HIstory
Homes for HOPE is the building industry’s response to global poverty. Homebuilder and HOPE International founder, Jeff Rutt established the program in 1998 to invite builders to empower fellow entrepreneurs in developing countries through sustainable solutions to physical and spiritual poverty. “I love building homes, but there’s nothing more rewarding than building lives,” says Rutt. While HOPE International was originally founded to reach one Ukrainian community, Jeff’s dream for HOPE began to grow as the first 12 small-loan recipients successfully built sustainable businesses, provided for their families, and repaid the funds with interest.
As the concept—called microfinance—began to catch on, Jeff needed to raise the capital needed to meet the growing demand. In April 1998, Jeff’s solution came in the form of the very first Home for HOPE. He picked up the phone and began making calls to all of his trades, vendors, and business partners. “Instead of asking for a check, I asked them if they would donate their profit on a job,” he explains. When they said yes, the Homes for Hope program was born. “This is a great way for people to help – these guys are doing what they are talented at doing: running front-end loaders, putting up drywall, designing a structure, or choosing the right appliances. They feel really great about the fact that they’re able to help transform somebody’s life on the other side of the world, by doing what they do for a living right here.”
Mission: Homes for HOPE partners with the building industry to invest in underserved families around the world for their holistic flourishing unto the glory of God.
Method: Building industry partners donate funds generated from domestic building projects to Homes for HOPE, enabling us to support biblically based training, savings services, and loans that restore dignity and break the cycle of poverty.
Motivation: Homes for HOPE exists to love God and love others.
“A Home for Hope is a home built to fight global poverty.”
To fight global poverty, a builder will identify a job to be a Homes for HOPE project. Trade partners, suppliers, and service providers choose to join the project by donating or discounting their time, talent, and resources, which maximizes the profit margin without compromising quality. Once the project is completed, the resulting donation is used to provide training, savings services, and loans to men and women living in poverty, gradually breaking the cycle of poverty.
