Leina‘ala Ann Teruya Drummond was Miss Hawaii 1964, the first neighbor island contestant to win the coveted pageant crown. The Maui native also danced hula in Danny Kaleikini’s show at the Kahala Hilton in the late 1960s and was a Maui County Council member in the early 1990s.
But it was as the the face of Pualani, Hawaiian Airlines’ “Flower of the Sky” logo, that Drummond — who died Monday at age 77 of cancer at Hilo Medical Center — is best known.
In a statement, the Miss Hawaii Organization called Drummond “an icon, a legend and an absolutely beautiful soul.”
“Her stunning iconic smile, elegance and grace will always be remembered,” the organization said. “Hawaii lost a talented, poised and gracious woman who touched the hearts of many across the globe.”
Drummond was born in Puunene, Maui, on May 28, 1946. After becoming Miss Hawaii at age 18, she competed in the Miss America pageant, placing in the top 10.
Drummond was also selected as a model for a promotional shoot for Hawaiian Airlines and in 1973 was the inspiration behind the familiar logo seen today on the tail of its 50-plus aircraft. The logo has undergone some alterations in the five decades, but the common denominator in all its iterations has been the face of Drummond as Pualani, a beacon of Hawaiian hospitality.
On the “Good Life Hawaii” podcast, Drummond said becoming Miss Hawaii helped her to realize her dreams.
“I never traveled outside of Hawaii until I became Miss Hawaii, and I always dreamed of knowing how other people lived, and what they ate and what they wore,” she said. “That was just my dream, to travel the world.”
Drummond also co-owned Ian’s Deli in Pukalani, Maui, in the late 1980s and early 1990s with her chef husband, John Robert Ian Drummond, who died in 2000.
Drummond’s daughter, Christina Drummond, said on Facebook her mother spent the last three years of her life with her in Volcano.
“She enjoyed a quiet, simple life sitting in the sunshine, taking walks in the neighborhood, shopping at her favorite weekly farmers markets, eating as much Waipio poi as she could get and swimming at Richardson Beach in Hilo,” Christina Drummond said. “Her life will be cherished and remembered everyday by spreading the same love, light and Aloha she shared with everyone.”
In addition to Christina Drummond, Leina‘ala Drummond is survived by her son, Kawika Drummond; brother, Asa Teruya; sisters, Leona Asako (John) Medeiros, Iwalani (Benjamin) Bosque, Doreen (Lee) Yamashita, Darlyn Atay and Cindy Saffery; and granddaughter, Hawk Drummond Smith.
A celebration of life service will be held on Maui in October, date and time to be determined.
Email John Burnett at jburnett@hawaiitribune-herald.com.