Hawaii – It is with great sadness that we note the loss of one of the Second Amendment Foundation’s founding directors and secretary, Sam Slom of Hawaii. He was 81.
“Sam Slom was a giant in the Second Amendment movement,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Sam inspired those of us who believe in individual freedom and liberty. The Second Amendment Foundation will honor his extraordinary legacy by continuing our commitment to protecting the firearms freedoms he spent a lifetime defending.”
Slom will be remembered as having sometimes been the only Republican in the Hawaii State Senate, where he served for 20 years. At times, he was called the “Party of One” by his colleagues and supporters, and he was also known as the “Lone Ranger” when he was occasionally not only the minority leader but also the GOP floor leader and the ranking Republican on every Senate committee on which he served, which included virtually all of the committees.
Born in Allentown, Pa. in April 1942, Slom served in the Hawaii Senate from 1996 to 2016. He represented East Honolulu (District 9). He is being remembered by his legislative colleagues as a “game changer,” a skilled orator and as a man who did not compromise his principles. That trait was also evident as he served on the SAF Board of Trustees, where Gottlieb appreciated his wise counsel and keen sense of politics through the years.
Aside from politics, Slom had also served as executive director of Small Business Hawaii, and he formerly served as chief economist for the Bank of Hawaii. He received a BA in Government and Economics from Hawaii Pacific University in 1963 and an LL.B from La Salle Law School in 1996. He also had connections to the Tax Foundation of Hawaii and SMS Consultants.
“Sam was just an amazing person,” Gottlieb recalled. “He was one of those gifted people who made things happen, and he was just a terrific guy to be around. He was universally respected within the Second Amendment community, and he always seemed to know the right thing to do. May he rest in peace.”
He is survived by four sons. Services are pending.
The Second Amendment Foundation (www.saf.org) is the nation’s oldest and largest tax-exempt education, research, publishing and legal action group focusing on the Constitutional right and heritage to privately own and possess firearms. Founded in 1974, The Foundation has grown to more than 720,000 members and supporters and conducts many programs designed to better inform the public about the consequences of gun control.