Captain Fun makes a difference

Eric Mathews and myself during UH Football Game Day

For 25 years, Iʻve been serving as Game Day Activities Coordinator of University of Hawaii Athletics. It all started when Outrigger Resorts and Hotels Promotions Director Nancy Daniels asked me to emcee an event for Outrigger. Iʻve had such a wonderful relationship with the Outrigger family over the years including their former CEO David Carey. I agreed and figured it was just another event for them. Little did I know it would change my life for the next 25 years.

I have worked at UH with amazing people, many of them were the student workers who became the core of the crew who worked day in and day out to put on the "show" that University of Hawaii Athletics has tried to put on as the professional sports organization of our state. Many of the ideas over the years were taken, borrowed or modified into what we do every week, every game for every sports of University of Hawaii Athletics.

When Eric "Captain Fun" Mathews came aboard as the new showrunner for UH Athletics Marketing, one of the first things he said to me was "I want to try something different. If it doesnʻt work than weʻll never do it again, but I want to at least try." Those words in itself told me all I needed to know. Time to hold on because things are going to be different than say the last 10-15 years.

From those words forward, coming to work, wondering what I was walking into has been a blast. As soon as I arrive, just for the last 25 years, I find out what my task for the evening is (there will be another blog on this subject soon).

MY job is to find out how to fulfill those tasks in the best way possible that doesnʻt cause harm to contestants, does not embarass the contestants, the presenting sponsor or the University of Hawaii. Iʻve been pretty good at doing that, and donʻt mind poking fun of myself in the process. The audience is amazing and participates regularly. Sometimes their laughter or applause is the best sounds of the evening.

Eric is an awesome leader that teaches skills useful in the real world workplace. He teaches teamwork. He teaches keeping your "head on a swivel" and how to react positively. He notices good skills that would work well with the collective (sounding like Iʻm talking borg) and has tackled problems that I had been dealing with for years.

I donʻt say this about many people, but the few I really enjoy working around are people that have your back, and trust that I have theirs. That trust thing is important because it works both ways. Iʻve had that with select people in my radio life, I have that with my Hawaii News Now family (especially SUNRISE crew), and with Eric I have that at UH. UH Games are fun this year...even for the crew working! bv