Gaylord Steven Jinno, passed away July 31 at his home on the Big Island of Hawaii. He was born Aug. 9, 1944, in Portland to Josephine Hodgkins Jinno of Portland and Shigeyo Jinno of Inawashira, Japan.
In Maine his parents ran the prestigious PortLaw Hotel in Camden. Steven graduated from MCI and studied classical guitar at the Cleveland Institute of Music, Berklee College of Music, and the American University in Washington, D.C. He was invited and did play at the White House by request of Jacqueline Kennedy. The staff at the American University recommended his apprenticeship with Segovia but he enlisted in the Vietnam War in order to beat the draft. He was trained as an airplane mechanic in Virginia and California. Steven was then sent to Panama where he worked as a helicopter mechanic and as a secretary in the Treasury department. He served his term in the military and went back to school, this time to the University of North Carolina where he completed a Bachelors degree in Biology.
Settling down in Maine to raise his family, he took up carpentry. He had an unfortunate accident, where he lost all four fingers on his left hand, thus ending any possibility of reentering a career as a classical guitarist. He continued to support his family working as a carpenter and earned a good local reputation refinishing, restoring, and replicating antiques. He had some knowledge of the sea and made several journeys under sail on both the Eastern and Western seaboard of the United States. He enjoyed annual whitewater canoeing trips in Northern Maine with good found friends. He made a dramatic move from Whitefield to Hawaii four years ago, where he fell in love with Hawaii for its easy climate, gentle afternoon breezes, and all-encompassing beauty.
None of his friends or family could deny that he was a highly intelligent man. He was always up for a good debate on current politics and kept up on the latest scientific theories and studies. He was a strong willed and determined throughout his life and continued to be so even through his year long battle with cancer.
He was predeceased by his son, Demetrius “Michi” Jinno.
He is survived by his children, Miyoshi Tobi Jinno, Mariko Rose Jinno, Jennifer Casad, Flash Cody Jinno-Porter, and Vivaca Jinno; brother, David Jinno and children, Heather Seamen and John Jinno and the children’s mother, Mary Jinno.
Steven did not wish for a funeral but for a celebration of life, the date has not yet been determined.