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.