Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Extreme Makover? Extreme Debacle

Extreme Makover: Home Edition helps needy, often destitute, families by "making over" their homes and helping them to rebuild their lives. Local contractors and neighbors often donate hundreds of hours and hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of supplies and labor.

The biggest house that Extreme Makover ever built is now in foreclosure. The family received a new home, money to cover the taxes for 25 years, a home maintenance fund, and college scholarships for each of their kids. 1,800 volunteers came out to help build their house. The family used the home as collateral for a $450,000 loan, and they've defaulted on that loan. They said they took out the loan to start a business.

When non-profit organizations receive a gift, they are obligated to responsibly steward that gift. I think that individuals who receive a gift have the same responsibility. While I don't know all the details, it seems to me that this family acted in an incredibly irresponsible manner.

I've always thought that there's no such thing as having enough money, because whatever amount you have (whether it's a lot or a little), you'll always want more. Case in point.

No comments: