{"id":234613,"date":"2026-05-19T13:41:34","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T23:41:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=234613"},"modified":"2026-05-20T08:46:24","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T18:46:24","slug":"lahaina-wildfire-scholarship-helps-hawaii-cc-grad","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2026\/05\/19\/lahaina-wildfire-scholarship-helps-hawaii-cc-grad\/","title":{"rendered":"Lahaina wildfire scholarship helps Â鶹´«Ã½ CC<\/abbr> graduate build future"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 2<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Troy Branco-Liu<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For most of his life, Troy Branco-Liu never imagined leaving Lahaina. However, after the 2023 Maui wildfire upended his community, and a University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> scholarship opened a door he never expected, the Lahainaluna High School graduate found himself starting over at Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> Community College—pursuing an education that would ultimately change the course of his future.<\/p>\n

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“When I was in high school, I didn\u2019t think about leaving,” Branco-Liu said. “I love the place I come from. I\u2019m all about Lahaina. That\u2019s always going to be home to me.”<\/p>\n

Now a 2026 graduate of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> CC<\/abbr>\u2019s Diesel Mechanics program, Branco-Liu says the scholarship helped him discover new opportunities while strengthening his desire to one day bring his skills back home to help his community rebuild.<\/p>\n

Making college possible<\/h2>\n

Following the wildfire that devastated Lahaina, the University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> announced scholarships for every Lahainaluna High School senior in the Class of 2024 to attend any UH<\/abbr> campus. The initiative was later expanded to cover two years at UH<\/abbr> community colleges and four years at UH<\/abbr> universities.<\/p>\n

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Troy Branco-Liu’s Lahainaluna graduation<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For Branco-Liu, the scholarship made college possible during a time of uncertainty for many Lahaina families displaced by the fire. As a first-generation college student, the opportunity helped him envision a future he had never seriously considered before.<\/p>\n

“The scholarship was life-changing,” Branco-Liu said. “It gave me the chance to come here, get my education and do something better for my future.”<\/p>\n

Originally, he planned to enter the workforce immediately after high school.<\/p>\n

“At first I wanted to work right away because I wanted to make money,” he said. “But then I started thinking more about my future and decided college would help me get further.”<\/p>\n

Building a better future<\/h2>\n
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Troy Troy Branco-Liu with Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> CC<\/abbr> Diesel Mechanics Program Instructor Mitchell Soares.
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After researching programs through the UH<\/abbr> system website, he chose Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> CC<\/abbr>\u2019s diesel Mmechanics program<\/a>, drawn to its hands-on learning environment and his longtime interest in mechanics.<\/p>\n

Branco-Liu said one of the biggest influences during his time at Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> CC<\/abbr> was the encouragement he received from instructors and classmates within the close-knit diesel cohort, especially instructor Mitchell Soares.<\/p>\n

“He really cared about us. He wanted you to succeed,” Branco-Liu said.<\/p>\n

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Now preparing to return home with a mechanic job already lined up and a baby boy on the way, Branco-Liu says graduating from Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> CC<\/abbr> represents something bigger than himself.<\/p>\n