KAILUA — Hundreds of people braved rainy weather at Kailua Beach Park yesterday to say farewell to Peter Miller, 32, who died when the Hawaii Air Ambulance plane he was piloting crashed near Maui's Kahului Airport last Wednesday.

The crowd congregated at the boat ramp on the Lanikai end of the park, bringing surfboards and lei to honor a friend, neighbor, brother and son.

"He was a mentor to my son and probably the best role model any young man could ever ask for," said Herman Meek, as the waves lapped at his feet.

"Peter picked him up after school and took him surfing at the north beach.

"He's going to miss that. He's going to miss his good buddy."

Miller grew up on the coast of Kailua Bay, surfing with friends and then, with twin brother Michael, moving on to semiprofessional surfing and modeling, said Bert Ishimaru, 36, a friend of Miller for 22 years. Miller traveled the world and made friends easily because he included everyone in the things he did, Ishimaru said.

"We're losing Peter as a person, but his spirit will live on through everybody," Ishimaru said.

Miller led a Christian life, and while some others gave in to drugs and made other poor choices, Miller didn't, said Russ Inouye, 32.

Inouye said surfers from all over came to pay their respects, including people from the North Shore and Honolulu.

Peahi Kapepa said he went to Kalaheo High School with Miller and remembers him as a good guy. Although Kapepa considers himself only an acquaintance, he said he wanted to pay his respects.

"He always chose right," Kapepa said. "I didn't make good choices."

Inouye said Miller had always wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, Emmett, and fly for Aloha Airlines. So when his ashes were brought from Maui in an Aloha Airlines plane, they were placed in the cockpit.

Miller was an excellent pilot, said Gary Winterbottom, who was an flight instructor at the same school as Miller. Winterbottom, who was with the Honolulu Police Department for 35 years, said he wouldn't speculate on what went wrong with the Air Ambulance flight.

"For us to sit back and try to second-guess is absolute madness," he said. "There's only one person that knows what happened"

Miller's death was a waste, said Winterbottom, who considers flying to be a risky business. "We'll miss him."

Also killed were assistant chief flight nurse Brien Eisaman, 37, of Waipahu, and Marlena Yomes, 39, a mobile intensive-care technician from Wai'anae.

At least 400 people attended yesterday's ceremony, which included a short prayer by the pastor of Hope Chapel and a spreading of the ashes near Popoi'a islet, also known as Flat Island.

Hundreds of surfers accompanied Miller's two brothers, Michael and Tony, breaching a set of waves that some said were the perfect conditions that Miller liked to surf.

They formed the traditional circle with the boards, the ashes were released, and a primal call by those in the circle was answered by people on the beach. Surfers filled the air with splashes of water and tossed their lei into the sea where Miller loved to surf.

The family has set up the Peter Miller's Surf Foundation for the Kids of Kailua.

Friends will be hosting a fundraiser at 8 p.m. Saturday at Chai's Island Bistro at Aloha Tower Marketplace, Inouye said. The public is welcome and the money raised will go to the foundation, he said.

Reach Eloise Aguiar at eaguiar@honoluluadvertiser.com.