Malu Salavea

Malu is survived by his wife Bernadette of 59 years, his daughter Ramona Salave’a and her husband Bingham Togia, their children Gabriel, Hannah, and Makena of Federal Way, WA, and his daughter Luisa Salave’a-Cook and her husband Jeremy Cook, and their children Alex, Amaya, and Noa of Mercer Island, WA. His daughter Sally preceded him in death in 2008.

Born March 25, 1941 in Leone, American Samoa to Luisa Tavita Galea’i and High Talking Chief Nu’umotu Salave’a, Malu was the youngest of eight. He is survived by his sister Si’upolu Smith of Pava’ia’i, American Samoa and was preceded in death by his siblings Lottie Haleck, Otto Haleck, Keleise Samoa, Saili Teofilo, Solomona Salave’a, and Puleiao Salave’a. He lived on the island of American Samoa until he was 17 when he moved to the U.S. mainland to live in Seattle with his older sister Si’upolu. He soon graduated from Glacier High School and was promptly drafted post grad in 1964 into the U.S. Army, serving for 2 years in Germany.

Malu’s love for music became evident early on as he played the organ for his church Mauga o Siona in Leone. A talented self-taught musician, he taught himself to play the organ among many other instruments such as bass, steel, and acoustic guitar; piano, harmonica, ukulele, clarinet, and drums. He could pick up any song effortlessly just by listening.

Family was of utmost importance to Malu. He married the love of his life Bernadette Coen in 1966 who was charmed by his voice and ukulele playing. Both had migrated to Seattle to live with extended family and fatefully came to meet through the established friendship of their families in the Pacific Northwest. They soon after put down roots in Renton, Washington, getting married and having 3 daughters.

Malu brought his talents with him to Seattle where he started a group called the “Polynesian Serenaders,” performing music to accompany dances hailing from Samoa, Tahiti, Hawaii, and New Zealand. He also took part in the group’s floor show with his performance of the fire knife dance. His beautiful singing voice was dynamic, highlighted by a falsetto and self-taught yodel.

He was known for his love for Jesus Christ which he instilled in his children and emphasized the importance of reading the Bible and going to church on Sundays. He always talked fondly of his mother Luisa who would often ask him to open the Bible and read her a verse.

After serving in the military, Malu worked for Boeing and Sears, before finishing his career with the U.S. Postal Service as a letter carrier in Kirkland where he retired in 2002. In addition to his full-time job at the U.S. Postal Service, he took an interest in residential real estate investments. He was diligent in learning about the real estate market through books during his many daily visits to the Renton Public Library. Over the following years and into retirement, Malu and Bernadette were able to purchase several real estate properties.

Malu had many different outdoor hobbies including fishing, landscaping, gardening, and growing fruits and vegetables. He passed along his love of fishing to his grandchildren, taking them on day trips to Whidbey island and Westport where he would catch his daily limit of fish and crab without fail. His love for his kids and grandkids always took priority.

In his later years, walking became more difficult for Malu. However, he always taught his daughters the power of positive thinking and to his credit, never lost the willpower to continue walking unassisted and took long walks daily at Gene Coulon Park. He always wanted to show his kids and grandchildren they could do anything they wanted, telling them: “as long as you put your mind to it.”