Jacksonville woman is making a difference in Jamaica

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Feb.1, 2012) – Life for several families is looking a lot brighter thanks to a dedicated donor by the name of Barbara Gilbert who raised funds to build a village for the destitute in St. Catherine, Jamaica, through Food For The Poor. Barbara’s Village was completed in June of 2006 and was soon followed by the Ellerslie Gardens Soccer Complex. Now, Gilbert is working on raising funds for the completion of the Celebration of Life School and the Musical Band Youth Program.

Gilbert’s commitment to build a school in Jamaica began with her first mission trip with Food For The Poor nearly nine years ago. With many visits to follow, it was on one of these trips in the summer of 2005 that Gilbert met a couple from Laramie, Wyo. Rich and Mary Guenzel were very impressed with Gilbert’s passion to help the poor and recently decided to donate a $12,000 match for the second phase of the school’s building fund.

“God has blessed us with the resources to be able to contribute to Phase II,” said Rich Guenzel. “We have been following the progress on the fundraising for the Celebration of Life School and have remained in contact with Barbara since our first trip with her.”

The Guenzels became fast friends with Gilbert and traded many stories, including one about their 13-year-old nephew, Thomas Park, who was battling cancer. Touched by Thomas’ story, Gilbert reached out to the boy via email and the two of them became buddies through his hospital care page. On the day Thomas completed chemotherapy, Gilbert informed him that she had decided to name the school in Jamaica Celebration of Life School in his honor because this survival story was a celebration of life.

“We are very thankful that Thomas' tumor has disappeared and there are no current signs of his cancer. He is fortunate to have access to the specialized health care he required. Perhaps one of the students at Celebrations of Life will become a doctor and provide specialized health care to the poor in Jamaica,” said Guenzel.

“Never underestimate the power of what one passionate person can do,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “Barbara has an exciting personality and an extremely big heart, what she’s doing in Jamaica is truly amazing, especially when you take into consideration that this is a woman of modest means.”

Gilbert who works as a waitress at Beach Diner, located in the Mandarin area of Jacksonville, isn’t modest when it comes to getting what she wants. It’s at the restaurant that this 56 year-old single mother of four earns much needed tips to fund her projects in Jamaica. But, Gilbert isn’t just any waitress. In the spring of 2009, at age 54 she was accepted into the graduate program at Florida State University. She earned her Master’s Degree in Social Work on December 17, 2011.

“It is never too late to earn an education. During my journey towards my degree, it was important for me as a social worker to advocate for education for the poor,” said Gilbert. “In my travels to Jamaica I have witnessed the passion the children have for learning. There are teachers, but not many school buildings.”

Gilbert will be celebrating her 57th birthday on Feb.18, which is also the target date to raise the total funds needed to complete the second phase of the Celebration of Life School in St. Catherine, Jamaica. To help Barbara meet this challenge, donations will be matched dollar for dollar until the $23,280 goal is reached.

You can help Gilbert meet this challenge by visiting her Champions For The Poor page at www.foodforthepoor.org/barbara.

Food For The Poor, 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:
Wanda Wright
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6079
wandaw@foodforthepoor.com

High School Students Find Spiritual Experience on Mission Trip to Jamaica

Students and faculty from St. Joseph Academy Catholic High School in Jacksonville, Fla., traveled to Jamaica, January 17-21 on a house-building mission trip with the international relief and development organization Food For The Poor.

“Our building project was simply amazing,” said St. Joseph Academy Campus Minister, Deacon Bryan Ott. “What started as a concrete slab in the morning became a two-bedroom house by lunchtime – complete with a kitchen, bathroom, loft, front porch, windows, doors and a roof.”

The ominous clouds and eventual rains did not distract the group from their mission to build and paint a house in one day. The housing recipient’s children were at school the day of construction. When the key was presented to the single father, members of the group imagined his children’s joyful faces as they returned from school to a house ready for them to call home.

“The most meaningful project was building a house for Mr. Facey and his family,” said Rosie Chryssaidis, a student at St. Joseph Academy. “That day we worked as a team to change lives.”

There is no substitution for the firsthand experience of traveling on a mission trip. The experience required group members to use all of their senses – sight, touch, smell, taste, hearing – and their hearts.

“The experience has taught me to cherish all that I have. It also taught me that being positive is very important,” said Chryssaidis.

“I have left a piece of my heart in Kingston and would love to return to finish the work I started,” said chaperone, Tom Reed. “With God’s blessings I will be back to continue His work and make a small difference in the lives of so many. Any amount of difference helps.”

In addition to building a home in a day, the 15 students saw and heard firsthand accounts about the harsh realities of life in developing countries. A fisherman at the Bull Bay Fishing Village shared his heartfelt gratitude for Food For The Poor’s donors, saying he is thankful for the opportunity to have a job that would not be possible without their support. His personal story impacted many in the group, and motivated them to send supplies to assist those living in the fishing village.

Group members also played checkers, dominoes and Jenga at the Alpha Boys Home; hosted an impromptu soccer match and braided hair with the visually impaired children at Salvation Army School for the Blind; spoon-fed porridge to handicapped children; and played with AIDS infected children at a playground.

Food For The Poor’s Golden Age Home in Kingston, Jamaica, is home to approximately 360 elderly and handicapped residents. The students were surprised to learn that without the charity’s assistance to feed, clothe and care for the abandoned mentally and physically challenged children and adults, they would be forced to live on the streets. In the shade of a tree at Golden Age Home the group gathered to hear how a gunshot victim became constrained to a wheelchair as a youth.

“At a homeless shelter [in Jamaica], the students didn’t just serve a meal, they sat down and talked, sang, and even shared hugs with the homeless,” said Deacon Ott. “In a situation that would have intimidated most adults, the students jumped right in and gave a powerful affirmation of the dignity of those they served, sending the message that someone cares and wants to hear what they have to say.”

“I realized the realities of poverty in Jamaica and how tough it really is for all of the disabled poor and homeless, as well as the parentless,” said Henning Ander, a student at St. Joseph Academy. “I loved the trip.”

“All the visits brought me to Christ,” said chaperone, Cathy Windish. “He lives in each one of us healthy or disabled, rich or poor.”

An important part of mission trips is the daily group reflection time, which provides students the opportunity to share their thoughts, feelings and life-changing experiences.

“The students opened their hearts to those in need, and really wrestled with how difficult some people have it in life,” said Deacon Ott. “The trip provided many lessons in love, and returning the love given so freely by the Jamaican children.”

Rosie Chryssaidis and Holly Linville were selected by their peers to receive the “Spirit of Mission” award. The criteria included spirituality, work ethic, leadership and community-building. There were many close runners-up.

Another group of St. Joseph Academy students will travel to Jamaica, March 21-25 on a similar house- building mission trip with Food For The Poor.

You can learn more about Food For The Poor’s mission trips by viewing the YouTube video, calling 1-800-427-9104 ext. 6216 or by e-mailing missions@foodforthepoor.com. You can also involve your school in Food For The Poor’s mission by calling 1-877-654-2960, ext. 6988 or e-mailing churchschool@foodforthepoor.org.

“There are real people behind the faces we may see on brochures, billboards, and TV. Those people are beautiful in their simplicity and genuineness,” said Windish.

Food For The Poor, the third-largest international relief and development organization in the nation, does much more than feed millions of hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian agency 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
Public Relations
(954) 427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.org