Kaua'i firm wins national honor

By Catherine E. Toth
Advertiser Staff Writer

Walter "Kamika" Smith, the third-generation owner of Smith's Motor Boat Services on Kaua'i, won the title of best family-owned small business by the national Small Business Administration.

This is the first time the SBA has given out awards in this category.

The business, started in 1946 by Smith's grandfather, operates the popular Wailua River tours. It employs 140 people, 15 percent of whom are direct descendants of the founder.

"One of the biggest things this award shows is that we've got some real creative entrepreneurs here," said Jane Sawyer, spokeswoman for the local SBA office. "We've got people who are as strongly skilled and tenacious as anywhere else in the country. And they're not all driven by an entrepreneurial spirit, but they're running family businesses and are driven by wanting a better life for their family and the next generation, wanting their community to prosper."

Smith and other winners will be attending a national SBA ceremony in Washington, D.C., next week in celebration of Small Business Week.

Other Hawai'i family owned business winners include third-generation North Shore farmers Clyde Fukuyama and Melvin Matsuda; store owners Marty and Carole Kahn of Kaua'i; and Bob and Kelly King of Maui's King Diesel.