Mike’s Life
The Early Years
Mike was born January 15, 1948 in Fagatogo, American Samoa, the fourth of seven children born to Benjamin Harrison Gabbard, Jr. and Agnes Yandall Gabbard, who also adopted a daughter. He was a U.S. citizen from birth because of his dad’s U.S citizenship.
Mike and his father, Ben at Hickam AFB, 1951. His father felt privileged to devote his life to serving his country in the U.S. Air Force.
Mike in 1951 at Hickam AFB.
(In Hawai
ʻ
i we call that the “stink eye.”)
To read about what this rebellious youth did at age 4, see below…
I was 4 years old living at Hickam AFB with my family. We moved to Hawai’i from American Samoa in 1949. My best friend and I were pyromaniacs. We loved setting fires in trash cans, in the bushes, etc.
One day, (for some reason, I vividly remember this event 😉) we snuck into an octagonal-shaped group of offices with a high fence surrounding the buildings, which had a courtyard in the center. After sliding in under the fence, with our pockets full of matches, we saw a 2-prop Cessna airplane in the center of the courtyard. As we scoped out the offices, we found a bathroom that had cases of toilet paper in one of the storage closets. My friend decided to wrap the plane with toilet paper, so he got a step ladder, set it up beside the plane, then threw the roll of toilet paper over the plane, then picked up the roll on the ground, and continued doing this until the entire plane was wrapped.
In the meantime, I was in the bathroom painting the walls with some flammable glue I had found and wallpapering the bathroom with toilet paper. When we were both finished, my friend gave a whistle and we lit our matches...he torched the plane and I incinerated the bathroom. Then both of us ran to the far corner of the courtyard.
Within moments, the MPs, HPD, and the fire departments arrived with sirens screeching. We didn't try to run. We just stood there in the corner, wide-eyed in awe, looking at the flames. Pretty soon, after the fire was put out, we were surrounded by cops, firemen, and media taking pictures. That night when I got home, I felt the wrath of my dad's blue AF belt.
Later in life as a teenager, my dad found out I was a smoker. (I actually started smoking in 3rd grade, but didn’t start inhaling until 4th grade.) One day, daddy brought out a black and white glossy 8 x 10 photo of two punk kids standing against a partially burned-down wall and charred airplane, surrounded by cops, firemen, and media. He told me, if I wanted to smoke it was my decision, but that I wasn’t allowed to smoke anywhere near our home. If I didn't obey, he said he would whip out his blue AF belt again BIG TIME.
Summer of Love…
“Carol and I met in Yosemite National Park in California, where we both had summer jobs--she came from Michigan, me from Florida. Yes, it was the summer of love, 1967, and there we were both working in the Camp Curry cafeteria. As a cashier, I noticed this cute girl serving salads, so I asked her out for a date. She said, ‘Sure, do you play tennis?’ I lied and said, ‘Yeah, of course.’
We went over to the Ahwahnee Hotel courts and she kicked my okole, 6-0, 6-0. Male ego being what it is, I knew if the relationship was going to endure, I’d have to literally up my game. That fall, as a sophomore, I enrolled with about 30 other students in a P.E. tennis class at Foothill College, in Los Altos Hills, CA. My senior year I made the tennis team at Sonoma State University.
Ultimately, I became the head tennis pro at Kuilima Hyatt Resort on the North Shore, Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi (now Turtle Bay Resort) in 1977 and played on the local pro tour. I gave free junior clinics in American Samoa during our stay there from 1971-1983.
We still play tennis as much as we can at the Kalaeloa courts, where I’m currently president of the Kalaeloa Tennis Association. Unfortunately, the courts closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so we recently switched to daily table tennis matches on our lanai, where we continue to battle vigorously for family bragging rights. People often ask me where the competitiveness in the Gabbard ʻohana comes from…well, what can I say? Obviously, it’s Carol! 😉”…and now you know the rest of the story.”
Mike and Carol were married on December 27, 1968 in East Grand Rapids, Michigan. Carol was born in Decatur, Indiana, but grew up in Michigan. She attended University of Michigan, and received her Bachelor’s degree in Speech Pathology in 1969. She was elected and served from 2000-2004 on the Hawaiʻi State Board of Education.
Mike was head tennis pro at Kuilima Hyatt Resort on the North Shore, Oʻahu, Hawaiʻi (now Turtle Bay Resort) in 1977.
The Family Man
Mike & Carol with their first child, Bhakti, in American Samoa, 1971.
Mike, Carol, and Bhakti in Santa Rosa, CA before leaving for American Samoa, early 1971.
The Gabbard Gang, Wahiawa, Hawai
ʻ
i 1985
(Bhakti, Narayan, Jai, Tulsi, Vrindavan)
Family Portrait 1984 (Mike, Tulsi, Jai, Narayan, Bhakti, Vrindavan, and Carol.)
The Tennis Pro…
In 1977, Mike was an Asst-Dean at American Samoa Community College and gave free junior tennis clinics on Saturday mornings. That same year, a Hawai
ʻ
i-based company offered him a job as the head tennis pro at the Kuilima Hyatt Resort (now Turtle Bay Hilton) on the North Shore of O
ʻ
ahu. Mike has spent most of his life in Hawai
ʻ
i. Besides his extensive experience as a high school and elementary teacher, guidance counselor, headmaster of a private school, college administrator, sporting goods store owner, restaurant owner, and tennis pro…
The Musician
…Mike is also an accomplished musician/songwriter. His CD “Stand As One” includes a beautiful collection of heartwarming songs by Mike, as well as selections by Na Leo Pilimehana, Kapena, Kawika, Leon and Malia, and Koa.
The Environmentalist
In 2001, Mike and his daughter, former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, co-founded Healthy Hawai
ʻ
i Coalition (HHC), a nonprofit group dedicated to protecting the environment and improving individual and community health. HHC has been active in Hawai`i’s schools teaching children the importance of watershed protection and keeping Hawai
ʻ
i clean and green. To date, over 6,000 students at more than 60 public and private schools across the state have participated in the program.
The Politician
The City Councilman, 2003-2005
“…the late Bruddah Iz, one of my all-time favorite artists. When I was serving on the Honolulu City Council 2003-2005, Jan Michelle Sawyer, a sculptress, came to my office and asked if I could somehow help raise money to ship a bronze bust of Bruddah Iz that she’d been working on for a couple years in California. I told her I’d try my best. Soon, I was interviewed on the radio, and I asked folks to chip in, and the money flowed in immediately. Really a great example of aloha in action.”
Mike celebrated the dedication of the Bruddah Iz sculpture with the artist, Jan-Michelle Sawyer (far left) and Iz’s wife, Marlene Kamakawiwo’ole in 2003.
Mike served on the Honolulu City Council with distinction from 2003 to 2005, representing District #1, which stretches from Ewa Beach to Makaha.
Some of Mike's accomplishments on the Council include:
Coordinated fundraising efforts to make the Bruddah Iz sculpture dedication a reality. Over 500 people attended this memorable event in Waianae.
Authored and introduced a precedent-setting resolution prohibiting the placement of landfills over aquifers. The legislation stopped a plan by developers and supportive politicians to allow a garbage dump to be built in Kunia over the Pearl Harbor Aquifer, the source of fresh drinking water for 70% of Oʻahu's people.
Authored and introduced legislation to create a volunteer policing program within the Honolulu Police Department. The bill created a volunteer force of citizens to patrol neighborhoods keeping an eye out for parking violations.
Authored and introduced important legislation to repeal Chapter 38 - the City's Leasehold Conversion law. Many Native Hawaiians, charitable trusts, small landowners, and churches were negatively impacted by the leasehold conversion law and joined Mike in helping to secure its repeal.
The Master Chef
From 1998-2017, Mike and Carol owned/operated a small family business, “Hawaiian Toffee Treasures,” what many people say was the best macadamia nut English toffee in the world. Although Carol made the toffee, Mike claims it was his extraordinary talent as the “official taster” of each batch that made the business a success.
55th Wedding Anniversary
December 27, 2023
Mike and Carol have been happily married for 55 years. They are the parents of five and grandparents of ten.
50th Wedding Anniversary
December 27, 2018
The Senator, 2006-Current
Mike was elected in 2006 to represent West O
ʻ
ahu in the State Senate. He continues to represent District 20, which includes Kapolei, Makakilo, Kalaeloa, and portions of Ewa Beach and Waipahu. Since taking office, the Kapolei area has been one of the fastest growing areas of the state. Priorities for his district continue to be job creation, the building of new schools and expansion of the UH West O
ʻ
ahu, campus, and reduction of traffic congestion.
Some important state construction projects that have come to fruition under his watch include: UH West O
ʻ
ahu, the Kapolei Court Complex, Kapolei H1 Interchange Phases 1 & 2, Ho
ʻ
okele Elementary, Honouliuli Middle School, and Kualaka
ʻ
i Parkway.
Energy & Environment Chair, 2009-2015
From 2009 to 2015, Mike was the Chair of the Energy and Environment Committee and had an important role in Hawaiʻi becoming the first state in the nation to set a target of reaching 100% renewable energy by 2045.
Water, Land & Ag Chair, 2016
In 2016, Mike was appointed Chair of the Water, Land, and Agriculture Committee, where he authored a law that bans the sale of any part or product of endangered species, such as elephant ivory.
Agriculture & Environment Committee Chair, 2017-Current
Mike is currently the Chair of the Agriculture and Environment Committee and is focused on increasing local food production, helping implement a newly-passed law (2020) establishing an industrial hemp program under the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and protecting the environment.
In 2018, Mike authored and helped pass legislation to impose a first-in-the-world ban on sunscreens containing the controversial chemicals oxybenzone and octinoxate.
Mike also advocated for a law banning the pesticide chlorpyrifos; when it was signed, Hawaiʻi became the first state in the nation to enact a chlorpyrifos ban.
Since being elected in 2006, Mike has authored over 60 bills that became law, including legislation related to energy efficiency, renewable energy, endangered species protection, industrial hemp, agriculture, the environment, and public safety. Please visit his Legislation page for details.
Mike's Biographical Information
Name: Gerald Michael (Mike) Gabbard
Date of birth: January 15, 1948
Place of birth: Fagatogo, American Samoa
Parents: Was the fourth of seven children born to Benjamin Harrison Gabbard, Jr. and Agnes Yandall Gabbard, who also adopted a daughter
Current Residence: Kalaeloa, Oʻahu
Party Affiliation: Democrat
Religion: Catholic. St. Jude Catholic Church in Makakilo, serves as a lector.
Ethnicity: Polynesian (Samoan) / Caucasian
Family:
Married to former Board of Education Member Carol Gabbard for 55 years. Five adult children (Bhakti, Jai, Narayan, Tulsi (former State Representative for District #42, former Honolulu City Councilwoman, eight years as Congresswoman in the U.S. House of Representatives serving District 2, and former 2020 Presidential candidate), Vrindavan; ten grandchildren.
Political Office:
Honolulu City Council (2003-2005)
Hawaiʻi State Senate (2006-present)
Senate Committees:
Agriculture & Environment Chair (2017-present)
Judiciary
Government Operations
Labor, Culture and the Arts
Water & Land Chair (2016)
Energy & Environment Chair (2009-2015)
Awards:
Legislator of the Year Award - Cruelty-Free International (2021)
America's Legislator of the Year - Hawaiʻi Farm Bureau (2016)
America's Legislator Parents of the Year - National Parents Day Coalition (2016)
Honorary Hempster - Maui Hemp Institute for Research and Innovation (2016)
Humane State Legislator Award - Humane Society of the U.S. (2015, 2016, 2017)
Hawaiʻi Energy Policy Forum Transformational Achievement Award (2015)
Capitol Idol III Individual Award (2015)
Capitol Idol II Individual Award (2014)
Hawaiʻi Youth Challenge Academy Lokahi Award (2011)
First Senator of Samoan Ancestry in the Senate of the State of Hawaiʻi Legislature Award - Samoan Heritage Week (2009)
Legislators Who Made a Difference - Sierra Club, Hawaiʻi Chapter (2009)
Lifetime Achievement Award - Knights of Columbus (2009)
Stars of Oceania Award - University of Hawaiʻi Pacific Business Center (2009)
Compassionate Legislator Award - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (2008)
Public Service:
Legislative advocate (volunteer)
Climate Mitigation and Adaptation Commission (2015-Present)
Carbon Farming Task Force (2017-Present)
Red Hill Fuel Leak Task Force (2014-2015)
Hawaiʻi Invasive Species Council (2009-2011), (2014-Present)
Hawaiʻi Clean Energy Initiative – Steering Committee (2010-2013)
Civil Air Patrol - Legislative Squadron (2009-2010)
Hawaiʻi Energy Policy Forum (2008-Present)
Ignition Interlock Implementation Task Force (2008-2009)
Access to Justice Commission (2008-2010)
Hawaiʻi 2050 Sustainability Task Force (2007-2008)
Oʻahu Metropolitan Planning Organization (OMPO) - Policy Committee (2003)
Ewa Transportation Coalition - Chair (2003-2005)
Education:
Student, St. Mary’s Elementary School, Fort Walton Beach, FL (1956-60)
Student, Mother of Good Counsel Seminary, Warrenton, MO (1961-1962)
High School Grad, Choctawhatchee H.S. Fort Walton Beach, FL (1965)
Bachelor of Arts degree in English, California State University, Sonoma (1971)
Masters of Education degree in Adult Education with emphasis on community college administration, Oregon State University (1980)
Professional:
Teacher/Educator/Coach
Counselor at drug rehab program through CSU, Sonoma (9/70 to 12/70)
Intern at emergency psychiatric ward, Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital (1970)
Fagaʻitua High School—taught English and Language Arts to sophomores and juniors (1/71 to 6/72)
Samoana High School— Program director/instructor in Pilot Project with 60 “at-risk” seniors (8/72 to 6/73)
American Samoa Community College (ASCC)— Psychology and English teacher (8/73 to 6/74)
American Samoa Community College Guidance Counselor (8/74 to 9/76)
American Samoa Community College Assistant Dean of Instruction (9/76 to 8/77)
American Samoa Community College Dean of Adult and Continuing Education, State Director of Adult Basic Education (6/80 to 6/83)
Ponomauloa School, Wahiawa— Headmaster/teacher (7/83 to 6/87)
Home schooling (1/78 to 6/80, 8/87 to 1/88, 1/91 to 6/95)
Created and directed free junior development tennis program in American Samoa (1976 to 1983)
Head Instructor Tennis— Kuilima Hyatt Resort, North Shore, Oʻahu (1977)
Volunteer— teaching school children the importance of protecting Hawaiʻi’s watershed, our ʻaina, and improving individual and community health (Activities of Healthy Hawaiʻi Coalition which Mike founded) (2001 to present)
Substitute Teacher— DOE Certified in public and private schools in West Oʻahu (2005 to present)
Small business
Owned and operated Mike’s Sport Shop (1974 to 1978)
Owned and operated The Natural Deli, a natural foods restaurant (1988 to 1992)
Own and operate Talofa Services LLC, a real estate investment company (2013 to present)
Owned and operated a small confection manufacturing and distribution company, Hawaiian Toffee Treasures (1998 to 2017)
Owned Infotech Communications, LLC (June 2002 to April 2004)
Other
USPS Letter carrier
National Park employee at Yosemite National Park
Tennis pro/coach
Hotel bellman
Entertainer/Musician
Civic/Church organizations:
Founder, Aloha Parenting Project
Co-founder, Healthy Hawaiʻi Coalition
President, Kalaeloa Tennis Association
Member, Kapolei Chamber of Commerce
Member, St. Jude Catholic Church, Makakilo
Member, Knights of Columbus