Following last week’s devastating wildfires on the Hawai‘ian island of Maui—in which at least 99 people have died with an estimated 1,000 people reported missing and the historic community of Lahaina, home to 13,000 residents, was destroyed—philanthropic support for humanitarian aid and disaster relief has begun to take shape.

High-net-worth individuals, particularly those with property on the island, have made early pledges to support relief efforts, Forbes reports. Most notably, Lauren Sánchez, Jeff Bezos’ fiancée and vice chair of the Bezos Earth Fund, has announced the couple's $100 million commitment to create a fund in support of immediate needs “to help Maui get back on its feet now,” and longer-term rebuilding “over the coming years as the continuing needs reveal themselves.”

Commitments from part-time locals include support from several Giving Pledge signatories, including $1 million from PXG, a sporting goods company led by signatory Bob Parsons, to Team Rubicon, a veteran-led disaster relief organization, and $1 million from Steve Case, whose Kuai-based Grove Farm Foundation will direct funds to World Central Kitchen, the American Red Cross, and the Salvation Army. Priscilla Chan, co-CEO of the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative and wife of Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg, announced a contribution for an undisclosed amount to the Hawaiʻi Community Foundation (HCF), which separately has raised $1 million, including $500,000 from Pierre and Pam Omidyar.

The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation, based in Maryland, but with an office in Honolulu, has contributed $850,000 for disaster relief including $500,000 to HCF, $250,000 to Vibrant Hawaiʻi, and $100,000 to Jewish Community Services of Hawaiʻi.

The Home Depot Foundation has committed up to $500,000 to support immediate wildfire relief and long-term recovery efforts in Maui, bringing the foundation’s nationwide disaster response commitments to $5.6 million in 2023.

Other pledges of support have come from Harpo Productions founder Oprah Winfrey, who was seen in Maui donating emergency supplies to shelters in the disaster area, and whose spokesperson told Forbes that Winfrey “will do more, as it becomes clear which funds can be the most helpful for the short-term and long-term rebuilding.” A spokesperson from Maddie’s Fund, an animal welfare foundation established by software developer David Duffield, wrote to Forbes that Duffield is “working with the Maui Humane Society to ease the suffering of Maui’s companion animals,” but did not disclose the amount of the fund’s contributions.

GlobalGiving’s Hawaii Wildfire Relief Fund has raised over $250,000 to date, to provide food, water, and emergency medical supplies to people and animals, temporary relief and emergency supplies for displaced families, and support to firefighters and other frontline workers.

Organizations that have also established funds for Maui wildfire disaster relief include HCF, the Center for Disaster Philanthropy, the Salvation Army, the American Red Cross, and the Jewish Federations of North America.

On August 10, the federal government approved a disaster declaration for Maui County, which authorizes federal aid to supplement near- and long-term state and local recovery efforts. Federal assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other programs to help individuals and business owners recover from the effects of the disaster.

(Photo credit: Wikimedia/Hawaii National Guard/Master Sgt. Andrew Jackson)