Podcast episode
Episode 366 – He Built a $400M Company… Then Gave It Away | Alan Barnhart
Alan Barnhart built one of the most remarkable companies in America—and then gave it away. As co-founder of Barnhart Crane & Rigging, Alan and his brother grew a two-bedroom family operation into a $400M+ business with over 1,000 employees. But the more remarkable story isn’t the growth. It’s what they decided to do with it before it ever began.
EPISODE NOTES
Alan Barnhart built one of the most remarkable companies in America—and then gave it away. As co-founder of Barnhart Crane & Rigging, Alan and his brother grew a two-bedroom family operation into a $400M+ business with over 1,000 employees. But the more remarkable story isn’t the growth. It’s what they decided to do with it before it ever began.
In this episode, Alan unpacks the two scriptural convictions that shaped 40 years of business decisions: the stewardship of everything and the very real danger of wealth. He shares how he and Katherine capped their lifestyle before the company took off, why they transferred 99% of the company to a ministry trust, and how collaborative giving has become the engine for Kingdom impact they never could have imagined alone.
This is a rare, honest conversation about money, generosity, family, and what it really means to hold everything with an open hand.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro: Ask the owner
01:08 Who is Alan Barnhart? Hobbies, backpacking & Kilimanjaro
03:28 Date nights, Scrabble & real popcorn
04:14 Growing up in the family business
05:38 The faith and work conversation: Seeds of stewardship
06:46 Early generosity: Ethiopia, World Vision & cassette tapes
08:06 Coming back to the family business fired up for Jesus
09:17 Two biblical convictions: Stewardship and fear of wealth
10:02 Jesus warned about wealth more than anything else
11:56 The early decision: Capping the lifestyle before it started
13:29 What was God doing? Alan pushes back on his own story
14:47 The first time Justin heard Alan’s story
16:40 Why they made these decisions for self-preservation, not spirituality
18:21 Money as a tool of the enemy
19:17 The question everyone asks: “What’s the number?”
22:53 The hardest conversations: Raising kids with a capped lifestyle
25:20 Kids, inheritance, and expectation management
27:34 Is the world more greedy today?
29:36 Why they didn’t tell their story for the first 15 years
32:58 The stewardship of your story
34:47 Collaborative giving: From reactive to strategic
36:54 The shift: From emotional giving to data-informed, spirit-led
38:37 The danger of giving to what makes you feel good
41:10 Why collaboration is a necessity for hard places
43:54 The 35-year-old entrepreneur: How to give intentionally without 30 staff
44:40 The arc of the faith and work movement: 1980s to now
46:06 The compounding impact of giving now vs. later
47:59 Closing word of encouragement
50:01 Katherine and Alan’s full story (Generous Giving video)
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