The Island of Maui and the state of Hawaii are beloved by many, including a Rochester couple, who are praying for the residents there after wildfires devastated the island.

Hawaiian performers who live in Rochester but spend as much as one to three months each year in their beloved Hawaii say their hearts are in Hawaii.

“We love Hawaii. We love the Hawaiian people and we consider ourselves part of that culture," said Victoria Ka’iulani Visiko, a teacher of hula dance and Hawaiian culture. Her husband, Wayne Knox, is a musician.

The couple has many friends in Hawaii, including on the island of Maui.

"They actually post, ‘I’m okay, I’m safe’ … and we just correspond back and forth," said Victoria.

The couple struggles to see the death and destruction of the wildfires.

“I spend nights trying to figure out how to help," said Victoria, “Devastation. Tears. I still can’t think about it without crying. And what can I do? What can we do to help? And it’s mindboggling and overwhelming to think, what significant thing can we do to actually help all of our friends and ‘ohana to actually survive this," said Victoria.

The Red Cross and FEMA are on the ground in Hawaii helping survivors, as the search for victims continues.

Victoria says the Hawaiian people are strong.

“They will come together and they will rebuild, hopefully not with hotels but with heiau, which are structures that revere the Gods of Hawaii and because they’re going to need that strength to come together.”

“The Islands are fragile and they need to be protected," said Wayne Knox.

The couple celebrated their 47th wedding anniversary in Hawaii about a month ago. They are looking into ways to help, and leaning on their music and dance to help them cope.