsuhara "Mit" Murakami Age: 77 Hometown: Kalihi Occupation: Retired small- business operator; Lanakila volunteer for five years George Teruya Age: 72 Hometown: Kalihi Occupation: Retired restaurant owner; Lanakila volunteer for two years James Yamauchi Age: 75 Hometown: 'Aina Haina Occupation: Retired welder; Lanakila volunteer for four years

They work quietly and quickly; about 20 minutes after starting the job and nearly 200 bags of ice later, they near the end of their task. The ice will be used to prevent meals that are being delivered to the elderly from spoiling.

" 'Nuff or wat?" asked 72-year-old George Teruya, the man scooping ice into the plastic bags.

"How many more?" called out James Yamauchi, 75, who was holding the bags open for Teruya.

" 'Nuff, yeah?" Teruya asked again.

The man tying the bags closed, 71-year-old Ed Hayashi, waited quietly for a response.

Mitsuhara Murakami, 77, who was stacking the bags into the cooler, surveyed the mound of bags then answered, "One more."

With that, the four men completed one of their routine tasks as volunteers for Lanakila Meals on Wheels, a senior nutrition program operated by Lanakila Rehabilitation Center. Lanakila provides nutritious meals to people age 60 and older both by delivering meals to homes and at nearly 40 group-dining centers across the island, feeding approximately 1,750 seniors daily since 1971.

"You have to take care of the elderly," said Teruya of Kalihi, a Lanakila volunteer for two years. "So I try to help ... (however) I can."

Hayashi, Murakami, Teruya and Yamauchi are among 200 Lanakila volunteers who devote their time to helping out at the center every week. The men are collectively known by their co-workers as "the Four Musketeers," said Remy Rueda, the home delivery coordinator.

"They are caring people and that keeps the program going," Rueda said. "You know that you are surrounded by people who have sweet hearts like these people."

Packing bread

The foursome work weekdays from about 6:30 to 8:30 a.m. A typical morning begins with packing bread and butter for meal deliveries, then they pack the ice, and finally they organize the packages of bread into groups by delivery routes.

Yamauchi, an 'Aina Haina resident and four-year volunteer, also delivers meals to Hawai'i Kai seniors on Wednesdays.

"I enjoy coming here and doing something worthwhile, instead of staying home and watching TV," said Yamauchi, who said that, though he suffers from a bad back and knee, "when I come here, I forget about my aches and pains."

Eric Saunders, the group dining coordinator, said that working at the center gives volunteers a sense of purpose.

"It gets them up and gets them active and the more active they stay, the longer they're going to stay healthy," Saunders said.

It's "something useful to do," said Kalihi resident Murakami who has been volunteering for five years. "I'm helping somebody, which I am happy I am able to (do) for my age."

Though dedicated and serious about their job, the men also have a lighter, comical side.

"After I retired, I wanted to do something," said Hayashi, a Kahala resident and 10-year volunteer. So he chose to work at Lanakila "rather than sit around, watch TV, you know, sit on a bench," he said and laughed.

Hayashi added with a straight face that volunteering keeps him from "getting into mischief." He laughed again.

"For me, I started (volunteering) because my wife said I sleep 'til 8 o'clock," Murakami said, also laughing. "So now I get up at about 5:30."

In addition to helping others, the men said that working at the center also gives them a chance to socialize.

"I enjoy the people that I'm working with," Yamauchi said. "We're a family."

Before and after work, and during breaks, the foursome often sit together to enjoy conversation. The topics, they said, includes everything from current events to Las Vegas to football.

It's "man talk," Teruya said, making the others burst into laughter.

"They've become very good friends," said program director May Fujii Foo, "and they take care of each other."

Whether taking care of each other or taking care of seniors in need, the volunteers are invaluable, administrators agree.

"Our program would stop without volunteers," Foo said. "That's all there is to it."

Fortunately for the Lanakila staff, the four musketeers plan on staying.

"I enjoy working because I'll be helping the elderly," Hayashi said. "When I used to deliver, I got to see how happy the elderly got when we delivered the meal. So that kinda keeps me going."

And how long do they plan to keep on going?

"As long as my body can hold out," Yamauchi said as the others nodded in agreement.