The Aloha Spirit
Phil Pe’a came to Mesa College in 1978 because of the snow. Pe’a hails from the state of Hawaii, and on the Big Island, he would see snow every winter on three peaks. But he wanted more. He wanted to actually be in the snow.
When a Mesa College recruiter came with an invitation to join the football team, Pe’a accepted it.
“I was always fascinated with how people can live and survive in snow. This is a true story,” he laughed, recounting the first day it snowed, when he and his friends skipped out of class in Houston Hall to play in the snow in their flip-flops.
An outside linebacker, Pe’a started both his freshman and sophomore years while studying business management. But after two years, homesickness set in, and he returned to Hawaii.
Yet he couldn’t shake Colorado.
“Colorado already kind of grew on me,” he shared. “I missed the mountains.”
Pe’a and his first wife, a Maverick whom he met during his earliest days on campus, returned to Colorado in 1982 when she took a job at Mesa as the assistant director of admissions. Timing is everything, and for Pe’a, the timing was off. Black Sunday, the 1982 energy collapse that paralyzed western Colorado’s economy, had just happened. So, Pe’a took a job in Denver, connected by a friend who had been on the Mesa College Football Team.
Pe’a’s position in Denver eventually led to his current job in Grand Junction, and in 1988, he returned to the Grand Valley as the vice president for sales and marketing at Central Distributing Company, a beverage distributor.
Now established in the Grand Valley, Pe’a wanted to “give back” to CMU. This led to a leadership role with the Alumni Association and a seat on the CMU Foundation Board of Directors.
When asked what makes CMU special, Pe’a credits the institution’s culture.
“For me, it’s more than the amenities and it goes beyond brick and mortar. It’s about the people and the culture. It’s got that aloha spirit,” he explained, noting that the students, faculty, and administration are “so down-to-earth and always ready to help.”
“I see a culture of people wanting to be a part of CMU,” he added. “That, to me, is key, more than anything.”
In 2019, Pe’a was elected to a four-year term on the Grand Junction City Council. His term ran until May 2023, the same year that he received CMU’s Distinguished Alumni Award. During his tenure, he saw firsthand how CMU enriched the regional economy, which at that time was a direct infusion of $539 million.
Looking back over nearly five decades, Pe’a is grateful for CMU and the role it has played in his life.
“I am so thankful and proud to be part of this 100 year celebration. Thank you, Mesa College.”