San Jose State Football Team Struck by Tragedy
Spartans' Defensive Line Coach Joe Salave'a Lost Family in Tsunsami
Oct 6, 2009
Salave'a, the former NFL player, found out his village, Leone, on the island of Tutuila in western end of American Samoa, including the home in which he was raised, had been devastated by the Tsunami.
Blitzed by Tragic Accounts
The news was terrible. He lost three aunts and a cousin. His brother was reported missing and assumed perished. His brother later turned up alive.
"As they were telling me the bad news my heart was breaking," Salave'a said. "I had three aunts get caught in the waves and a cousin's body was later found. By some miracle, my brother was found alive. After that came more phone calls and I tried to remain calm. I knew a lot of people there."
His father, Miki, fortunately, decided to visit San Jose a few days ahead of the game.
"He's stubborn and would have stayed with his house," Salave'a said. "There are still others fighting for their lives in hospitals over there."
His immediate reaction was to return home, from where he left in 1989, the year his older brother Okland finished his football playing career at Colorado. He always returned during the offseason though.
He founded the Joe Salave’a Foundation in 2001. The foundation specializes in free football clinics for youngsters in American Samoa and Hawai’i. His work was recognized by Congressman Eni Faleomavaega in a 2005 White House ceremony hosted by President George W. Bush and celebrated Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month.
Lining Up For Action
Moments after receiving the bad news he turned his efforts to relief work.
"When you're faced with tragedy, you retreat to your family," said Salave'a, who lost his mother, Rebecca, to cancer in 2005. "Sometimes we get caught up in our own lifestyle but something like this puts things in perspective. The hardest thing I've had to do is call relatives the past couple of days. Those were hard phone calls to make."
Leone was just over 100 miles from the epicenter of the earthquake which caused the Tsunami and also affected areas of Samoa and Tonga.
Salave'a, one of eight children, is in the process of revamping his foundation toward the relief efforts. His goal is to personally deliver, along with some of his current San Jose State players, whatever he can raise before the end of the football season.
Salave'a in the NFL
His NFL career spanned nine years (1998-2007) with four different teams and 100 games. Salave'a was a fourth-round pick by the Tennessee Titans in 1998.
He was a member of the Titans’ Super Bowl XXXIV team that lost to St. Louis, 23-16. Salave'a spent the 2003 season with Baltimore and San Diego. His final three seasons were with the Washington Redskins.
Playing College Ball in the Desert
Salave'a graduated from the University of Arizona, where he played football for current San Jose State coach Dick Tomey.
"This hits you in so many ways," said Tomey, who made American Samoa a regular stop on his recruiting trips. "It's a part of the world that is precious to me. It's such a tight-knitted community. Joe was a pleasure to coach and an outstanding student. He exemplified all the characteristics you look for in football player both on and off the field."
Tackling the Situation
Salave'a majored in sociology. He and his wife, Josephine, have a daughter, Katalina Elizabeth, and a son, Joseph Fatuimoana, Jr.
"There are certain people you come across who are special," Spartans' senior wide receiver Kevin Jurovich said. "He is one of them for me. He has a passion for the game and a desire to help people."
Until his foundation Web site can be transformed, Salave'a is accepting messages through his personal e-mail address at salavea@hotmail.com.
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