Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan have donated $1.48 million to Hawaii’s Wilcox Medical Center, the latest contribution in what Chan described as a 10-year philanthropic relationship with the island community of Kauaʻi.
The donation was made via the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and will help fund a mobile MRI unit and a new 3D mammography machine at Wilcox Medical Center, according to Hawaii Pacific Health. The gift comes as Chan reflects on a decade of philanthropy in Kauaʻi. In a message published by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Chan said, “What began as a desire to give back to a place we call home has grown into lasting partnerships with organizations dedicated to strengthening communities, caring for local families, and stewarding the people and places that make Kauaʻi so special.According to the initiative, 2026 marks 10 years of philanthropic work on Kauaʻi, with more than $100 million committed to over 100 local organisations and more than $57 million invested directly on the island.
Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan funding healthcare infrastructure
Wilcox Medical Center said the $1.48 million donation will support two key imaging projects. The donation made by Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan will pay for a MRI unit and a new 3D mammography machine. The mobile unit for MRI will work as a stopgap while the hospital renovates its existing MRI suite which is said to complete in coming eight months.
For the uninitiated, Wilcox performs more than 4,000 MRI scans a year, and the temporary unit will keep those exams available during the work.
The 3D mammography unit, along with the room renovations needed to install it, will support breast cancer screening. Wilcox says it was the first medical center on Kauaʻi to offer 3D mammograms, in 2010, and it performed more than 8,500 mammograms last year. The hospital notes that the clearer 3D images are especially valuable in Hawaiʻi, where many women have dense breast tissue.Wilcox CEO Jen Chahanovich said the couple has repeatedly stepped forward to make sure the community has access to the best medical technology.
More than $4 million donated to Wilcox by Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
According to Hawaii Pacific Health, the latest contribution is the couple’s second donation specifically aimed at expanding imaging technology at the hospital. Chan, a paediatrician, and Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Meta Platforms, have now made five contributions to Wilcox programmes and services totalling more than $4 million.Previous donations have supported telemedicine initiatives, Covid-19 relief efforts, and renovations of the Wilcox Emergency Department and Trauma Center.
Health care the biggest focus
Health and wellbeing is the largest area of investment. It includes a $10 million commitment to the University of Hawaiʻi medical school’s Kauaʻi Medical Training Track, which offers full tuition scholarships to future physicians who agree to practice on the island after residency.
The program has 22 doctors in training and has graduated its first cohort of five. Support has also gone to a new CT scanner at Wilcox, urgent care expansion on the North Shore, and mental health services for families.
Housing, schools and local jobs
Beyond health, the couple’s giving has covered affordable housing, which accounts for nearly a quarter of the total, along with education and youth, food production and distribution, workforce development, cultural lands and emergency relief.
Most grants from the Chan Zuckerberg Kauaʻi Community Fund of the Hawaiʻi Community Foundation are unrestricted, so nonprofits can decide how to spend them. Koʻolau Ranch, the couple’s island home, has created 189 local jobs, the initiative said.
‘Meaningful giving begins with listening’
In her message marking the decade-long milestone, Chan said the family’s approach has been shaped by conversations with residents, community leaders and service providers.
“Throughout the past ten years, we’ve learned that meaningful giving begins with listening,” she wrote.The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative said its Kauaʻi philanthropy has supported 101 organisations through 296 grants, focusing on areas including health and wellbeing, affordable housing, education, workforce development, food security and emergency relief.Chan added that the chance to learn from, volunteer with and build relationships across the community had been “one of the greatest gifts of this journey.”