Kamehameha graduate joins tiny, but elite group of Native Hawaiian admirals

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A ceremony onboard the USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor, the book ends of World War Two, is a new chapter for 51-year-old Kamehameha graduate turned Rear Admiral Ryan Mahelona.
After serving 33 years, the self-proclaimed “tech geek” of the Navy is now the third Native Hawaiian admiral.
“I had to pinch myself a couple times to make sure I wasn’t dreaming this up,” said Mahelona, a Kāneʻohe native at an October 5 ceremony.
“To my kumu, teachers, mentors, educators and Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, I cannot thank you enough for the time you each took to invest in me, for believing in me and for dedicating your life to educating kids like me,” he said.
Mahelona joins tiny but elite group of Native Hawaiian Navy admirals; Admiral Gordon Paiea Chung-Hoon namesake of the USS Chung-Hoon and Vice Admiral Robert Kihune who graduated from Kamehameha in 1955, served 35 years in the Navy and became a Kamehameha trustee.
“We just don’t have as many Native Hawaiians in the Navy as we should have being seafaring people,” said Kihune.
Kihune retired from the Navy thirty years ago and said Mahelona’s promotion has been a long time coming.
“I’ve been waiting for years for another Native Hawaiian to become an admiral,” said Kihune.
“I was getting a little worried because I’m 87 years old, and I wanted to be alive when I see something like this happen. I was so happy that it happened, and they picked the right guy,” he added.
Mahelona says charting his path from active duty to midshipman to surface warfare officer and to reserve deputy commander for the 10th Fleet in Maryland has been tough.
“Truth be known, I actually tried to quit the Navy several times,” said Mahelona.
He credits his family for his success.
“When I told my wife that I was planning to get out, she told me, ‘You ain’t getting out, you’re staying in,’” he said.
The ceremony was attended by family, classmates, service members, and veterans.
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