Philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has donated $436 million to Habitat for Humanity.
Calling it a “transformational donation”, Jonathan Reckford, CEO of Habitat for Humanity International, said:
“This incredibly generous gift will allow us to dramatically increase capacity and implement programs that will have a multi-generational impact on communities around the U.S. and our global mission for many years to come.”
Ms. Scott has given away $8 billion in the past two years to hundreds of charities, after a divorce from Jeff Bezos left her with 4% of Amazon’s shares. She has signed the Giving Pledge, through which many billionaires have promised to donate more than half their wealth.
84 Habitat affiliates in the U.S. will receive the bulk of the donation, while the International nonprofit will use its $25 million portion to fundamentally increase the supply of affordable housing, and advocate for policy proposals and legislation that enable access to affordable housing through its Cost of Home campaign.
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Funding also will be used to advance research and measurement efforts to identify best practices in areas such as preserving home affordability and housing innovation, and to explore how new and existing programs lead to better outcomes for individuals and families.
Additionally, the unrestricted gifts support the nonprofit’s global work through the organization’s tithe program. U.S. Habitat organizations tithed nearly US$14 million to support Habitat’s work around the world last year, and the Tithe International Disasters Fund has already committed $200,000 in support of Habitat’s initial response to refugees fleeing Ukraine.
Since its founding in 1976, the Christian housing organization, for which former US president Jimmy Carter has provided countless days of manual labor with his hammer, has expanded to all 50 states in the U.S. and in more than 70 countries.
Families and individuals who need a hand-up partner with Habitat to build or renovate their own homes alongside volunteers—and they always pay an affordable mortgage, which helps to build more housing for others.
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