The Mays Family Foundation has committed $5 million to the San Antonio Zoo in support of its Generation Zoo capital campaign, the San Antonio Business Journal reports. 

The gift will support the first phase of a planned multiyear zoo expansion, which includes new animal habitats, amenities, and gathering areas. Among the expansion projects is a 60-foot gorilla tower—which will be named in honor of the Mays gift—connecting Congo Falls to the Ralston event center.

“My father would have been very proud of the zoo and its ability to continue to grow and serve San Antonio,” Kathryn Mays Johnson told the San Antonio Business Journal. “Dad’s personal connection to the zoo dates back to his childhood, when his mother used to drive him and his sister from Dallas to visit.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images/galitskaya)