This morning we will be joining what will probably be a small group of family and friends of the late Robert Gilbert Johnston, who died in Chicago back in June. The plan is to have a brief memorial service at Makapuu, where I believe his ashes will be scattered, then return to Hawaii Kai to share our connections to his long life.
Gil was born in Waipahu, grew up in Hawaii, lawyered here for a few years as director of Legal Aid and then in private practice, and returned frequently. He was a strong supporter of Native Hawaiian rights, and helped found the predecessor of the Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation back in 1974.
I wrote my own personal remembrance of Gil in a post soon after he died. You can also read the obit that appeared in the Chicago Tribune, and another by John Marshall Law School in Chicago, where he taught for nearly 50 years.
Robert Gilbert Johnston. Friends just call him “Gil.” Headed the Legal Aid Society in Hawaii for a couple of years around 1970, represented Hawaiian and low income community groups as a private attorney, later serving as professor and dean at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago.
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Wonderful, kind and generous soul who enriched countless lives in the course of his life and career. Blessings and Mahalo
Thank you for writing this, Ian. I just read your personal remembrance and the two obits. He was an extraordinary person, a scholar and a gentlemen and much more than that
Ian, thank you and Meda so much for being great friends to my parents. Our family greatly appreciates all your support.
Aloha.
Iain