Meet this year’s grand marshals of the Kailua Village Independence Day Parade

Kona residents Frank and Laura Mallery-Sayre are thrilled to serve as grand marshals at this year’s Kailua Village Independence Day Parade.

The parade – showcasing floats, community groups, bands and more – will begin at 6 p.m. on Friday, July 4 starting at Kekuaokalani Gym (75-5500 Kuakini Hwy, Kailua-Kona), onto Aliʻi Drive and end at Coconut Grove Marketplace (75-5809 Ali‘i Dr.), according to a statement from the Kailua Village Parade Committee.

A fireworks show will start at 8 p.m. over Kailua Bay.  

“This annual Independence Day Celebration brings our community from mauka to makai together in the spirit of freedom and aloha,” said parade co-chair Merrick Nishimoto in a statement.

The Sayres shared more about their contributions to the local community, which include leading nonprofit The Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation, in an emailed response to questions from Aloha State Daily.

Frank – who owned a private practice dental office from 1976 to 2014 – has served as this parade's grand marshal once before about 15 years ago, he told ASD.

“It’s definitely an honor to serve as the grand marshals! We promise to do our best!”

It is Laura’s first time.

“I am deeply honored to have been selected for this role,” she said. “I am looking forward to greeting our wonderful community members as we proceed down the parade route.”

In 1997, the pair founded The Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation “with the mission of saving lives in Hawaiʻi,” said Laura, who serves as the nonprofitʻs executive director. The nonprofit is named in memory of their son, Danny, who died that same year at age 25 while hiking in Pololu Valley, near Kapaloa Falls, per its website.

“The Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation was born out of our desire to provide life-saving equipment and training for our Hawaiʻi Fire Department, so that other families in our community may have rescues instead of recoveries,” she said. “It has been our honor over the past 27-and-a-half years to work with the County of Hawaiʻi, our amazing first responders and our visionary donors. ... I am extremely proud of this community foundation, of the generosity of our volunteer committees, the silent auction and live auction donors and the support from our entire Island community for our fundraising events.”

The organization is funded by “the generosity of community donations,” Laura said.

“All donations go directly to the purchasing of equipment and training that is identified by the fire department as needs that the County of Hawaiʻi cannot afford … It is a perfect example of a community leading the way to serve others.”

Frank serves as the nonprofit’s president. Of the parade grand marshal opportunity, he said, “Ours is truly a community foundation and so, in a big way, this recognizes the efforts of many, many community members who have given of their time and resources to support our first responders. As the saying goes, we all got here in different ways, but now we’re all in the same canoe."

One of the reasons he enjoys volunteering in the local community is "the amazing people we have gotten to interact with,” he said, adding, “l realize that compared to a lot of other places we don’t have a lot of resources. But the people here are willing to roll up their sleeves and get things done. They don’t do it for money, career advancement or recognition. They do it for a love of this place and those who live and visit here.”

Laura said she feels “extraordinarily blessed to live on the Big Island and to be a part of a community culture of caring for each other.” She grew up in a small rural town in Montana, “where there were great hardships and challenges within the community.”

“I learned from the time that I was old enough to understand that you treat your neighbors as your family, and you do what you can to make a difference so that everyone’s lives can be enriched,” she said.

To date, The Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation has raised more than $40 million for the Hawaiʻi Fire Department, as well as more than $2 million for the Maui Fire Department, which has provided the departments with new fire trucks, air ambulances, boats, water safety crafts, among other equipment.

“These are just a few items that have enhanced the safety of our communities and helped to protect our first responders,” Laura said. “We support all fire stations and volunteer fire stations in helping them to receive the equipment and training that is so essential for their high-risk positions.”

Frank noted that organization “has grown exponentially” over the years.

“We started out purchasing rescue ropes and pulleys,” he said, noting that an accomplishment that stood out for him last year was partnering “with Life Flight Network to operate the Airbus H-145 aeromedical helicopter.”

“Life Flight Network will also be bringing two more helicopters and a fixed wing aircraft to be stationed on the Big Island, Frank said. “They will be able to provide emergency air transport from the remote areas of the island to our local hospitals, as well as critical care transport to Oʻahu and Maui.

Another recent accomplishment, he said, was supporting the Maui Fire Department.

“Through a grant from the Hawaiʻi Community Foundation and from local Maui donations, we have delivered one new specialty fire truck and have six more on order,” Frank added. “These are both projects that will carry well into the future.”

The pair has also volunteered with the Kona Family YMCA, People’s Advocacy for Trails Hawaiʻi, Ironman World Championship, Puʻu Waʻawaʻa Advisory Council and Hawaiʻi Health Systems Corp.

The Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation is hosting its annual awards dinner and fundraiser on Aug. 30 at the Fairmont Orchid.

For more information and to register for the upcoming fundraiser, visit DanielSayreFoundation.org.

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Kelsey Kukaua Medeiros can be reached at kelsey@alohastatedaily.com.