The State of Hawai’i has proclaimed November 21 as “Kemoeatu Brothers Day” in recognition of Hawaiian-raised Tongan brothers, Chris and Ma’ake Kemoeatu. Both brothers are former NFL players for Super Bowl winning teams.

Chris and Ma’ake Kemoeatu captured the hearts of many earlier this year after the brothers retired from the NFL to undergo kidney surgery. Older brother 35 year-old Ma’ake Kemoeatu donated one of his kidneys to his ailing younger brother 31 year-old Chris Kemoeatu. According to the surgeon who performed the operation, the kidney of the 6’5 Ma’ake Kemoe’atu was the “largest normal kidney” he had ever seen.

According to the proclamation by the Hawaiian Governor “Now, I, Neil Bercrombie, Governor, and I, Shan S. Tsutsui, Lieutenant Governor for the State of Hawai’i, do hereby proclaim November 21, 2014 as ‘Kemoeatu Brother’s Day’ in Hawai’i, and ask all citizens of Aloha State to join us in recognizing their extraordinary courage and selflessness in support of each other, raising awareness of the great need for organ donations in the US and embodying the best values of the Aloha Spirit, and welcome them back to the islands to begin the next chapter of their lives.”

Chris Ma’ake suffered from chronic pains of Kidney disease as a young boy. Despite this Chris excelled in American Football and played seven seasons in the NFL as an offensive guard for the Super Bowl winning Pittsburg Steelers (2006 and 2009).

Ma’ake Kemoeatu also played for a Super Bowl winning team, as a Nose Tackle for the Baltimore Ravens last year, 2013.

The Kemoe’atu brothers visited Tonga in 2011, meeting Prime Minister Tu’ivakano and stating their wish to help Tongan youth in education and sport. They were both praised by Prime Minister Tu’ivakano, who described them as “a role model for Tongan youth, and even though you grew up in the United States but you have never forgotten your motherland,”

Photos courtesy Governor Neil Abercrombie, State of Hawai'i.