Rooted in the West Side: Ikona Freitas

BALANCING LEADERSHIP, CULTURE, AND COMPETITION IN THE PLACE THAT RAISED HIM.

TWO COURTS, ONE HOME

Even when you know it’s coming, you can’t stop it— the overhead-angle smash Ikona is known for, his favorite shot. “I do [an] overhead angle… it’s off the court, getting people to the fence,” he says.

It’s a move that captures one side of him—the competitor. The other shows up off the court, guiding students and shaping futures at Kamaile Academy in Waianae, the West Side community that raised him. Both courts, one of play and one of purpose, keep him rooted in the place he calls home.

ROOTS IN WAIANAE

Born and raised in Waianae, Ikona stayed close to home through school—Kamaile Elementary, Waianae Intermediate, and Waianae High. Sports were the steady thread through those years. “During high school, I played tennis, tried soccer here and there, did cross country, but tennis was my main sport,” he says.

He picked up a racket at age seven and never really put it down. He played JTT, HTL, and USTA through his teens, spending weekends traveling to tournaments across the islands.

But sports weren’t his only focus. At Waianae High, Ikona joined Searider Productions, the nationally recognized media academy that introduced him to news writing, broadcasting, and storytelling. “I was into media, news writing, and journalism. Originally, my plan was to be a journalist,” he says. “That’s why I majored in communications.”

A DIFFERENT KIND OF RETURN

After years of junior tournaments and USTA leagues, college tennis seemed like the natural next step. Ikona headed to the University of Hawaii at Hilo —“I was going to be a walk-on,” he says, “but I was living the college life… more in party mode,” and he ended up quitting his freshman year.

By senior year, though, he felt the pull back to the court. “I didn’t want to leave with any regrets,” he says. “And another reason why I joined the team in senior year was because a lot of the kids that I played with in junior tennis came up their freshman year. So it made me want to join the team because I knew the majority of the team that year was local, from Hawaii.”

That season reminded him how much he valued being part of a team and his love of competition. “It was a good year for sure. I had a really good time playing on the team.”

Off the court, Ikona studied communications, drawn to conversation and storytelling even before he knew where they’d lead. “I didn’t know if I wanted to do local news or if I wanted to do more editorial,” he says. “It was a mixture of things, because I was really into conversations, dialogue, and I enjoyed writing. English language arts was one of my strengths. I enjoyed all of that, but I didn’t really have a specific area of focus.”

Ikona spent his summers back home on Oahu, working for the City and County’s Summer Fun program. “That’s when I started working with kids,” he says. “And, you know, the first couple summers, I didn’t like it.”

That changed as college went on. “It kind of just changed… I did a 360,” he says, laughing. Somehow along the way, he realized how much he enjoyed mentoring, teaching, and connecting with kids.

Those summers quietly planted the seed for what would come next. When he graduated, his path didn’t lead back to the tennis court. Instead, it led him home, and into the classroom.

BACK WHERE IT BEGAN

After graduating from UH Hilo in May 2011, Ikona started job-hunting right away. One posting caught his eye. His old elementary school, just five minutes from his house, was hiring a P.E. teacher.

He applied, but didn’t get it.

Instead, they offered him a position as an Educational Assistant (EA). “Long story short, they ended up sticking me with the high schoolers at Kamaile Academy, which is where I work now,” he says. “I was fresh out of college, 21 years old.”

“I remember the first day I went to work,” he says. “I sat in a class, and one of the students actually thought I was a student. She asked, ‘What school you came from?’ And I said, ‘I’m an EA—I’m your EA.’”

He worked as an EA for one year, then moved into the Learning Center, supporting both middle and high school students for two more years. By his fourth year, he was ready to try something new. “I ended up applying for an elementary teaching position, and I got it.”

Ikona taught fourth grade for three years while earning his master’s degree in education from the University of Phoenix. He later moved up with his students to sixth grade, teaching that level for another three years. “I kind of looped and followed my students,” he says. After that came eighth grade, during the pandemic year, and then a promotion.

“When the Dean of Students position opened, I got it,” he says. “It was for pre-K to 12.” He served in that role for four years before another door opened just this past year: a Vice Principal position at Kamaile Academy’s high school. “So I started there in high school, and now I’m back as the high school Vice Principal,” he says. “It’s pretty cool.”

When asked whether he’d always planned to return to Kamaile, Ikona admits the decision was mostly practical at first. “When I was 21 years old, I was just looking for a job. I didn’t really think about it.”

That perspective shifted with time. “Now I think about it—this is my home. I belong here.”

Coming back to Kamaile has meant reconnecting with the very people who helped shape him. “The coolest thing about coming back is seeing some of the staff who were there when I was a kid,” he says.

“It’s so fun to hear how proud they are of me—they’ll say, ‘you started from a kid to being an educational assistant to a teacher to a dean, and now you’re VP.’”

He now walks the same halls as both student and leader. The teachers and staff who once guided him now greet him as a colleague, while his own students grow up before his eyes. “It’s so cool to see a lot of my students now as adults,” he says. “I get invited to baby’s first lūʻaus, to weddings. It’s that full circle. That’s the best part.”

And as for what’s next? “A lot of them ask me, ‘what’s next…Principal?’ and I’m like, oh, no, I don’t think I can do that,” he says. “I still like to live my best life, you know? I like to enjoy life outside of school. You have to separate the two—personal and professional.”

After more than a decade in the classroom, Ikona still finds meaning in the work. “Do I love it? Yes, I do,” he says. “These past few years, I’ve been kind of debating if I still wanted to be in education or do something different. But it’s hard to get away from it because you love it so much.”

“BEING ABLE TO EDUCATE THE YOUTH AND ALSO BE SOMEBODY THAT THEY CAN LOOK UP TO, LIKE A MENTOR,
THAT’S ONE OF THE MAIN REASONS I WENT INTO TEACHING. I’M BLESSED TO BE AN EDUCATOR ON THE WEST SIDE, BECAUSE I WAS ONE OF THEM GROWING UP.”

DISCOVERING PICKLEBALL

Even after college, tennis remained a big part of Ikona’s life. “That first year I came fresh out of college, I played USTA league and we ended up going to nationals in Arizona. I think we got fourth place. That was fun.”

But not long after that, everything changed. “After a year or two, I tore my meniscus,” he says. “I remember I had a match one day, and then I ended up coming home and I just did a wrong turn and I heard a snap.” The injury required surgery and marked the end of his tennis days.

Years passed. And then COVID hit. “Like most people, I discovered pickleball during COVID,” he says.

The invitation came from his Uncle Jordan, who texted him one day to play at Geiger Park. “He said, ‘Hey, come play pickleball with us’, and I thought…what is pickleball? That sounds dumb.” He went anyway.

The scoring confused him that first time, and pickleball didn’t quite click. But Ikona isn’t one to quit after a single try. He went out again, and the second time, he was hooked.

“Wait, I actually like it,” he remembers thinking. “It was a good workout because we were stuck indoors for almost a year. Pickleball was a little cheat code, because I was leaving home, getting exercise, and meeting people.”

Soon after, he was at Mahiko Park several times a week. He was hooked, or as he puts it, “addicted to pickleball.”

FROM REC PLAY TO THE PODIUM

Once he discovered pickleball, it didn’t take long for Ikona’s competitive instincts to kick in. His first tournament came in late 2021 at Turtle Bay, where he played mixed doubles with his cousin Anuhea. “We placed, and after that I started getting more serious,” he says.

In 2022, he entered more than twenty tournaments, including several on the mainland. “I told myself I didn’t want to move up until I got gold for that division,” he says. “And I didn’t count local tournaments—I would only count mainland tournaments.”

Even with a tennis background, though, he had plenty to learn. “Dinking was horrible,” he admits, laughing. “I did not like to dink—I would want to speed up every single thing. I feel like I still kind of do that today, but a little bit more controlled now.”

Still, the competition kept him hooked. He climbed from 3.5 to 4.0, and after earning gold, moved up again. “2023 was when I moved up to 4.5 because I got my gold in 4.0,” he says. “2023 was a pretty good year.”

As his game improved, so did his dedication. Evenings at Mahiko became routine, and weekends often meant hours on the court with players who pushed him to be better. “Once I started playing more tournaments, I started meeting more people,” he says. “Some days it would be all day, just playing, training, and drilling.”

BALANCE AND SUPPORT

Juggling two demanding worlds took balance and support. Ikona used personal leave to compete in mainland tournaments, something his school encouraged. “My principal said, ‘Go. Do what you gotta do…but make sure you come back to work,’” he says with a laugh.

His schedule quickly filled with both commitments. He spent his days teaching and handling school administration, and his evenings training and competing in tournaments. “Back in 2023, I would play three to five times a week,” he says. “Now, in the position I’m in, not as much. But I try to play at least once a week, sometimes up to three. I try.”

After a strong 2023 season, Ikona carried that momentum into 2024. He earned gold in the ProMoneyball division at the NVZ Hawaiʻi Invitational, followed by another gold in Men’s Doubles 5.0 (Age 35–49) at the PPA Tour: Select Medical Orange County Cup. He also brought home silver in Mixed Doubles 5.0 (Open Age) at the Aloha Pickleball Games & Festival, continuing to build consistency and confidence across multiple events.

Those performances set the stage for a standout 2025. He kicked off the year in winning form, taking gold in Men’s Doubles 5.0 (Open) at the Maui PukaBall Tournament in January—a result that helped propel him into higher-level mainland play.

In August, he teamed up with Gregory Zukeran for the PPA Las Vegas Indoor Open, where the pair made Top 8 out of 25 teams, battling against several players who regularly compete in pro qualifiers. Two months later, he returned to Maui for the Maui Open, where he and partner James Thorpe finished with silver, narrowly falling to Keven Wong and David Bieger in a hard-fought 5.0 final.

Pickleball has become his outlet, offering balance to the long days and steady demands of school leadership. Now in his first year as vice principal, he plays less often but still finds time to train and compete.

He dreams of playing abroad one day, with Japan at the top of his list, and hopes to see pickleball introduced to schools. “If you look at what pickleball has done for many people, just getting healthy, having some type of physical activity, I think it could definitely change that for kids today.”

FULL CIRCLE

From the courts to the halls of Kamaile, Ikona’s story is one of return, of pride, connection, and growth. Grounded in the community that shaped him, he continues to lead, play, and lift others as proof that sometimes the truest success comes from finding your way home.

He reflects on the people who made that journey possible. “I’m the person I am today because of my parents,” he says. “And of course, my circle now—my pickleball friends, my friends from work, my students. They’ve all helped make me who I am.”

That circle of family, mentors, friends, and students keeps him grounded and reminds him that every win, whether on the court or in the classroom, is shared with the community that raised him.

RAPID FIRE WITH IKONA

PADDLE: SELKIRK INVIKTA

FAVORITE SHOT: OVERHEAD ANGLE SMASH

DREAM PARTNER: PETE SAMPRAS

FAVORITE PLACE TO PLAY: NEWPORT BEACH, CA

DREAM DESTINATION: JAPAN

FAVORITE FOOD: RAW CRAB FROM TAMURA’S

FAVORITE MORNING BEVERAGE: TROPICAL DRAGON SMOOTHIE FROM JAMBA JUICE