Steve Okamura was a big contributor for kickstarting the annual Apple Cider Classic wrestling tournament at Watsonville High in 2010.
The longtime Wildcatz wrestling assistant coach also helped pave the way for dozens of girls who were hesitant to step on the mat in a sport dominated by males.
Okamura was never one to be in the spotlight, yet his presence still had a big impact on his wrestlers.
Watsonville alumnus and current wrestling head coach Josh Castillo—a standout on the wrestling team from 2008-11—recalls Okamura’s love for youth wrestling was unlike any other.
“[Okamura] still had his times if you were slacking off, but he had that type of role as a coach where you can just kind of lean on him and joke around with him, that was just his personality,” Castillo said.
Okamura died May 21. He was 65 years old.
Okamura is survived by his fiancee Josephine (Josie) De la Fuente and her sons, Ricky and Matt, along with his siblings: Timothy Hirashima and his wife Linda, Richard Hirashima, Cynthia Okamura and James Okamura.
Known affectionately as “Okie”, he also enjoyed cycling, surfing, fishing, hiking and was ready for just about any spontaneous road trip, even if it meant leaving behind a freshly poured bowl of cereal and hitchhiking to Canada.
Okamura was born March 26, 1959 at St. Francis Memorial in San Francisco. His family later moved to Watsonville where he attended E.A. Hall Middle School from 1972-1974.
He found a passion for wrestling at Watsonville High School under former legendary coach Willie Yahiro.
Okamura graduated from Watsonville in 1978 and continued to compete in the sport while attending Cabrillo College from 1978-81. He then moved to Arizona to earn his certification as an auto mechanic.
In the early 90s, Okamura began working for the Pajaro Valley Unified School District. He rejoined Watsonville High as a member of the wrestling coaching staff led by renowned head coach Gary Garcia.
Also part of the staff was assistant coach Gus Paz—a 1982 California Interscholastic Federation State Wrestling champion and the second Wildcatz wrestler to win a state title.
Paz was a freshman in 1979 when he met Okamura, who was already competing against other elite wrestlers such as fellow ‘Catz teammate and 1979 state champion David Barnes.
Okamura was also in club wrestling training with future World and Olympic medalist, including David Schultz out of Palo Alto.
Paz remembers going up against Okamura during a winter practice session and getting tossed around like a rag doll .
“Through the time I was there, [Okamura] was coming in and out, and then one year he came in and I was taking him down. It was like, ‘Whoa, I’m taking down the man here,’” Paz said.
Over the years, Garcia became good friends with Okamura. Both wrestling enthusiasts made it an effort to attend some of the best tournaments in the country, including the NCAA wrestling championships.
Garcia and Okamura were supposed to do a bike ride from the border of Oregon to Tijuana. Okamura couldn’t go due to work responsibilities, yet Garcia decided he’d do a solo mission.
After the fourth day of riding, Garcia met with Okamura in Fort Bragg for a 450-mile trek down to Morro Bay.
Garcia is keeping the tradition alive. He’s planning a bike ride from Watsonville to San Diego that he’s going to call the “Tour de Oka-Mura” in Okamura’s honor.
“Steve was a well-liked guy, he was very quiet, pretty humble, never had a bad word to say about anybody or anything,” Garcia said. “The kids liked him, they found his sense of humor and he would joke around with the kids, the kids would joke around with him…He was one of the good guys.”
Okie’s kids
Watsonville High alumna Becky Clark was known as Okamura’s “wrestling daughter” after she became the first female wrestler Okamura took under his wing.
Clark competed for the Wildcatz from 1999-02 while Garcia was still the head coach, yet she was able to build a stronger bond with Okamura.
Clark—who at the time went by the surname Tavera—mentioned how a majority of the boys on the team didn’t want her in the wrestling room. She almost quit because of the disdain she felt from her teammates.
Okamura talked Clark into staying until after practice and convinced her to finish the season.
“I never felt so alive and there was so much about wrestling that I fell in love with,” Clark said. “[Okamura] told me ‘You deserve to be here. If you need anything, I have you. You need to come back.’”
Okamura instantly became a father figure to Clark.
In 2001, Clark was the first girls’ wrestler in the program to qualify for the CIF State Wrestling Championships. She was a runner-up and is still the closest ‘Catz’s girls wrestler to win a state title.
Clark mentioned how Okamura was the type of person who kept his word, and went out of his way to help with things such as planning trips to tournaments out of the area.
“I had to drive to Napa or down to San Diego sometimes, and he would coordinate these things for me and to go above and beyond a normal coach to ensure that I get to compete,” Clark said.
Okamura kept in contact with Clark as she continued to wrestle at Menlo College where she struggled to transition into freestyle wrestling.
“I didn’t want to give it up and I wanted to continue to wrestle,” she said. “[Okamura] wouldn’t overstep my current coach but he was there and that I think is where he came to support other girls who came out. He used me as a reference of ‘Come on, we can not neglect these girls.’ That really opened doors for a lot of girls.”
In 2016, Clark returned to Watsonville after going to college and living in New York. Okamura reached out to Clark to help with the Apple Cider Classic because he was planning to retire.
Clark began coordinating the tournament in 2021 and this past year it was the first time she did it without Okamura.
Since then, Clark also became the first female athletic director at Watsonville High. She still thanks Okamura to this day for pushing her to get involved with athletics.
Clark is starting to give back to the school, as well. She created a non-profit organization called Okie’s Kids, which sponsors student-athletes to attend wrestling camps in the summer.
“There’s a lot of people that loved him,” Clark said. “We hope to use his methods and his genuine love for doing the right thing, being a good person and I hope that that sets a new standard.”
Relentless grind
Castillo recalls the countless hours Okamura put into wrestling, even dedicating his weekends to coaching. He’d also take wrestlers to action-packed tournaments in Las Vegas, and as far as Virginia Beach for the National High School Coaches Association High School Nationals wrestling tournament.
Okamura helped with fundraising and became financially responsible for the wrestling program. He also collaborated with Garcia and Paz to launch the annual Apple Cider Classic.
“Everybody says he didn’t say much but he was full of energy. He did things,” Paz said.
The role of program director fell on Okamura’s lap. Castillo said the tournament came to flourish primarily because Okamura was willing to take on the challenge of learning a new web-based format completely foreign to him.
“Without his help, there would be no Apple Cider,” Castillo said.
After 35 years, Garcia retired in 2014. Okamura stepped in as interim head coach before Castillo took over duties in 2016.
Castillo learned from Okamura that being a coach isn’t about the money, but it’s for the love of the sport and kids they impact every day.
“It’s still being a good person on and off the mat,” Castillo said. “Your coaching doesn’t stop in the [wrestling] room, you still have to be a coach outside the room. There’s always somebody watching, you’re a role model.”
Apart from the Okie’s Kids foundation, Castillo said a middle school wrestling tournament in honor of Okamura is in the works. They also want to plant a tree in his name at Watsonville High.
The last time Castillo talked to Okamura was shortly after the PVUSD Middle School Wrestling Championships in March.
Okamura brought along an old computer inside a suitcase that Castillo hadn’t seen since his days in high school, making him chuckle at the time. It was just one of the several fond memories Castillo will alway cherish.
“I do want to say, we should have acknowledged him when he was alive versus now,” Castillo said. “He’ll be deeply missed but won’t be forgotten.”
