Shaggy to Perform at Gala

Grammy award-winning reggae star Shaggy to celebrate gala milestone

	Shaggy (left) talks with Food For The Poor President/CEO Robin Mahfood. Shaggy, a longtime supporter of the South Florida based-nonprofit, will perform at the 20th annual Building Hope Gala Feb. 6, 2015.
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COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Oct. 29, 2014) – Come build homes and provide hope for Haiti with award-winning reggae artist, Shaggy, at Food For The Poor’s 20th annual Building Hope Gala, Friday, Feb. 6, 2015, at Boca West Country Club in Boca Raton. Attendees will be invited to create a legacy by pledging to build critically needed houses in Pon Batay, Haiti.

“Shaggy is a true friend of Food For The Poor,” said Food For The Poor President/CEO Robin Mahfood. “Thanks to Shaggy, the determination of Building Hope Gala committee members, and the South Florida community, Food For The Poor is positioned to build even more homes to commemorate the gala’s 20th anniversary.” 

Shaggy a longtime supporter of the South Florida based-nonprofit Food For The Poor, will perform at the 20th annual Building Hope Gala. Shaggy’s philanthropic giving is based on the premise that “to whom much is given, much is required.”

“The gift of a safe, secure home is a tremendous blessing for a family who lives in a crumbling one-room shack, and does not know where there next meal will come from,” said Mahfood. “A home offers more than shelter to a destitute family – it offers hope.”   

Since inception, Food For The Poor has built more than 91,000 housing units for people desperately in need of adequate shelter. A gift of $3,200 will move a destitute family from their dirt-floor makeshift shack in Pon Batay, into a permanent home. The community’s dire living conditions are compounded by the lack of clean drinking water in the area. Pon Batay residents must walk miles to the nearest community to fetch water from a well.

Supporters who donate a Food For The Poor home in advance of the Building Hope Gala will be entered into a drawing to win two tickets to New York Fashion Week in September 2015. The winner and guest will travel to New York in style, wearing custom-made dresses, selected by an A-List wardrobe stylist. Hotel and airfare accommodations are included in the package. Each home donated between Nov. 1 and midnight on February 5, 2015, will generate an entry for the drawing. The winning ticket will be pulled during the gala.

At the event, attendees will be able to bid on additional silent auction prizes, such as electronics, jewelry, vacations, golf and dining packages at Boca West Country Club, 20583 Boca West Drive, Boca Raton, Fla. 33434. This year’s theme is old Hollywood glamor.

The Building Hope Gala committee has organized a pre-event party on Nov. 13 at Shop DNA, Royal Palm Place, 1000 Plaza Real S., Suite E, Boca Raton, FL 33432. A portion of the proceeds from sales will be donated to Food For The Poor. Lea Black, from the cast of The Real Housewives of Miami Season 3, will attend the event. Please call Hillary Wallace at 888-404-4248 to request an invitation.

For additional information regarding the Building Hope Gala, sponsorship opportunities, and tickets, available at $250 per person, please call 888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/boca.

Committee members include Wedler Alexandre, Carlos Bodden, Matthew Bryant, Becky Carlsson, Gregory Fried, Ronda Ellis Ged, Erin Heit, Susan Krassen, Julie Mahfood, Rene Mahfood, Dan Overbey, Tashia Rahl, Candace Rojas, Kara Seelye, Dr. Deborah Shapiro, Renee Stetler and Max Tucci.

Gala sponsors include Leslie L. Alexander Foundation, Boca Raton Observer, Club Managers Association of America, Dennis Charley & Associates, Inc., Gregory’s Fine Jewelry, Oceans 234, Seaboard Marine, TD Bank, and Trinity Direct.

Shaggy won a Grammy for his album “Boombastic,” and was nominated for “It Wasn’t Me,” “Intoxication,” “Hotshot,” and “Summer in Kingston.” Shaggy has sold more than 20 million albums and has had seven number-one albums. Shaggy has also had eight number-one hit singles.

Food For The Poor, named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 95 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor. For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.

Show House Visitors Fund 5 Homes in Haiti

	Proceeds from the Designer Show House event will build five homes in Ganthier, Haiti.
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COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (February 26, 2014) – Almost 700 people visited Lighthouse Interiors’ “Tour a House, Build a House” Designer Show House event over the weekend, making it possible for Food For The Poor to build five homes for desperate families living in mud huts in Ganthier, Haiti.

For three festive days, Feb. 21-23, visitors enjoyed tours of the 10,000-square-foot luxury home located at 2316 NE 30th Court in Lighthouse Point. Attendees were also treated to a wine-tasting, champagne, decadent dessert, live steel pan music, and a swimwear fashion show.

Displaying a mix of both traditional and contemporary styles, a dozen of the area’s top designers joined Bridget Conway, principal of Lighthouse Interiors, in transforming the home’s empty rooms and outdoor areas into inviting living quarters.

“We brought in a prominent group of South Florida designers who graciously agreed to share their incredible talents by imparting their magic throughout the house,” said Conway. “Without this fantastic team’s generosity, we could not have produced this showcase to generate much-needed funds to build safe and secure homes for some of the poorest families in Haiti.”

Ganthier is a small, rural community in Haiti where many families live without running water, electricity and very little food. Event proceeds will provide sturdy, two-room homes constructed with concrete block, poured cement foundations, and zinc roofs. Each home will be powered with solar energy and equipped with sanitation.

“Food For The Poor was honored to have Bridget Conway and all of the talented designers lend time, effort and extraordinary skill to support such an important cause,” said Robin Mahfood, President of Food For The Poor. “The houses we build for the people of Ganthier are more than just brick and mortar. They offer a foundation of hope.”

“Tour a House, Build a House” officially opened with a VIP reception on Thursday, Feb. 20, and offered guests eye-catching decor, cocktails courtesy of Bacardi, and a selection of gourmet samples prepared and served by Executive Chef Nestor “Alex” Amaya of El Tamarindo Café.  The event also featured a colorful fashion show hosted by Styles Boutique, a silent auction, music by Miami’s DJ UP, and door prizes.

The South Florida designers who joined Bridget Conway in the design of the home are Kenneth Crawford of Kenneth Crawford Interiors; Ellen de Vos of Michael Taylor Designs; Frances Herrera of Frances Herrera Interior Design; Sonia Lise Longchamp ASID, Kay Smith, and Gene Valentino of Sklar Furnishings; Kendall Marcelle of Kendall Marcelle Design Associates, Inc.; Bernard and Stephanie Molyneux, owners of ACP Home Interiors; Sabrina Wilson of Lighthouse Interiors; Century Furniture; TBG Partners and Spruce Home & Garden.

The premier sponsor for the 2014 Designer Show House was Campbell & Rosemurgy Real Estate. Additional sponsors included Bacardi Limited, El Tamarindo Café, U.S.A. Transportation, Bay Branch Foundation, Bayview Animal Clinic, Heritage Investment Group, Les Bijoux, LLC, Sheehan Buick GMC, The Prenner Team — Cathy and Jack Prenner and Wells Fargo.

For more information, visit foodforthepoor.org/showhousegallery.    

Food For The Poor, named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 95 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor. For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.

Boca Grande in Haiti

	In November 2013, Yvette Mede and her three children in Manneville, Haiti received a new two-room house with sanitation and a cistern.
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COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Jan. 6, 2014) – A joyful noise is slowly drowning out the sounds of despair that once hovered over the small town of Manneville, Haiti. Located near Thomazeau, in the community of Croix-des-Bouquets, some of its residents who were in desperate need of housing and access to clean drinking water now have secure homes, with a cistern and sanitation. All this is thanks to the commitment of the Boca Grande Hope for Haitians Committee and Food For The Poor.

“Haiti experienced a devastating earthquake in 2010 that killed hundreds of thousands of people and left more than a million homeless. During the last four years, the Hope for Haitians Committee has asked the people of Boca Grande to build homes and schools for the Haitian people to help get them back on their feet. In each of those four years, the people of Boca Grande reached the charitable goals set, with tremendous generosity,” said Ben Scott, Chairman of the Boca Grande Hope for Haitians Committee.  

Some of those goals include the following:

• 135 Houses with Sanitation and Water Cisterns
• 2,850 Fruit Trees
• 2 Water Treatment Units
• 1 Vocational Training Center with Sanitation
• 2 Community Centers
• 1 Basic School with Sanitation
• 6 Solar Powered Street Lamps
• 1 Self-Starting Project for Women

The Boca Grande Hope for Haitians Committee began working through the international relief and development organization in 2009, shortly before the Caribbean nation was rattled by one of the worst national disasters in its history. The committee wants to continue to help relocate families from tents to permanent housing.

“According to the latest published reports, there are approximately 200,000 people currently living in Haiti’s tent cities. This is a considerable reduction from the initial 1.3 million. But, one family living in a tent is one family too many,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “Words cannot capture the gratitude this organization has for the Boca Grande committee, and community, that’s helping us to transform lives in Haiti, one family at a time.”

One such transformation took place nearly a year ago, during the second week of January, when Hope For Haitians Chairmen Ben and Louise Scott and eight Boca Grande Committee members traveled with Food For The Poor to Haiti. During the three-day trip, they got to meet some of the families and to see the dire need in a section of Manneville. Today, that section of town has been transformed into a thriving community of 33 colorful two-room homes that have brought tremendous joy to the recipients.
The residents want to thank their benefactors for providing them with the priceless gift of self-sufficiency. Click here to read some of the stories shared by these grateful individuals.

“The Boca Grande community has made a huge difference in the lives of so many people in desperate need. But there are still so many who need the basics of life,” said Scott.

Scott will be traveling to Haiti the week of Jan. 13, 2014, with Food For The Poor.

Committee members include: Chairmen Ben and Louise Scott, the Rev. Gary Beatty, the Rev. Brian Brightly, the Rev. Jerome Carosella, the Rev. Michelle Robertshaw, George and Lois Castrucci, Patricia Chapman, Ray and Iliene Corcoran, Randy and Sue Eddy, Charlie and Florita Field, Evelyn Finnegan, Lou and Corie Fusz, Stephen and Susan Jansen, Mick and Susan Johnson, Tom and Nancy Lorden, Colvin and Madelaine McCrady, Peter and Elsa Soderberg.

Food For The Poor, named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 95 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor.

        

Designers set for show house

	The exclusive Designer Show House 2014 VIP Reception will be Thursday, Feb. 20, from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m. in Lighthouse Point, Fla.
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COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Dec. 10, 2013) – Lighthouse Interiors is pleased to announce the South Florida designers selected to join Bridget Conway, Principal of Lighthouse Interiors,  in the design of a multi-million dollar Lighthouse Point waterfront home, Feb. 20-23, 2014. Proceeds from the unique event will be used to build Food For The Poor homes in Haiti.

Designers include Bridget Conway, Principal of Lighthouse Interiors; Bernard and Stephanie Molyneux, owners of ACP Home Interiors; Kenneth Crawford of Kenneth Crawford Interiors; Ellen de Vos of Michael Taylor Designs; Frances Herrera of Frances Herrera Interior Design; Sonia Lise Longchamp ASID, Kay Smith, and Gene Valentino of Sklar Furnishings; Kendall Marcelle of Kendall Marcelle Design Associates Inc.; and Sabrina Wilson of Lighthouse Interiors.

The exclusive Designer Show House 2014 VIP Reception will be Thursday, Feb. 20, from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m., at 2316 NE 30 Court, Lighthouse Point, Fla., 33064. The ticket price is $150 per person.

VIP guests will enjoy savories and cocktails as they tour the new construction of a six-bedroom, seven-bathroom, coastal-inspired home on the Ibis Waterway. El Tamarindo Café’s Head Chef Néstor "Alex" Amaya will prepare samples of his signature cuisine in the home’s gourmet kitchen. The evening will also include a specialty Bacardí rum bar, silent auction, fashion show and music by Miami’s DJ UP.

The Designer Show House 2014 event will be open to the general public on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 21-22, from 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., and Sunday, Feb. 23, from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Each day will feature a different event, and the ticket price is $30.

• On Friday, Feb. 21, at 5:30 p.m., guests will enjoy an exclusive wine tasting.
• On Saturday, Feb. 22, from 2 to 4 p.m., champagne and sweets will be served.
• On Sunday, Feb. 23, from 2 to 4 p.m., guests will be treated to the melodies of a steel pan, and a fashion show hosted by Noelle Swimwear.

The 10,000-square-foot residence, designed by Conway, boasts separate guest and pool houses, as well as unbelievable waterway views from almost every window. From the dock, boat owners will have quick access to the Intracoastal Waterway and the Hillsboro Inlet and lighthouse.

“This exceptionally stunning project is full of classic lines and clean elements, built with today’s lifestyle in mind,” said Conway. “The spectacular lighting with several chandeliers and an abundance of sconces throughout the home complement the rooms’ natural lighting.”

Sponsors include Campbell & Rosemurgy Real Estate, The Bay Branch Foundation, and The Prenner Team — Cathy and Jack Prenner.

For additional information and tickets, please call 888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/showhouse.

Food For The Poor, named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 95 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor. For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.

Five Months, 50 Homes, 50 Families

Fifty families have moved into secure homes in Olivier, Deuxieme Plaine, Haiti, just weeks before the hurricane season traditionally heats up in the Caribbean. These permanent homes were built from funds raised in February at the Building Hope Gala in Boca Raton, Fla. Construction on the homes and community center started in March, and all of the families were moved to safety by mid-July.

“The appalling conditions that we have found so many children and their families living in throughout the Caribbean and Latin America are unimaginable,” said Robin Mahfood, Food For The Poor's President/CEO. “Without safe, permanent shelter the destitute are often wet and cold when it rains, and live in fear of landslides sweeping them into the sea.”

For more than 30 years, Food For The Poor has worked to bring relief to poor families, caring for their basic needs, and giving them a chance to live and work again. In addition to building the 50 two-room homes and community center in Olivier, chicken and cattle rearing projects have also been implemented with money raised at the gala.

“I can’t believe people have to live like this, it really breaks my heart,” said committee member Becky Carlsson, as she described the inhumane conditions she witnessed in Haiti. “They are not really houses, they are little one-room shacks of metal and tin that families live in.”

The 2012 committee chairs included Cathy and Abdol Moabery (Event Co-Chairpersons), Ronda and David Gluck (Event Co-Chairpersons), and Rene and Francis Mahfood (Honorary Chairpersons).

The 18th annual gala will be Saturday, Feb. 2, 2013 at The Polo Club of Boca Raton. For additional information regarding the Building Hope Gala, benefactor levels, and tickets, available at $250 per person, please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/boca.

Attendees will be invited to create a legacy by pledging to build critically needed houses in Jamaica during the charity’s “live house rally.” There are pockets of immense poverty throughout Jamaica, but because the country relies heavily on tourism, the harsh reality of destitution often is concealed.

“With the support of Food For The Poor’s donors and committees such as this, we have been able to raise enough funds to build 10 homes a day, seven days a week in the countries we serve,” said Mahfood. “Each home has two rooms, plus a toilet and a shower, and a porch for cooking. They are ‘a shelter from the raging wind and the storm.’ ” (Psalm 55:8).

Since the earthquake, Food For The Poor has built 3,261 two-room homes in Haiti.

Committee members for the 2013 Building Hope Gala include Laurie Braden, Kelly Brauner, Becky Carlsson, Melissa Davimos, Ronda Ellis Ged, Ronda Gluck, Michele Greene, LaMae Klos, Robin Ranzal Knowles, Julie Mahfood, Rene Mahfood, Pamela Matsil, Cathy Moabery, Jill Perea
Tashia Rahl, Kara Seelye, Natasha Singh, Renee Stetler, Holly Strogoff, Allison Venditti, Patricia Wallace, and Traci Wilson.

Food For The Poor, named by The Chronicle of Philanthropy as the largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of the hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 96 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor. 

For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.

Contact:
Jennifer Leigh Oates
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com