our story

The Original Shop - “Gramp’s Rock’N Chair Ding Repair”

Gramps was given his nickname from a boy named Johnathan and his family that he lived with in Bolinas, CA during the 70’s. There was a television show at the time called, “The Walton’s.” Johnathan was nicknamed “John Boy” after one of the characters in the show and “Gramps” was named after the other main character, Grandpa Walton who somehow had all the answers to everyone’s problems - just as Gramps did in real life.

In 1985, Gramps was in Santa Cruz, CA helping Doug Haut build surfboards. One day while walking into his work area, he saw that there was a hand drawn sign hanging up that said “Gramps Rock’N Chair Ding Repair”. The drawing was of a wooden cabin with a porch and a rocking chair as waves peeled in the background. A guy named Wally that worked in the shop appeared and Gramps asked, “Wally, what is this?” He responded, “You’re so old Gramps, you’ll be sitting in a rocking chair while we’ll still be surfing!” He was 38 at the time.

Gramps moved to Maui in 1986 after Mark Angel offered him a job building Sailboards for Sailboards Maui. When things were slow he would do ding repair to keep himself busy. By 1996 the sailboard industry was slowing down, so Gramps decided to start his own ding repair buisness at the Pauwela Cannery in May of 1997. He named the shop after Wally’s drawing.

The Apprentice - “You’d be really good at this”

In 2017 I asked a friend where I should go to get my surfboard fixed. He said, “You gotta go see Gramps!” When I arrived, this bubble of a personality greeted me and began going over my board. He was not only identifying dings, but explaining to me what my board was made out of and how he planned on fixing it. I was fascinated! No one had ever explained this to me and I was a surfer for over a decade! He caught my curiosity and asked if I’d like to watch him work on my board. I came up every afternoon and observed. I could tell he loved teaching and sharing his knowledge, and I had plenty of questions for him to answer. By the end of the week, my board was completed and I had a job offer. I said, “I don’t know anything about this kinda stuff.” His reply was, “I can just tell you’d be really good at this.” And so my introduction to ding repair began.

The Transfer of the Trade - “Nothing Last’s Forever”

This was probably one the the hardest goodbye’s I had ever experienced. After working side by side for 6 years, Gramps was ready to retire at the graceful age of 77 and move to Florida with his wife. I think the plan was always for me to take over, but I never thought he would leave island. Yet, Gramps was starting his own new adventure and was excited to embrace all that his new home had to offer! He’s now enjoying the endless amounts of nature preserves and continues to surf everyday! Gramps taught me so many lessons, not only in ding repair, but in life as well. He saw something in me that I didn’t even know existed. I always loved building things, repurposing and being creative, but I never really found my passion until I was introduced to ding repair. I have Gramps to thank for everything. He totally changed my life and now I was becoming my very own business owner. We still talk often and I like to remind him that he’s late for work, haha!

May 2023 - “Auntie K’s Ding Repair”

When I took over for Gramps I asked, “Do you want me to keep the name?” He said, “No, you’re not a grandpa or a tutu so change it to something that represents you.” I always loved that no matter where you were on Maui, someone had heard of Gramps. His shop was his identity and it made it all that more personal within the Maui surf community. I wanted to carry that same sense of belonging. I’ve always loved being called Auntie, so here I am, Auntie K to care for all your surfboard needs! I know I may not look like an Auntie and I’m younger than most of my customers, so Kelsey is just fine too! Haha, stoked to be here. Mahalo!