From tragedy to transformation

Geoffrey Michaelson will never forget December 23, 2009. That morning, while working on a construction site at UH Mānoa’s Sakamaki Hall, he plummeted 18 feet and suffered near-death, blunt force trauma. 

The injuries were severe: 21 broken bones, neural damage and extensive soft tissue impact. Michaelson was rushed to the hospital, where he spent 25 days in critical care and nearly two months in recovery.

But the physical toll was only part of the story.

Sharing his struggles with a compassionate physical therapist led to an idea that would become his legacy: a scholarship to support students pursuing physical therapy careers.

What followed was a long, painful road – rehabilitation hospital, months of in-home therapy, and treatments that left him physically hurting and emotionally distressed. One facility focused so narrowly on his right shoulder that the sessions brought unbearable pain. 

“I had to bite down on a towel just to get through it,” Michaelson recalls. Worse, it didn’t help. “Mentally, I was scattered, sad and unfocused. I didn’t feel like myself.”

The turning point came when he began aquatic therapy, and found a new kind of healing. Sharing his struggles with a compassionate physical therapist led to an idea that would become his legacy: a scholarship to support students pursuing physical therapy careers.

Although UH doesn’t offer a physical therapy major, its Kinesiology and Rehabilitation Science (KRS) program closely aligns. With that in mind, Geoffrey and his wife Lehua established the Geoffrey Michaelson and Lehua Ii-Michaelson Scholarship Fund, benefiting students in their final semester of the KRS program at UH Mānoa’s College of Education who intend to pursue physical therapy careers in Hawai‘i.

Now, Geoffrey’s journey – marked by pain and perseverance – will help others begin theirs.

Iron Man

“See this?’ Geoffrey says with a knowing smile, motioning to his right shoulder. “It’s being held together by a three-inch bolt. In total, I have about two pounds of rods, plates and screws in my body. I’m basically held together with spare parts!” 

The accident took away his ability to surf and dive, two lifelong passions since he moved from Los Angeles to Hawai‘i at 18 years old with a one-way ticket and a love for the ocean. He met Lehua, a hula dancer, aboard the Windjammer in 1973. He was training to be a boat captain. She was dancing on the rocking decks. “You try dancing hula on a ship that’s weaving and bobbing,” Lehua laughs. “It’s not easy.”

Together, Geoffrey and Lehua have spent decades giving back. Their philanthropic spirit is rooted in a deep love for Hawai‘i’s environment, culture and community. 

Through their planned gift to UH, Geoffrey and Lehua Michaelson ensure that others will find healing – through future physical therapists trained with compassion, purpose and the support they need.