Beyond the American Dream

Millard Fuller was the author of eleven books and awarded more than a dozen honorary doctorate degrees. He was a millionaire before age thirty and gave away his entire fortune before he was forty. He was a lawyer, a friend to presidents and world leaders, and an advocate for the poor. He was a husband, father, and grandfather. He was a tall, skinny kid with big ears from Lanett, Alabama. He was founder of Habitat for Humanity and the Fuller Center for Housing, both movements organized to eliminate substandard housing worldwide. Because of his unfailing vision and tenacity, Millard was responsible for sheltering more than a million people who had been living in poverty.

When Millard left business at age thirty and turned his life in a new direction, he began writing an autobiography. He kept a journal in his desk and wrote in detail about his business and law ventures. In 1968, Millard finished the story of his journey from pauper to millionaire to home builder. In 1970, a publisher offered to consider the book “at a later time,” and the manuscript was packed away. His wife, Linda, occasionally would ask him about getting it published, but Millard would reply, “Not now. I’m too busy.”

This is that story.

Millard Fuller was the founder and president of Habitat for Humanity for 29 years prior to founding The Fuller Center for Housing in 2005. Fuller’s business expertise and entrepreneurial drive made him a millionaire by age 29. Then, after a re-dedication of his life to family and to following God’s path, Fuller and his wife, Linda, decided to sell their possessions and give their money to the poor. Following mission work in Africa, the Fullers founded Habitat for Humanity in Americus, Georgia, in 1976. Beyond the American Dream is the first of eleven books that Fuller wrote during his lifetime. He received numerous awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America’s highest civilian award, and more than fifty honorary doctorate degrees for his outstanding leadership toward meeting the goal of eliminating poverty housing worldwide.