Hawaii
Here’s What Happened To Jeff Bezos’ $100 Million Pledge Toward Hawaii’s Recovery
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos andLauren Sánchez, his fiance
The Amazon founder made a very public commitment to help rebuild Maui after the August wildfires. Here’s the progress since then.
Last August, days after wind-propelled wildfires destroyed whole neighborhoods and killed 100 people on the Hawaiian island of Maui, billionaire Jeff Bezos’ fiancé Lauren Sánchez announced that the couple was launching a $100 million fund for Maui wildfire relief.
“Jeff and I are heartbroken by what’s happening on Maui. …The immediate needs are important, and so is the longer term rebuilding that will have to happen–even after much of the attention has subsided,” Sánchez wrote in a post on Instagram. The couple know the island well; Bezos has a home on Maui to the south of where the fires hit.
But in the months that followed the tragic fires, details about the distribution of that $100 million fund were nonexistent. Until now.
Neal Karlinsky, a spokesperson for Bezos, told Forbes that nine Hawaii-based charities have been given a total of $15.5 million from the Bezos Maui Fund, including the Boys and Girls Club of Maui and the Maui Food Bank.
Marlene Rice, development director at the Maui Food Bank, would not disclose the amount that her organization received. But she said via email that “The Maui Food Bank has enjoyed a long-standing partnership with Jeff Bezos in helping the hungry in Maui County. We are extremely grateful to him and Lauren Sanchez … Their most recent generous gift …[is] allowing us to provide essential support to the community during these challenging times.”
The other recipients to date are the Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization, Maui Humane Society, Lele Aloha and Hawaii Green Growth, both environmental protection and rehabilitation nonprofits; the Haleakala Watershed Restoration Partnership, which works to restore dryland forests on Maui; the Kahalawai Watershed Partnership, which helps protect Hawaii’s natural waterways; and the East Maui Watershed Partnership, a forest preservation organization.
The Maui Humane Society, Hawaii Green Growth, and Kahalawai Watershed Partnership confirmed that they received donations, but did not disclose the amount they received.
Bezos’ spokesperson Karlinsky declined to reveal how much each charity received. More funding will be distributed, Karlinsky clarified: “As the original announcement made clear, the $100 million will be gifted over the coming years as the continuing needs reveal themselves.”
Bezos, who is currently the third richest person in the world worth about $192 billion, owns a home on an estimated 14 acres of land on Maui worth $78 million. He also lent his helicopter to the Maui fire department, which it used to shuttle workers to affected areas where land and sea access was unfeasible. “The Maui Fire Department would like to express a big mahalo to Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez for their extremely generous offer to use their helicopter since August 13th,” the Maui Fire Department said in an Instagram post in September.
Bezos is one of several billionaires and celebrities who donated millions to aid the fire recovery efforts. Oprah Winfrey, also a Maui property owner, donated $10 million to the Peoples Fund of Maui, which she set up with actor Dwayne Johnson.
Bezos’ biggest philanthropic commitment is the Bezos Earth Fund, a $10 billion pledge over a decade with the goal of driving climate solutions. He announced the fund in early 2020 and to date the Earth Fund made a total of $1.85 billion in grants. Bezos also supports tuition-free preschools for low-income families through Bezos Academies; the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund gives to groups that help homeless families find a permanent home and services. His charitable donations to date make him one of the biggest philanthropists in the U.S., per Forbes’ new list of America’s Biggest Givers. But his charitable giving as a percent of his net worth is still in the low single digits.
Hawaii
What’s Cooking: Celebrating Lunar New Year with Hawaii Dim Sum & Seafood
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A family-run Chinese restaurant in Honolulu’s Chinatown is gearing up for Lunar New Year festivities.
Hawaii Dim Sum & Seafood Restaurant owner Karen Tam and her son Kirave Liang joined HNN’s Sunrise to showcase their dim sum and Chinese specialties.
Lunar New Year specials include a special jai with 18 vegetarian ingredients and the sweet, sticky, steamed rice cake gau in brown sugar and coconut flavors, which symbolize good fortune and prosperity.
”We eat food with a lucky meaning to start the great year,” Tam said. “We have jin dui (sesame balls) every day.“
Feb. 17 marks the start of the year of the Fire Horse, when families gather to celebrate with big meals and auspicious dishes. Hawaii Dim Sum & Seafood will offer set party menus and special orders for foods not commonly found in Honolulu, such as whole stuffed duck, braised abalone in oyster sauce, and basin meal.
“It’s the biggest fest of the year. We celebrate Chinese New Year by eating with family in a round table,“ Tam said.
Hawaii Dim Sum & Seafood also has private rooms with karaoke systems and a banquet hall to accommodate small family gatherings to large parties.
Hawaii Dim Sum & Seafood is located on 111 N. King St. and is open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily, There is street parking and paid parking behind the restaurant on Nimitz and Maunakea.
For more information, visit hawaiidimsumseafood.com or follow on Instagram @hawaiidimsumseafood.
Copyright 2026 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.
Hawaii
Hawaii suffers first defeat of the season against Loyola Chicago | Honolulu Star-Advertiser
Hawaii
2026 Sony Open field is announced. See who’s playing in Hawaii
The Sony Open in Hawaii has the honors of being the kickoff event to the 2026 PGA Tour season after the cancellation of The Sentry at Kapalua this season.
Instead of Maui, the Tour debuts in Honolulu on the island of Oahu, Jan. 15-18, at the Seth Raynor-designed Waialae Country Club, where Nick Taylor prevailed in a playoff over Nico Echavarria last year.
Among the changes this season is the field size, which was reduced from 144 to 120, and, there is no longer is a Monday qualifier offering four spots. Will that help with pace of play? Stay tuned.
The field includes the following notables in addition to Taylor and Echavarria: Daniel Berger, Keegan Bradley, Michael Brennan, Corey Conners, Tony Finau, Chris Gotterup, Brian Harman, Russell Henley, Billy Horschel, Robert MacIntyre, Collin Morikawa, Adam Scott, Jordan Spieth, Sahith Theegala, Gary Woodland and 62-year-old Vijay Singh.
Here’s the full field for the Sony Open, which will be live on Golf Channel all four days as well as NBC with early-round coverage on Saturday and Sunday.
This year’s Sony purse is $9.1 million and the winner also will receive 500 FedEx Cup points.
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