I’ve known Jaime from growing up together in Hawaii. She was either sk8ing Hickam Hangar or Aala park or somewhere in the streets downtown.
She’s always making jokes and talking shit. She was part of the crew, a sk8er, not a girl, not a boy, a sk8er that’s how we all saw each other. Thinking back to then she was really the only girl. There were a few other girls that tried to roll around at Hickam, but none were on the level of Jaime or with the mindset, Jaime was it.
I remember when she got sponsored by Real, and of course I remember in 1994 her getting the cover of Thrasher she was always blowing all of our minds as well as making us all so proud. We had a mutual friend Kenny Brimer, he got cancer and we eventually lost our dear brother. He was a guy that was a link between our side of the island and the town side of the islands. With his passing we all became even closer and realizing how important friendship was. He brought Jaime and I together forever.
Jaime went on to live in NYC and get on Rookie cementing herself in the east coast scene, again making us Hawaiians proud of her. She was ours and she was constantly raising the bar.
I could go on and on of all she did or does like charity work or having her cover and pro model hang in the Smithsonian museum, her cover hanging in the Tate museum, also in the design museum Brussels. I’ll just tell you about what spawned this post. Our sister, our friend, our girl, got inducted in the Skateboarding Hall of Fame!!!
I can’t tell you how proud I am of Jaime! When she came to my house to meet Mia and Laura, and let me shoot these portraits of her I was in tears, as I know our brother in heaven KB was doing the same!
Congratulations Jaime, you truly deserve it all! keep doing what you do! you made your mark in sk8boarding and you will be remembered forever!
You are a Hawaiian hero, our Queen! Love & Aloha for Ewa!
