On Friday, October 3rd, 2025, the Department of Fire & Public Safety celebrated the graduation of the 41st Firefighter Recruit Class.

The twenty-one firefighter recruits graduated from the Maui Fire Department's 27-week Recruit Training Program. The program is designed to educate, train, and evaluate fire recruits on the many skills and disciplines necessary to serve the public as a firefighter.

The 41st Recruit Class was comprised of 21 firefighter trainees: Casey Abe, Arjay Campo, Steven Cosma, Ryan Dalut, Angel Diaz, Michael Douglas, James Fenton, Pono Freitas, Keegan Gregg, Kai Hasegawa, Jacob Julian, Kupa'a Luat-Hueu, Finn McAfee, Cameron McElroy, Rico Montoya, Jason Pierson, Beau Ramos, Kainalu Rundle, Kyle Sparks, Dion Valdez, Garret Weishaar.

Twenty-one newly sworn-in firefighters will be joining the ranks with the Maui Fire Department and will be assigned to Maui County fire stations on Maui, Molokai, and Lanai.

Recruits received their badges and took their oath in a long-awaited ceremony. Each recruit selected a special family member to carry out the traditional "Pinning of the Badge." The ceremony was attended by Fire Chiefs from Maui County, as well as dignitaries representing Maui County and the State of Hawaii.

Graduating recruits were presented with the following awards, recognizing those who finished at the top of their class in the following categories:

Academics Award – Kai Hasegawa – Presented to the recruit with the highest scholastic average on all written course examinations administered throughout the training program.

Functional Skills – Michael Douglas – Presented to the recruit who demonstrated the highest competency in functional skills assessments throughout the training program.

Firefighter Spirit, Ho'ulu Award – Dion Valdez  – Named in honor of the late Fire Captain Charles Iwata, this award honors the true passion and firefighter spirit that Captain Iwata was so widely known for. This award is presented to the recruit who displayed a high moral character and exceptional attitude, and whose conduct expresses respect and heart towards others, and to the firefighting profession.

Most Outstanding, Overall – Beau Ramos – Selected by recruit training officers, this award is presented to the recruit that excelled in every phase of recruit training, demonstrated outstanding leadership ability, and projected an exceptional attitude.

Outstanding Team – Kupa'a Luat-Hueu and Jacob Julian – This award is presented to the two-person team who demonstrated the ability to work through hands-on drills expediently and efficiently.