Thousands memorialize Don Ho

HONOLULU — Thousands of fans of different generations gathered on a beach at Waikiki to honor Hawaiian crooner Don Ho, some clad in bikinis and others in electric wheelchairs.

At a sunset memorial on the beach Saturday, they brought flowers and reminisced about the late entertainer's earlier years.

"I remember my mom would swoon every time she heard him sing. My dad would get so mad," said Rick Williams, of Visalia, Calif., who was wearing a T-shirt with Ho's unforgettable smile. "Hawaii was two things back then: Don Ho and Pearl Harbor."

Officials expected as many as 25,000 people to attend, making it one of the largest crowds ever in Waikiki, according to city officials. The city arranged extra buses, parking and traffic control.

Ho, known for his catchy signature tune "Tiny Bubbles," died April 14 of heart failure at age 76.

At an earlier private ceremony on the grounds of the Sheraton Waikiki, guests included politicians, musicians and family members, all of whom where dressed in white, except for Ho's wife, Haumea, who wore a floral orange dress and a maile lei.

Some of his 10 children sang songs during the tearful ceremony. An Air Force honor guard presented a 21-gun salute and handed a U.S. flag to Ho's family. Ho had been a retired Air Force pilot.

Pastor Tom Ainucci called Ho an "ambassador of the aloha spirit," who welcomed everyone and made the world a better place.

After the ceremony, Ho's ashes were taken by a double-hulled canoe about a quarter mile off Waikiki and scattered. The canoe was accompanied by dozens of surfers and a flotilla of other canoes.

Following the private ceremony, several island entertainers were to perform, with one of Ho's songs, "I'll Remember You," sung by his 25-year-old daughter, Hoku.

Fans converged on every open spot of sand in Waikiki. Waves gently rolled in as Ho's playful music could be heard coming from several outdoor bars.

Connie Algoflah flew in Thursday from Buckeye, Ariz., just to attend the memorial. She arrived at the balmy beach seven hours before the 5 p.m. tribute, to stake out a front-sand seat.

Algoflah, 43, said she had a huge crush on Ho and used to skip school as a teenager in Oklahoma to watch "The Don Ho Show."

"We were extremely poor in this little run-down apartment. He was my escape into something beautiful," she said.