It was the beginning of 1947. Sunday, January 5, to be exact. That was the day my mother caught a burglar trying to get into the house through a door directly from outside into the shower. These were common in areas near the beach at that time.

The burglar ran. He was later arrested based on a description provided by my mother.

Two days later, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported on the incident. What it doesn’t report is that my mother was able to give a good description of the young burglar because she chased him out of the yard and up Kealaolu Avenue towards Farmers Road. During the footrace, she apparently paid attention to what he looked like and what he was wearing, etc.

The money and jewels recovered, valued at $1,344 in 1947 as reported by the Star-Bulletin, would be worth around $15,000 in today’s prices.

I remember my mom telling this story years later. After her death, I tracked down the newspaper clipping.

Note that in those days, the newspaper reported the home addresses of those named in the story, including the other burglary victims.