You’ve seen the blue shirts. You’ve probably seen a former President wielding a hammer on a dusty construction site. But if you think a bunch of corporate executives sat in a boardroom to figure out who started Habitat for Humanity, you’re actually way off. It didn’t start in a skyscraper. It started on a radical, communal farm in Georgia where people were basically trying to live like the early Christians in the Bible. It was messy. It was controversial. Honestly, it was dangerous.
Millard and Linda Fuller are the names you’ll find in the history books. They’re the official founders. But they didn't just wake up one day with a global non-profit template. They were millionaires who got sick of being millionaires. Millard was a marketing genius—a guy who made his first million by the time he was 29. He was selling everything from tractor cushions to cookbooks. He was successful, sure, but his marriage was falling apart. Linda was ready to leave.
So, they did something wild. They gave it all away.
They sold their possessions, donated the money, and went looking for a soul. That search led them to Koinonia Farm. This is where the real "who" behind the "who started Habitat for Humanity" gets interesting, because they met a man named Clarence Jordan.
The Koinonia Connection: Where the seed was planted
Clarence Jordan was a Greek scholar with a PhD in the New Testament and a degree in agriculture. He was a powerhouse. In 1942, he founded Koinonia Farm in Americus, Georgia. It was a "demonstration plot" for the Kingdom of God. In the 1950s and 60s in the deep South, that meant black and white families living together, eating at the same table, and getting paid the same wages.
Local folks hated it.
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The farm was shot at. It was firebombed. The KKK tried to run them out of town. But Jordan stayed. When Millard and Linda Fuller arrived in 1965, they weren't looking to start a housing charity; they were looking for a way to live that actually meant something. Jordan and the Fullers started talking about "partnership housing."
The idea was simple but radical for the time. They’d build houses with the poor, not for them. No profit. No interest. It was based on a specific verse in Exodus about not charging interest to the poor. They called it the "Fund for Humanity." They built the first house for a man named Beauford Reese and his family. It wasn't a gift. It was a partnership.
Moving to Africa and the Birth of a Global Giant
By 1973, the Fullers took these "partnership housing" ideas to Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo). They spent three years there proving that this model could work anywhere, not just in rural Georgia. It wasn't just about hammers and nails. It was about dignity. When they came back to the States in 1976, they officially launched Habitat for Humanity International.
It started small. Really small.
For years, it was a grassroots effort that most people hadn't heard of. Then came Jimmy Carter. In 1984, the former President showed up in New York City with a work belt. He didn't just give a speech; he worked on a tenement building. That was the tipping point. Suddenly, everyone knew about the organization, and the question of who started Habitat for Humanity became a national conversation. Carter gave it the celebrity fuel it needed, but the engine was always the Fullers' relentless, sometimes stubborn, drive.
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Millard Fuller was a complicated guy. He was intense. He had a "divine impatience," as he called it. He didn't want to build ten houses; he wanted to eliminate poverty housing from the face of the earth. That kind of vision makes people uncomfortable. It's why, eventually, there was a massive rift between him and the board of directors he helped create.
The Split Nobody Likes to Talk About
In 2005, things got ugly. After decades of leading the charge, Millard and Linda Fuller were fired by the Habitat for Humanity board. There were allegations of "inappropriate conduct" regarding a female employee, which Millard vehemently denied and were never legally proven in a way that led to charges. The real conflict, according to many insiders, was a massive power struggle over the direction of the organization. The board wanted a more corporate, traditional non-profit structure. Millard wanted to keep it a radical movement.
It was a messy divorce.
The Fullers didn't just retire, though. They started the Fuller Center for Housing. They kept building. Millard died in 2009, but his legacy is literally built into the walls of millions of homes worldwide. When you look at the scale of Habitat today—operating in all 50 U.S. states and over 70 countries—it’s easy to forget that it started with three people in a dusty field talking about how to be better neighbors.
How the Habitat Model Actually Works (It’s Not a Giveaway)
One of the biggest misconceptions about the people who started Habitat for Humanity is that they were creating a giveaway program. It isn't. If you get a Habitat house, you’re paying for it. You’re just not paying interest, and you’re putting in "sweat equity."
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- Sweat Equity: Families usually have to put in hundreds of hours of labor. They help build their own house and the houses of their neighbors.
- The Mortgage: Homeowners pay a monthly mortgage. That money goes back into the "Fund for Humanity" to build the next house. It’s a self-perpetuating cycle.
- Selection Process: You don't just sign up. Families are selected based on their level of need, their willingness to partner, and their ability to pay the no-interest mortgage.
It's a brilliant business model, honestly. By removing the profit motive and the interest burden, you make homeownership possible for people who would never qualify for a traditional bank loan.
Actionable Steps for Getting Involved
If you’re inspired by the story of the Fullers and Clarence Jordan, you don't have to be a millionaire to help. You just need to show up.
Locate your local affiliate. Habitat for Humanity isn't one giant monolith; it's a network of local offices. Find the one in your city. They handle the builds in your backyard.
Sign up for a build day. You don't need to know how to use a miter saw. They have site supervisors who will teach you. You might spend the day painting, or you might spend it framing a closet. It’s incredibly grounding to see a house go up from nothing.
Shop at a ReStore. This is the secret weapon of the organization. ReStores sell donated furniture, appliances, and building materials to the public. The proceeds go directly toward building more houses. It’s a great way to find cheap DIY supplies while funding the mission.
Advocate for land use. The biggest hurdle for Habitat today isn't a lack of volunteers; it's a lack of affordable land. Support local zoning changes that allow for denser, more affordable housing in your community. That’s how the spirit of the original founders stays alive in 2026.
The story of who started Habitat for Humanity is ultimately a story about what happens when you stop talking about problems and start picking up a hammer. It took a marketing maverick, a determined wife, and a radical preacher to change how the world thinks about shelter. They proved that housing isn't just a commodity—it's a basic human right.