Roland Tam Obituary

ROLAND F.S. TAM, M.D. Roland F.S. Tam, M.D., 79, passed away on December 31, 2025. He was born in Honolulu and graduated from Kalani High School. He attended the University of Hawaii, where he was a member of the Tu Chiang Sheh fraternity, and went on to attend the University of Washington School of Medicine. Specializing in ear, nose, and throat and facial plastic surgery, he opened his practice at St. Francis Medical Center in Liliha in 1980, where he treated thousands of patients until retiring in 2024. He was elected President of the Hawaii Society of Otolaryngology and Head & Neck Surgery in 1986, and successfully carried out the first computer image-guided sinus surgery in Hawaii in 1999. He enjoyed boogie boarding at Makapuu and Waikiki Walls, fishing, playing poker, and listening to jazz music, but his principal passion was U.H. sports. Faithfully attending nearly every U.H. football, basketball, and volleyball game for decades, he could often be spotted in the student section wearing his signature vintage Rainbows jersey. He is survived by his wife of 38 years, Kathleen Dos Santos-Tam, and his three sons Tyler (Andrew) Dos Santos-Tam, Travis Dos Santos-Tam, and Trenton (Julie) Dos Santos-Tam. Roland is also survived by brothers Ivan (Anne) and Alan, and was preceded in death by his father William K.I. Tam and mother Lydia S.Y. Chang. Services will be held on Saturday, February 7 at St. Peter's Episcopal Church on Queen Emma Street in Downtown Honolulu. Visitation 10:00am. Services 11:00am. Reception to follow.