HONOLULU — The General Contractors Association of Hawaii (GCA) and its sister organization, the General Contractors Labor Association (GCLA), donated a total of $50,000 to the Hawaii Community Foundation’s Maui Strong Fund to support Maui residents impacted the wildfires.

The board of directors of both the GCA and GCLA voted unanimously in favor of each organization contributing $25,000.

GCA represents more than 500 general contractors, subcontractors and construction-related firms statewide. The GCLA represents unionized general contractors, including some of the largest contracting firms in the state, such as Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company, Nordic PCL Construction, Hensel Phelps, and Goodfellow Bros. The primary purpose of the GCLA is to support unionized general contractors statewide with labor relations.

“Our hearts go out to those in Lahaina who are grieving over the loss of their loved ones, their community and their jobs. Their lives have abruptly changed, and their pain and sorrow must be overwhelming,” said Cheryl Walthall, executive director of the GCA.

“We know that many of our member companies are individually supporting nonprofit organizations involved in Maui’s relief and recovery efforts, but they also wanted to do even more together as an industry.”

Steve Baginski, 2023 GCA president, added, “Every day, we hear about new challenges facing those on Maui. We wanted to do our part to support our Maui colleagues and their families and friends who have been affected by the fires.”