George E. Norcross III is donating $100 million to Camden, N.J.-based Cooper University Health Care and MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, marking the largest philanthropic gift in the health system’s history.
Seven things to know:
1. The funding will support investments in Camden and Cooper’s broader South Jersey service area, with a focus on education and community programs that create jobs, training opportunities and economic mobility.
2. The gift comes as Cooper pursues several major expansion projects. In January 2025, the system launched Project Imagine, a $3 billion expansion of its Camden campus. Plans include an expanded MD Anderson Cancer Center at Cooper, three new patient towers with up to 745 private inpatient beds, a new emergency department, additional surgical capacity and expanded neonatal intensive care services. Cooper has also announced plans for a $300 million multispecialty outpatient campus in Gloucester Township, N.J., and a broader expansion in Cape May and Atlantic counties.
3. Mr. Norcross serves as chair of Cooper’s board of trustees. He has served on the board since 1990 and is the longest-serving chair and board officer in the system’s history. The Norcross family’s involvement with Cooper began with Mr. Norcross’ father, who served on the hospital’s board from 1976 to 1983. Cooper said the family’s service spans more than 50 years and three generations.
4. In recognition of that history, the health system plans to add the Norcross name. The health system did not specify which facilities or programs would be renamed.
5. In 2024, Cooper acquired Cape Regional Health System, creating a combined organization with more than 900 licensed beds, nearly $3 billion in annual revenue and more than 130 ambulatory locations across eight counties.
6. Cooper now operates three hospitals: 663-bed Cooper University Hospital in Camden, 229-bed Cooper University Hospital Cape Regional in Cape May Court House, N.J., and Children’s Regional Hospital in Camden.
7. The health system employs nearly 14,000 people, including more than 1,200 employed physicians, and records more than 2.5 million patient visits annually.
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