MacKenzie Scott has donated $436 million to Habitat for Humanity International —the largest publicly disclosed donation the billionaire has made since pledging to give most of her $54 billion fortune to philanthropic efforts. Scott—the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and one of the richest women in the world—said back in December that she would no longer publicly disclose her donations but gave the beneficiaries permission to do so if they pleased.
Jonathan Reckford, chief executive for Habitat for Humanity International, said his group received $25 million from Scott’s enormous contribution, while the rest of the $411 million will go to 84 local Habitat for Humanity affiliates.
“We could not be more excited to get the gift at a time when, in some ways, the state of housing affordability is the worst that it has been in modern times,” Reckford told The Associated Press.
Reckford revealed that Habitat for Humanity plans to use Scott’s generous donation of unrestricted funds to increase the supply of affordable housing, especially in communities of color.
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Natosha Reid Rice, officer for diversity, equity & inclusion at the organization, admitted that the donation “amounted to a dream,” and said that the gift will accelerate Habitat for Humanities efforts to increase homeownership in Black communities.
“We have a great opportunity to continue to shape a narrative that’s inclusive, that’s diverse, that promotes equity,” Rice said in a statement. “And it’s not just the equitable access, because that then allows those families to build equity for generations to come. And that’s a very exciting opportunity for us as an organization.”
Scott has been on a charitable spree lately. Last week, the Boys & Girls Clubs Of America announced that they received a jaw-dropping $281 million gift from Scott. Additionally, The Fortune Society—a group aiming to help the formerly incarcerated reenter society —revealed that they too had received a donation from Scott to the tune of $10 million.
The generous philanthropist has given away more than $8.8 billion in less than two years. The donations have helped more than 780 organizations. According to Forbes, Scott has donated more than four times more than her ex-husband has, despite his status as the second richest man in the world with a net worth of roughly $200 billion.
Source: AP, Forbes
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