GABRIEL "GABE" MARTIN BRADY

Age 87, passed away on October 30th, 2022, at home in Ko Olina after a prolonged battle with metastatic melanoma. He was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, or as he liked to describe it—the “cosmopolitan side of the Gulf Coast.” Gabe attended Saint Stanislaus in Bay St. Louis, MS, where he played drums in the high school band. Upon graduation he enlisted in the Marine Corps to see the world. He saw instead the inside of the base post office until he talked his way into the Drum and Bugle corps at Camp Lejeune. After a three-year stint in the Marines, he enrolled in Florida State University’s hotel and restaurant management program. While at FSU, he was active in the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and played drums in the FSU Marching Chiefs band, the symphonic band and a dance band.
Upon graduation, Gabe began his career in food service, eventually ending up at Dobbs International’s flight kitchen in Atlanta. This led to a 36-year career in airline catering, which finally did allow him to see the world. He eventually resided in Memphis where Dobbs’ corporate office was and later moved to the Chicago regional office as a VP Marketing and Sales. As a lifelong Norte Dame football fan, he loved being so close to South Bend, Indiana. He attended several games and was able to yell at the team in person. In 1999, Florida State’s Dedman College of Hospitality honored him with their Alumnus of the Year award.
When his wife retired in 2007, Gabe was “forced” to move from Chicago to Hawaii. He then began volunteering at the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. Over the next 10 years, he loved meeting and helping people there and said it was the best job he ever had. Retirement also gave him the opportunity to take cruises, which combined his love of the water and his lifelong interest in food service. His favorite onboard activities were dining and the galley tours. This past September, he published his WWII book on Wake Island which the Japanese attacked the day after Pearl Harbor. The book was the culmination of years of research and writing. He felt passionately that the island’s commander, Rear Admiral Winfield S. Cunningham, deserved a better place in history.
Gabe was predeceased by his parents, Edward George Brady and Alberti Drey Brady, his brother, Edward George Brady, Jr. and his daughter, Erin Kathleen Brady. He is survived by his wife Lei, son Patrick, grandsons Philip and Matthew and their mother Shana Reid.
The family’s thanks go to the Islands Hospice team, his devoted aides from Fast Help Caregivers, and to his many doctors for keeping him going as long as they could. He was blessed to have had a long, loving and fulfilling life.

Services will be held at a later date.