Real-Estate Mogul Pledges $100-Million to Habitat for Humanity International

Habitat for Humanity International has announced a $100-million pledge from J. Ronald Terwilliger, chairman of Trammell Crow Residential, a Dallas real-estate company. Mr. Terwilliger serves as chairman of Habitat’s Board of Directors.

Mr. Terwilliger’s pledge is significant in part because it is the first gift of $100-million or more from an individual that has been made public in the last six months.

It is also one of the largest gifts ever made to a social-services organization, rather than a hospital or museum or college.

“This will show that these types of gifts are feasible for groups like Habitat,” said, Mike E. Carscaddon, the group’s executive vice president. “There’s a huge need and we need to mobilize funds,” he said, noting the challenges facing all human-services groups.

Loans and Endowment

The money, which Habitat will receive upon Mr. Terwilliger’s death, will be used for two main purposes: making small loans to needy people and building an endowment.

Of the total pledged, roughly $70-million will establish a fund to enable Habitat officials to offer small loans to people in developing parts of Africa, Asia, Central America, and Eastern Europe so they can make small improvements to their homes, such as replacing an inadequate roof or building a cement floor where there was once only a dirt surface. Such loans range from $300 to $1,200, depending on the country, said Mr. Carscaddon. He said the loan program would help about 60,000 families.

The remaining $30-million will establish an endowment to support the organization’s main program, building houses for needy people in the United States and in other countries.

Mr. Terwilliger, who is 68, has served on Habitat’s board since 2000 and has been its chairman for the last two years. He serves on the boards of the Urban Land Institute, in Washington, the Enterprise Foundation, in Columbia, Md., and the U.S. Naval Academy, in Annapolis, Md.

He said in an interview that he chose to give such a large gift because he knew Habitat could do a lot with $100-million, and, perhaps just as important, because the gift would make a statement to other philanthropists.

“The main thing is I’m hoping it will really put a focus on the tremendous need for poor working families to get a home,” said Mr. Terwilliger. He said he hopes news of his pledge will change donors’ priorities and encourage them to put housing first on their list of where to give.

“While people are very interested in giving to health and education, there are so many who need a good home to live in. It seems to me we ought to concentrate more on sheltering and feeding and clothing people first,” he said, adding that such basic needs must first be met before needy families can gain access to educational opportunities for their children and create a healthy environment in which to nurture them.