Yes, there is a connection between ‘He Gets Us’ Super Bowl ads and Hobby Lobby

Among the many commercials that debuted during the Super Bowl on Sunday were two for a campaign called “He Gets Us.” The commercials, a 60-second ad centered around foot washing and a 15-second ad about loving one’s neighbor, were aimed at promoting positive Christian ideals.

After the commercials aired, multiple viral posts on X highlighted a supposed contradiction between the ads’ inclusive messaging and the people paying for them. One person claimed that the group behind “He Gets Us” donated millions of dollars to anti-LGBTQ+ hate groups and received billions from Hobby Lobby, a crafts retail chain that has been the subject of controversies related to the religious beliefs of its founder and CEO David Green. Another person claimed that “Hobby Lobby billionaires” are behind the “He Gets Us” ads. 

VERIFY reader Carolyn sent us an email to ask if claims linking Hobby Lobby and the “He Gets Us” commercials are true.

THE QUESTION

Is there a connection between the “He Gets Us” Super Bowl ads and Hobby Lobby?

THE SOURCES

• He Gets Us, a campaign “to remind us of the example that Jesus set”
• Spokesperson for Come Near, the organization managing He Gets Us
• Missouri Secretary of State
• Hobby Lobby

THE ANSWER

Yes, there is a connection between the “He Gets Us” Super Bowl ads and Hobby Lobby. Mart Green, the son of Hobby Lobby’s founder and an executive at the company, is on the board of directors of Come Near, the nonprofit behind the ads. 

Sign up for the VERIFY Fast Facts newsletter here. 

WHAT WE FOUND

On its website, “He Gets Us” refers to itself as a campaign “to remind us of the example that Jesus set while inviting all to explore his teachings.” The site says “He Gets Us” is not “funded by or affiliated with any single individual, political position, church, or faith denomination.”

However, it is managed and operated by a newly formed nonprofit organization called Come Near, the website says.

Come Near is led by CEO Ken Calwell, has five full-time staff and a board of directors, a spokesperson for Come Near said. Mart Green, the son of Hobby Lobby founder and CEO David Green, sits on Come Near’s board of directors. Green is also listed as Hobby Lobby’s Ministry Investment Officer.

Hobby Lobby has been the subject of several controversies over the years, some of which critics have referenced when claiming the company’s connection to the inclusive messaging of “He Gets Us” is hypocritical. Over the last 10 years, Hobby Lobby has fought to deny employees insurance coverage for contraceptives and requested to be exempt from laws prohibiting LGBTQ+ discrimination, citing religious freedom.

Come Near has little public information available. However, based on the organization’s and Calwell’s LinkedIn pages, the nonprofit was established in November 2023. 

A Come Near spokesperson said the organization has plans to expand beyond the “He Gets Us” campaign; however, it is “too early to discuss” any additional plans because the organization is so new.

But the “He Gets Us” campaign is not new to the Super Bowl. Ads with that tagline first aired in 2023, but were paid for by a different organization.

“He Gets Us” was created in November 2021 by the Servant Foundation, also called The Signatry, according to documents from the Missouri Secretary of State.

The Servant Foundation has funded the Alliance Defending Freedom, a group that often takes up religious freedom cases in courts to argue against LGBTQ+ rights. The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) considers the Alliance Defending Freedom an anti-LGBTQ+ extremist group.

The Green family, who run Hobby Lobby, donated to the 2023 “He Gets Us” campaign, according to a Forbes article from last year. 

A Come Near spokesperson told Ad Age that “He Gets Us” is no longer affiliated with the Servant Foundation. Come Near “may choose to accept donations from any donor-advised fund, any private individual, anything like that.”