NH Family Faces Difficult Decision On 'The Briefcase' Debut

BOSTON (CBS) - A new reality show debuts Wednesday night on CBS that asks the question, "What would you do if someone handed you $100,000?"

It's called The Briefcase, and one of the first families on the show is from New England. Dave and Cara Bronson live in Manchester, NH. Dave is an Iraq veteran who lost his leg when a roadside bomb detonated near his tank. Cara is the family's breadwinner, working as a nurse.

On The Briefcase they received $100,000. "It was definitely a roller coaster of emotions to say the least. It was disbelief. I almost needed someone to pinch me to say this is real," says Dave.

But then reality set in. "There's got to be a catch. Somebody doesn't just knock on your door, hand you $100,000 and say here you go," says Cara.

And there surely was a catch. A second family in financial need was also given a hundred grand, but neither family knew that. Both were told they can keep the cash, or give all or part of it to the other. The Bronsons greatly needed the money to finish building a house that's adapted to Dave's disability.

Right now the Bronsons live in a third floor apartment with no elevator with two kids and a dog. Navigating the stairs can be painful for Dave. So the cash would have come in mighty handy.

So it sounds like an easy choice, right? Wrong. Each family started learning about the other's financial needs. "Then it really weighs on you, and you really have to do a lot of soul searching," Cara says.

We can't give away the ending, but the Bronsons say they're happy with their decision, and got something money can't buy. "I think it definitely has changed us for the better. It opened up doors as far as communication between Dave and I," says Cara. "It also made me think of other people more so than just yourself," adds Dave.

To find out what the family decided to do with the money, check out The Briefcase on CBS, Wednesday's at 8pm.