Walter Tim Yau Lau

On November 20, 2025, our beloved father, grandfather, great-grandfather and devoted husband, Walter Tim Yau Lau, was called home to be with the Lord after a valiant battle with lung cancer for almost five years. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on January 1,1928, to Yin Tai and Nget Lan Lau, Walter was the fifth of eight children. Attending Catholic schools and graduating from St. Louis College in 1947 was foundational in his devotion to Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church.

The St Francis Xavier Club and their love of bowling set the stage for Winifred and Walter’s paths to cross and intertwine, resulting in a prosperous marriage of 76 years. They were blessed with 6 children, 16 grandchildren, and 24 great-grandchildren.

Walter began his accounting career with Aloha Airlines. Soon after, he worked at Tongg Publishing Company for the next 39 years. He started as a cost accountant and rose to become Vice President Treasurer. While working full time at Tongg’s, Walter kept the books for a number of small businesses, requiring him to work at home every night till nearly midnight.

Pursuing excellence in accounting, in 1988, he became Chairman of the Hawaii State Board of Accountancy. In 1974, he joined the Hawaii Association of Public Accountants, serving in numerous positions and offices include being President, in his 59 years of

membership. In 1975 Walter joined the National Society of Public Accountants and in 1990 became the only Asian president in a national organization. The theme of dad’s NSPA presidency was “Recognition Through Performance”. A line in one of his speeches said, “The old axiom of ‘actions speak louder than words’ is still very true, despite its overuse.” Walter lived this theme in every aspect of his life.

With his God-given gifts of leadership, organization and efficiency, Walter eagerly immersed himself in many aspects of his community. A few of the organizations that he led as President are the Buck Toy Club, Lau Family Association, Leong Doo Society, and the United Chinese Society.

Winifred’s passion and love for traveling and ballroom dancing made her the perfect companion for Walter’s numerous professional and entertainment trips to 46 of the 50 states and 45 countries. Above all, they put family first and included the family in many of their adventures.

At St. Pius X Parish, Walter was a faithful lector and Finance Committee member. With a true servant’s heart, he served as an AARP volunteer tax preparer from February 2009 to April 2025, being recognized for his wealth of knowledge of current tax laws. One of his proudest achievements was becoming a Century Donor of the Blood Bank of Hawaii when he donated his 100 th pint of blood.

Walter is survived by his loving wife, Winifred; his children, Lansdale (Deborah) Lau, Laurene (Ned) Raleigh, Karen Lau, Kenwyn (Terence) Enriques, Jocelyn (David) Kitashiro, and Tina Lau (Joe Medina); his 16 grandchildren, David (Noelle) Lau, Lauren (Benjamin) Call, Jaclyn (Cole) Patterson; Kimo (Myra) Kolasinski, Aaron (Jessica) Kolasinski; Erin Cavanaugh (Terry Carmichael), Denise Lau (Jason Calabrese); Ryan (Cheryl) Enriques, Lydia (Tyler) Kim, Tersha (Matt) Carpenter, Kevin Enriques (Isidro Ramos); Devin (Michelle) Kitashiro, Bryce Kitashiro, Brad (Kelsie) Kitashiro; Shaun Lau, Jayci (Jason) Oshiro; and his 24 great-grandchildren, Jon, Clara, Daniel, Eleanor, Dean, Kade, Janie, Rhett, Chloe, Celeste, Claire, Nathan, Caolán, Odhrán, Logan, Kanoa, Zachary, Jessica, Dax, Mila, Kenzie, Karlie, Ayden, and Emily. He is also survived by his sister, Ethel Lew, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Walter’s legacy is so eloquently expressed in 2 Timothy 4:7, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." The condolence messages flooding in describe him as a wonderful man, a faithful servant, an honorable man, a gentleman, a staunch Catholic, and that he lived life to the fullest with no regrets. He will be remembered for motivating everyone his life touched, either by word or action, to be the best they could be. He left a piece of his heart with everyone he met.

A Wake Service will be held at Borthwick Mortuary, Maunakea Chapel, 1330 Maunakea Street, Honolulu, HI 96817, on Friday, January 2, 2026. Visitation at 5:00pm, Service & Rosary at 6:00pm followed by Visitation until 7:30pm.

A Funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, January 3, 2026, at 10:00am at St. Pius X Church with Eulogy at 9:45am, 2821 Lowrey Avenue, Honolulu, HI 96822, a reception to follow in the Parish Hall, and finally, burial at 1:00pm at Hawaiian Memorial Park, 45- 425 Kam Highway, Kaneohe, HI 96744.