Man returns thousands in found cash

A Michigan man chose integrity over “finders, keepers.” After discovering $43,170 hidden in a used piece of furniture he had purchased, Howard Kirby searched out the original owner to return it despite a lawyer informing him that he had no legal obligation to do so.

Where did the money come from? Kirby bought a couch and ottoman, which contained the cash, at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Owosso, Mich. The store told him Kim Fauth-Newberry donated the furniture, which had belonged to her late grandfather. Her grandfather was a frugal man, Fauth-Newberry said, who paid cash for almost everything. The store helped Kirby return the money last week. “I do what I can to be as much like Christ as I can, and this is the moral thing to do,” Kirby said. “This is going to help them. I’m so happy for them.”

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, read Andrée Sue Peterson’s reflections on the importance of integrity.