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Lahaina wildfire scholarship helps Hawai'i CC graduate build future in diesel mechanics

Branco-Liu's 'ohana at his graduation from Hawai 'i CC last week.

Troy Branco-Liu is a first-generation college graduate.

The 2026 Hawai'i CC Diesel Mechanics Program graduating cohort.

Branco-Liu says the scholarship he received to attend Hawai'i CC after the fire was life-changing.

Branco-Liu plans to return to Maui to work as a diesel mechanic.

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 HawaiÊ»i scholarship opened a door he never expected, the Lahainaluna High School graduate found himself starting over at HawaiÊ»i Community College—pursuing an education that would ultimately change the course of his future.

“When I was in high school, I didn’t think about leaving,” Branco-Liu said. “I love the place I come from. I’m all about Lahaina. That’s always going to be home to me.”

Now a 2026 graduate of HawaiÊ»i CC’s 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.

Making college possible

Following the wildfire that devastated Lahaina, the University of HawaiÊ»i announced scholarships for every Lahainaluna High School senior in the Class of 2024 to attend any ÌÇÐÄVlog¹Ù·½ campus. The initiative was later expanded to cover two years at ÌÇÐÄVlog¹Ù·½ community colleges and four years at ÌÇÐÄVlog¹Ù·½ universities.

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.

“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.”

Originally, he planned to enter the workforce immediately after high school.

“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.”

Building a better future

After researching programs through the ÌÇÐÄVlog¹Ù·½ system website, he chose HawaiÊ»i CC’s Diesel Mechanics program, drawn to its hands-on learning environment and his longtime interest in mechanics. Branco-Liu said one of the biggest influences during his time at HawaiÊ»i CC was the encouragement he received from instructors and classmates within the close-knit diesel cohort, especially instructor Mitchell Soares.

“He really cared about us. He wanted you to succeed,” Branco-Liu said. 

Now preparing to return home with a mechanic job already lined up and a baby boy on the way, Branco-Liu says graduating from Hawaiʻi CC represents something bigger than himself.

“I’m the first person in my family to graduate from college,” he said. “HawaiÊ»i CC gave me the opportunity to prove to myself that I could do more and build a better future.”