So it is not unusual that her ties to Hawai'i have led her to choose it as a place to honor her deceased mother, Barbara.

"She loved it here," she said. "If she could be Hawaiian, she would."

Instead, Barbara married Robert "Butch" May, who is ‹ Hawaiian. His uncle is the late Johnny Bellinger, former president of First Hawaiian Bank, which sponsored the Johnny Bellinger Shoot-Out that was a prelude to the Hawaiian Open and then the Sony Open.

Barbara died of cancer in 2002, and since then, May has scattered her ashes in different places where she plays — including Athens.

Family and friends will meet to scatter Barbara's ashes Sunday in St. Louis Heights in a ceremony overseen by former Hokule'a captain David Lyman, at the house of Gordon Pi'ianaia, another former Hokule'a captain.

They are longtime friends of Butch, who lived four blocks from Queen's Beach in Waikiki, the site of May's reason for being in Hawai'i this week.

She is one of 32 players in the AVP Best of the Beach tournament, which started yesterday and runs through tomorrow at Queen's Beach. Today's matches run from 9 a.m. to about 6 p.m. Tomorrow's matches begin at 10 a.m. with the women's final scheduled for 2 p.m., and the men to follow.

It has been a busy month for May, who hasn't been to her home in Long Beach for longer than three days. She is planning her November wedding to Florida Marlin Matt Treanor, and has been doing interviews and appearances — including Sunday night's Emmy Awards.

"Because Misty is an Olympian, they were inquisitive," said Butch, who moved to California before Misty was born.

An Olympian in the family shouldn't be new to them, because May isn't the only one: Butch was a member of the 1968 Men's National Volleyball team.

Having family in Hawai'i has allowed May a built-in fan base, which was in full force when May came to play as a member of the Long Beach State women's volleyball team in 1995.

"I had a lot of support when I came over," she said.

And now, nine years later, she is excited about playing in front of them again.

"It's fun that they're able to watch," she said of this week's tournament.

But those hoping to see May team up with fellow gold medalist Kerri Walsh will have to wait.

The Best of the Beach separates usual partners, with each player having a different teammate every match.

It allows fans a chance to witness never-before-seen teams and match-ups.

"Some of my relatives were hoping to see me and Kerri, and the other teams, but it is fun for us to mix it up a bit," May said.

It also allows Hawai'i volleyball fans a chance — for the first time in 12 years — to see the AVP tour in Hawai'i, including its top players. Only the top men and women from 2004 were invited to play.

Kevin Wong, right, hammers one past Adam Jewell during the AVP Pro Beach Volleyball tournament at Queen's Surf beach. Wong, a Punahou School graduate and former Olympian, is teaming with Sean Scott, while Jewell's partner is Casey Jennings.

"It feels like the beginning of something good between Hawai'i and the AVP," he said. "It feels like a match made in heaven."

The last time the AVP tour was in Hawai'i, Lambert was involved — although it was a slightly different role: a ball boy.

"I used to be one of those guys," he said, pointing to the ball boys wearing bright yellow shirts. The two-time Olympian said he worked as a volunteer with the Punahou boys' varsity volleyball team as a senior.

One of the 200 or so fans who came out to watch yesterday's first day included Olympian and former University of Hawai'i All-American Robyn Ah Mow-Santos, who came to see fellow Olympians May and Walsh, and bronze medalists Holly McPeak and Elaine Youngs.

"This is good that beach volleyball is coming," Ah Mow-Santos said. "It's good for Hawai'i. I wouldn't mind getting into it one day."