A Maine native who works at the high school in Lahaina on the island of Maui is trying to help fellow islanders affected by the wildfire last week that destroyed almost every building in the coastal community and left more than 100 confirmed dead.

Jonathan Conrad, who grew up in Camden and is a 1993 graduate of Camden Hills Regional High School, is the athletic director at Lahainaluna High School.

Conrad, 48, was not injured and his home, located about 30 minutes from Lahaina in the town of Wailuku, was not damaged. But many of Conrad’s colleagues lost homes and loved ones in last week’s wildfire, which killed more than 100 people.

Desperate to provide help, Conrad asked his sister to inform Mainers more than 5,000 miles away about how they can provide help to wildfire victims.

Conrad moved to Maui 25 years ago after graduating from Springfield College in Massachusetts, where he studied athletic training, according to his sister, Heather Conrad DiGirolamo of Biddeford.

“My brother threw himself into Hawaiian life and made it his home,” DiGirolamo said in a telephone interview Monday.

Lahainaluna High School sits on a hill overlooking Lahaina. It did not burn, but strong winds reaching 100 mph may have caused some damage, DiGirolamo said.

She spoke briefly with her brother on Sunday, the first time they had spoken by telephone since the town burned on Aug. 8. Prior to that, Conrad had texted his sister and their parents, who still live in Camden, to let them know he and his wife were safe.

“Students who attend the school as well as teachers and administrators have been terribly impacted, many of them losing their homes as well as family members,” DiGirolamo wrote in an email to the Press Herald. “We are fortunate that Jon and his family are safe and we are determined to aid those in the area who have not been so fortunate.”

On the morning the wildfire struck, Conrad went to the high school and helped boarding students shelter there. He then went out to buy pizza to feed the students, but was unable to return to the high school after roads were shut down.

An email sent to Conrad on Monday night was not answered. His sister later explained that the state Department of Education has ordered Conrad and employees of the Lahaina school system not to talk to the media about the wildfires.

“He has been 100% consumed by helping the people in that town,” DiGirolamo said. “I am just trying to honor his wishes by spreading the word.”

DiGirolamo offered a couple of options for Mainers who want to help victims of the wildfire.

Donations can be made to the Lahainaluna High School Foundation, and contributors who visit the website should check the “Greatest Need” column when prompted about how they want their donation used, according to DiGirolamo.

DiGirolamo said she was told that Lahaina’s elementary school was destroyed by the wildfire, which means those students may have to start taking classes at the high school.

Another option would be to make underwear donations to Conrad and DiGirolamo’s parents, Jan and Bill Conrad of Camden.

With “Operation Undercover,” the Conrads are sending packages of new underwear (shipping donations are welcomed) to Maui for distribution at shelters. The Conrads can be reached at: Operation Undercover, 21 Central St., Camden, Maine 04842.

Donations of athletic socks will also benefit Lahainaluna High School athletes who are participating in fall sports. The mailing address is 980 Lahainaluna Road, Lahaina, HI 96761.

DiGirolamo, a 1990 graduate of Camden High School, said her brother has formed a deep bond with Hawaii and its people.

“He loves Hawaii, the people, the climate. He will only come home to Maine in the summer months,” she said. “He has turned into a Hawaiian.”

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