CEO Jeff Gilbreath to move on from Hawai‘i Community Lending, search opens for new CEO

Jeff Gilbreath announced his decision to move on from his position as chief executive officer of Hawai‘i Community Lending in order to advance affordable housing and community development on a broader scale. The board of directors, led by Board Secretary Kawena Beaupré, will commence a selection process for HCL’s next leader, working with executive search firm Inkinen.

Since HCL’s founding in 2002, Gilbreath and the board have grown the organization into a robust native community development financial institution (CDFI), well-positioned for its next phase of growth. With a $23-million loan fund and 12 months of cash reserves, HCL is financially sound and positioned to scale, ready to serve a greater population of Hawai‘i’s families.

Gilbreath will work closely with HCL throughout the change in leadership, continuing with the organizational development that has been building toward this transition. Once his successor has been hired, Gilbreath will remain with HCL in an advisory capacity for 12 months, as he begins his next chapter as an independent consultant within the local community development sector.

With HCL’s current momentum and readiness, Gilbreath expects that within 10 years, HCL will be a $200-million loan fund serving 250 families with affordable mortgage financing each year. This will offset the outmigration of Hawai‘i-born local residents who are leaving the state because they can’t afford to stay here, according to the announcement.

Under Gilbreath’s leadership and that of his predecessors, the nonprofit mortgage lender has originated 6,559 grants and loans, with more than $203.7 million disbursed, resulting in over 6,500 local and Hawaiian families in homes. In 2025 alone, HCL originated 225 grants and loans, with more than $10 million disbursed, and 225 families in homes. HCL continues to develop new programs to meet the needs of local people, proving that affordable homeownership is achievable through partnerships that lower barriers.

“Over the last 24 years, we have been able to create an innovative affordable homeownership system that puts the needs of our local and Hawaiian families first, prioritizing community well-being over individual wealth and gain,” Gilbreath said. “Our board and our executive leadership team have worked tirelessly to build the organization in a way that leverages funds from local and national investors and develops lasting relationships within the community. The foundation is in place for change within the current affordable homeownership system, and I am honored to have helped lay the groundwork for that change.”

With firm footing, an experienced team and the continued support of its board, partners and investors, HCL remains fully committed to its mission of expanding affordable homeownership opportunities for Hawaiʻi’s local and native Hawaiian families.

“As HCL enters this exciting new chapter, we maintain our focus on serving the community and building on the momentum that has positioned HCL for long-term statewide impact,” said Beaupré, senior vice president and general counsel of Hawai‘i Community Foundation. “We are grateful to Jeff for his 18 years of service and for bringing HCL to this level, helping to ensure that Hawai‘i’s people can stay here, raise their children here, and pass on the legacy of homeownership to future generations.”