System and method for providing hold-up power to a load

A power system (10) and method includes a power source (12); one or more loads (22) that receive power from the power source; a boost circuit (14) for stepping up an input voltage from a primary power source (12); a capacitor (16) for storing a stepped up voltage from the boost circuit (14); and a buck circuit (18) for stepping down a voltage from the capacitor (16), and providing a stepped down voltage to the one or more loads (22) when the power source (12) is unavailable.