David “Buddy” Nobriga
Year Inducted: 2001
Nobriga’s Ranch | Maui
Buddy’s grandfather, Antone Nobriga, came to Maui from Portugal in 1886 and worked for Wailuku Sugar Company. He later got a lease on 700 acres of territorial land. It was the beginning of Nobriga’s Ranch in Kahakuloa, which continues today. Buddy learned to be a cowboy on the job, working with his grandfather and father and later his uncles. They litteraly carved their ranch out of some of the roughest land in Kahakuloa, pulling out scrub with their hands when they had to. But hard work doesn’t stop a Nobriga. They even moved their entire ranching operation to Haiku and back. Over the years, Nobriga’s Ranch became a true family operation, with brothers, sons, daughters, anties, uncles – everybody involved. While always continuing to cull and breed a better brand of cow, the Nobriga’s built a feed lot operation that provided a service for other island ranchers. Buddy wasn’t always the CEO of Nobriga’s Ranch as he is today. He has held positions as stable boy, cowboy, horse breaker, truck and tractor driver. And while he was doing all that, he was also serving his country as an army seargant and working for Maui Soda Works, becoming its chairman of the board and retiring after 51 years. Over those years Buddy has been president of the Maui Cattlemen’s Association and the Hawaii Cattlemen’s Council and been a member of several water, resource and conservation district agencies and associations. Today, at 75 years young, Buddy Nobriga likes to spend his spare time at Kaupo Ranch, assisting as - you guessed it - a cowboy.