Danny Kaopuiki's

Kama`aina Profile

September 2004

Dean McColgan

St Louis High School, Honolulu, Hawaii …da Crusaders from das Kaimuki area…auwe, how us Kamehameha guys used to love to hate dem…so sometimes, it’s kinda hard to admit that some pretty awesome guys graduated from there! BUT I will swallow my pride and profile this gentleman (auwe: is it okay to call a politician a “gentleman”?) because dis guy is a real good guy and I am so proud of all his accomplishments and of how he has so capably demonstrated in his lifestyle many of the virtues of our Hawaiian culture (leadership; fairness; honesty; industriousness; and a genuine spirit of Aloha.)

I t is my pleasure to introduce Dean McColgan, the honorable Mayor of Federal Way, WA ! Bet most of you didn’t know that the Mayor of one of the fastest growing cities in the Northwest is a guy from Hawaii huh? He’s only been Mayor for eight months but he has been a City Council member for five years and has been doing so well that he could be Mayor for a few more terms if he wants to stay there BUT…HEY, what’s wrong with him maybe running for Governor of Washington in a few years?

Dean was born in Madigan Army Hospital , Ft Lewis, WA. His deceased dad, retired S.F.C Arthur McColgan was a career US Army guy (who was a member of the famed US Army 5th Regimental Combat Team in the Korean conflict) stationed at Ft. Lewis , WA when Dean was born. Dean grew up in Hawaii, graduating from St Louis High School in 1975. Dean’s mom is Mildred “Lehua” Like McCoglan (who has been very active in politics in Honolulu for years…kinda gives you an idea how Dean got into politics huh?) The Like family is an old Hawaiian family with Ohana family on virtually every Hawaiian island. Dean graduated from Gonzaga University in Spokane and moved to the Seattle area to work with Boeing and then with US West before opening up his own “Play It Again” sporting goods store (which he sold when he got into politics full time.) He met his wife Linda while working for Boeing and they settled in Federal Way in 1979.

Dean’s number one priority in life has always been “family” with “sports” a close second and he actually got involved in politics via “family/sports”…he was a volunteer youth coach (baseball/basketball/ soccer) in Federal Way mostly so he could spend time with his sons, both excellent athletes, as they were growing up. David is a 20 year old junior at Central Washington University who plans to become a teacher, while 17 year old Christopher is a senior at Federal Way High School . Dean’s ten years of coaching Federal Way youth enabled him to meet hundreds of people who were so impressed with him that they convinced him to run for Parks and Recreation Commissioner because they knew he would work to get more youth oriented activities for the Federal Way community. One of Dean’s proudest accomplishments was the planning/financing/building of Federal Way’s “ Celebration Park !” Dean ran for the Federal Way County Council in 1999 and won by a landslide (got 67 percent of the total votes;) he was so effective in his first term that he was unopposed in the 2003 election…in August 2003, the Federal Way Council bestowed the highest possible honor on Dean by electing him as the Mayor of Federal Way for the period 2004-2006!

Mayor Dean enjoys the work he is doing now but he cautions others who may want to become politicians: “It’s a demanding profession where you work really long hours. There is very little privacy; you are always somebody’s “target” and some of the criticisms can be harsh and hurtful! The real reward comes when you can honestly say that you’ve made a positive difference in the lives of the people who voted for you!” Mayor Dean blends a real spirit of Aloha into his day to day performances…there is a straight forwardness in his speech but also warmth and genuine caring…Politically, he feels it is essential to know every side of issues and then to be fair in making decisions. He is a realist and appreciates that his constituents have their individual agendas BUT the fact that he has gained at least 67 percent of the votes in his election bids establishes that he has satisfied a huge majority of the Federal Way voters! Husband Dean credits his wife Linda for a lot of the success he has been able to achieve…Ho`omaika`i (Congratulations) Meia (Mayor) Dean McCoglan! Keep up the good work!

Auwe, it’s time to say aloha e a hui hou (aloha until next time)…be kind to each other…me ke Aloha pumehana (warmest wishes to all)…Danny

More Kama`aina Profiles:

December 2007 -- Tamari Miyashiro

November 2007 -- Ricky Chang

October 2007 -- The Brothers Kaloku and Keawe

September 2007 -- Alonzo Ohana

August 2007 -- Reggie Lindsey

July 2007 -- Kumu Kula

June 2007 -- Manny Fernandez

May 2007 -- Welcome to Owyhee Country..... the State of Idaho!

April 2007 -- Bernie Ululani Capell

March 2007 -- Wayne Wong