WAIMEA — The community is invited to join the blessing and the unveiling of the Earl Bakken Memorial Bench at 10 a.m. Wednesday, June 19, at North Hawaii Community Hospital.
Bakken was a hospital board member, benefactor, and design visionary remembered for his dedication and generosity to NHCH and beyond.
Bakken was also an American engineer, businessman and philanthropist who founded Medtronic, the world’s leading medical technology company, providing lifelong solutions for people with chronic disease.
He developed the first external, battery-operated, transistorized, wearable pacemaker in 1957, marking the start of the biomedical industry in the US.
After a long and successful career and philanthropic life in Minneapolis, he and his wife, Doris, found their home on Hawaii Island and became involved with the health and wellness of the North Hawaii community.