David Green, CEO of Hobby Lobby, is now giving away the company.
According to Fox 8 News, Green was inspired by Patagonia’s owner, Yvon Chouinard, who gave away his ownership stake to develop a trust to fight climate change. Green said that giving away his company is aligned with how he has been running Hobby Lobby: As a stewardship given to him by God.
Fortune reported that 100% of the company’s voting stock has already been moved to a trust and that Green is finalizing how to give away the company. Currently, Green has a net worth of $14 billion.
Hobby Lobby has not been Green’s only business venture.
Steve Green, son of David Green and president of Hobby Lobby, founded the Museum of the Bible, according to Politico. The Museum of the Bible is located in Washington, D.C., and houses artifacts and manuscripts related to the Bible. David Green’s connection to the Museum of the Bible comes into play through Hobby Lobby funding the museum. NBC News reported in 2017 that Hobby Lobby has bankrolled the Museum of the Bible.
The controversy behind the Museum of the Bible involves smuggled artifacts and questionable deals, according to NBC News, who reported, “Hobby Lobby went ahead and paid $1.6 million for 5,500 pieces that were then smuggled into the United States through Israel and the United Arab Emirates.” In addition to that, The New York Times reported that the museum’s collection of Dead Sea Scrolls was fake.
Since the controversies around the museum have circulated, the museum has returned thousands of artifacts. The Wall Street Journal reported that the museum returned 11,500 artifacts to Iraq and Egypt.
As recently as this summer, the museum has continued to return artifacts to various places including a Greek monastery. NPR reported that after paying a $3 million fine, the museum has implemented stricter acquisition procedures.