Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 28, Number 3, 1 March 2011 — Jamie Beamer, 21 st century Hawaiian Cowboy [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Jamie Beamer, 21 st century Hawaiian Cowboy

My friend and hero Sonny Kaniho wrote the following aeknowledgement

for Kauka Billy Bergin's book Loyaī to the Lanā published in 2004 by UH Press. 'The kama'āina of Waimea eall him 'Kauka' - 'Doctor.' We know him (referring to Bergin) to be the īawe hānai ofHoīi - John Hoīi Ma 'e, who isfamily to us Kanihos. We, the paniolo kahiko, are happy that Kauka is writing our history. He

himself is a cowboy - he knows the job from the bottom. Kauka had many good teachers besides Holi: Tommy Lindsey of Pu'u'ō'ō, Tom Kanaka'ole of Kapāpala, Johnny Pieper of Ka'alu'alu, and from Kona the Keakealani, Alapa'i, and Medeiros 'ohana. He was a lucky boy to have walked that line. But these men knew he was kanaka makua." As young Hawaiians growing up in Waimea, our paniolo town nestled in the lee of the Kohala Mountains, most of us were fortunate to have a mentor or two to lead us "in the right way" into the future; Kauka Bergin (a Veterinarian) had an army of mentors. In late December 2010, 1 had the honor and privilege of sitting down for a "Talk: Story" with Alex Penavoroff (Parker Ranch paniolo retired) and his nephew JAMIE BEAMER at Alex's roping and riding arena in Lālāmilo Farmlots. Alex is now Paniolo Emeritus, a Living Treasure and Legend in the annals of Waimea and Parker Ranch history. He spends his time nowadays managing his family's business in Hilo, still trains horses in his 70s and mentors Jamie about horses and horsemanship. As Alex puts it, "The more you leam about horses the more you find out there is more to leam. Well that's tme about anything. Learning never stops." He started mentoring Jamie "when

he was a puppy, a kid." Jamie is now 40 and lives in Weatherford, Texas, with his wife, Cathy, and their two children but he still comes home 1) to seek

the mana'o, counsel and wisdom of his Unele and 2) to stay in touch with his 'āina hānau o Waimea. Jamie is a 2 1 st century Hawaiian Cowboy. Although he was bom on Moku o Keawe, was raised in Waimea and was on a horse from as "far back as I ean remember," times have changed as they

have most everywhere. Jamie will never be like Unele Alex and the long line of Parker cowboys who were up at 1 a.m. in the moming and in the din of a kerosene lamp swallowed boiling coffee from iron mugs, jumped on their horses and under a moon- or starlit sky drove cattle from Keanakolu or Hānaipo'e to Waimea at 2 a.m. eating dust the entire way; enduring a cold ehill up and down one's spine from a breeze rolling off of Mauna Kea. Some of our 'ohana did this for 30 years; never missed a day even if they were "as sick as a dog." Jamie is blazing his own trail, a trail far different from his Legendary Unele and from his Extraordinary Beamer Heritage. Jamie learned from Alex the Art & Science of Roping; to rein, cut and sort cattle from atop a speeding horse but rather than work Pipi on the Hawaiian Range as did his mentor, this Kanaka competes with the best in the World as a Champion Roper riding Champion Bred Horses in Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Mississippi. One day soon this tall, soft-spoken, eonfident cowboy from the green hills of Waimea will win/strike Gold and a Beamer relative will honor him with a mele inoa or hula 'auana. ■ Next month: David Fuertes

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Rūbert K. Lindsey, Jr. Trustee, Hawai'i