From Saving to Serving

How one couple’s ‘generosity journey’ grew from tithing to giving 100% of their income

When Tom and Mary Vande Guchte attended a Generous Giving Conference in 2014, they had no idea it would change the way they viewed money.

Tom and Mary Vande Guchte / Video screenshot @CBN

Less than a decade later, they were on stage themselves, sharing how their first conference opened doors for them to serve together, and prompted them to be part of providing over 280,000 people with clean water and the Gospel.

Both Tom and Mary grew up in the Midwest. After getting married, they purchased their first home in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where Tom worked as a CPA. Early on, they decided to build a lifestyle they could sustain on one income, allowing Mary to stay home and raise their children while engaging in ministry work.

In 1992, they did something that shocked their close friends, causing them to question the couple’s common sense. Tom and Mary sold their home, cashed in their 401K, and took on $2 million in debt to purchase a struggling business—it had lost money four out of the previous five years.

With four children whose ages spanned from six months to seven years, they moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, to purchase a steel office supply dealership, now known as Storr Office Environments—and have never looked back.

“A lot of people wondered what we were doing,” Tom told those who attended the 2022 Generous Giving Conference at the Omni Resort in Orlando, Florida. “We strongly felt like God was calling us to do this, and we believed that if we ran the business according to biblical principles, God would bless it.”

“We didn’t grow up with wealth,” Tom said. “I was very driven, hardworking, and had high standards for myself and others. Over the years, God has really challenged me to be more gracious and use my words to encourage others.”

In an interview with Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN), Tom admitted that despite always tithing—even when his initial income was as low as $16,000 a year—he struggled with a “scarcity mindset.” Over time, he said God changed his focus from saving to serving.

“We had always tithed. The more we made, the more we gave. But I wanted Mary to be more involved in that process,” he said to the attendees at the 2022 Generous Giving Conference.

At the time, Mary said she thought of tithing more as a “budget item.”

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“It only made sense that Tom would handle money as the CPA,” she said. “I was a musician, not a mathematician. But after we went to a Journey of Generosity weekend, everything changed. I saw it was more than a money issue; it was a heart issue as well. It is so rewarding to hear the stories of how other couples were creatively being generous and living intentionally. That is something I wanted to be a part of.”

Now Mary helps facilitate a Generosity Triangle in her area where people can get more information on Journey of Generosity retreats that consider and reflect on biblical generosity.

When the Vande Guchte children, now totaling five, were growing up, Tom and Mary purchased a lake cabin. They prayed about how to be wise stewards of that property.

“With open hands we asked God, ‘How can we use this to serve others?” Tom said.  “We decided to list our cabin on VRBO and use 100% of the profits to support ministries, such as meeting medical needs and funding microloan projects. Plus, those involved in ministry can use the cabin free of charge.”

Then, COVID hit. “We knew it would be tough for those of us in business and tough for the nonprofit world, especially internationally,” said Mary. Concerned that the ministries they supported would face hardship due to the pandemic, the couple felt led to give 100% of their income to ministry work.

“Keep in mind, we are in the office furniture business in the midst of Covid, and offices around the country are shutting down,” Tom said. But that year, he said, their income doubled and their business had its best year on record.

“At the time, we were engaged with a water project in Rwanda and felt impressed to help propel that work forward,” said Mary. “We called them and told them we wanted to give them a $1 million match. Of course, they were excited, so they planned a virtual event that we were able to be a part of.” That event raised $4 million, she said.

Let’s do it again, the couple thought.

The next year, they made the same offer and raised more than $8 million.

“In two years, our $2 million became $14 million,” said Tom. “The impact is that 280,000 people will have clean water for the rest of their lives and be exposed to the Gospel. We have learned that giving is something we don’t have to do. It is something we get to do. How awesome that we get to partner with the creator of the universe with His work here on earth.”

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