Maintaining and renovating a 120-year-old plantation-era seminary building—which is now the site of the Maui Job Corps Center—is no easy task. Add constant exposure to high winds, tropical rains, and Pacific salt air, and you get the picture.

It’s a challenging, yet rewarding work environment for Maui maintenance staff Braden George and Sam Albert. The dynamic island environment provides these men countless opportunities to use their skills. And Braden and Sam have a better understanding of the Job Corps program and its intricacies than most. You see, they are not only valuable staff members—they were once Job Corps students.

Braden is a 1998 building and apartment maintenance graduate from Hawaii’s main center campus on Oahu. He went on to become a maintenance technician at Mama’s Fish house, one of Maui’s premier fine dining restaurants and strong Job Corps supporter.

“I’m glad to be here and to be giving back what I have learned to the students.”

Sam was a 2015 Maui site facility maintenance student who went on to overhead linesmen advanced training at the Oneanta Job Corps Center in New York.

“It’s good to be back and working with the new students. Everything is great!”

We asked their supervisor, AJ DeLima, how he feels about having two former Job Corps graduates on his maintenance team.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way. Former students can make the best staff because they understand the program from a student’s prospective. Look at how successful the staff, that are Job Corps graduates, have been here. Braden and Sam play an important and impactful role in students’ lives. Facilities maintenance students at the Maui center are assigned to work directly with them during on-site, work-based learning projects. They are able to supervise, train, and mentor the facilities maintenance students and can empathize with them in ways other staff cannot. This collaborative student-centered training approach has increased the success rate of facilities maintenance trainees.”