Meet Jamaica's New Exec

New Executive Director to Lead Food For The Poor’s Jamaica Office

	David Mair, Food For The Poor-Jamaica’s new Executive Director, poses for a portrait during his visit to the headquarters of Food For The Poor in Coconut Creek, Fla., on July 31, 2014.

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Aug. 1, 2014) – Food For The Poor-Jamaica’s new Executive Director, David Mair, visited the headquarters of Food For The Poor in Coconut Creek, Fla., on Thursday, where he was introduced to the organization’s directors and their staff.  

“This is a great opportunity for me to give back,” Mair said. “I feel it’s important to educate the public, and the nation of Jamaica as a whole about the many projects Food For The Poor is providing to improve the quality of life for families in need.”

Mair is a well-known businessman who spent nearly 20 years with the Jamaica Broilers Group. His most recent position was Managing Director of Tropical Battery, the oldest distributor of automotive consumer products and batteries on the island, before joining Food For The Poor in July.

“We are looking forward to working with Mr. Mair and are counting on his executive international experience and his track record of increasing productivity, while reducing cost. His skills are an asset for a nonprofit organization such as Food For The Poor,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “We depend on the support of the private sector and our loving donors to help the truly destitute. By the grace of God, this organization has helped thousands of Jamaican families in one way or another over the past 30 years, and this continued support is needed in order to help Jamaica’s poor out of poverty.”

Mair will oversee a staff of 115 dedicated employees at the Food For The Poor-Jamaica office and warehouse complex, located in Spanish Town. Food For The Poor has completed more than 250 projects in Jamaica over the past five years. One such project was the Jamaica 50/50 campaign, in which the organization committed to building or replacing 50 schools within 50 months in honor of the island’s 50 years of independence in August 2012.  Food For The Poor will complete this project in December 2014, two-and-a- half years ahead of schedule. The next goal will be to build 25 additional schools.

According to published reports, some 1.1 million Jamaicans  are living below the poverty line, fueling an intergenerational crisis. Many believe that education holds the key to breaking this cycle of poverty on the island, but that takes time.

One immediate step is providing families with a safe and secure home. In 2013, Food For The Poor, through the generosity of donors, constructed 2,456 housing units throughout the country. Since inception, the charity has built 37,538 housing units island-wide, and has committed to building 1,200 two-room permanent homes each year in Jamaica.

One key project the new executive director would like to see implemented as quickly as possible is the expansion of the Rural Economic Agricultural Program (REAP). Jamaica’s rich soil already provides the foundation for growing a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. These crops not only will provide food, but also a profit for farmers, cultivating sustainability and strengthening the family unit.

“Coming from an agricultural business background, I feel it’s very important for Jamaicans to be aware of all the self-sustaining programs that have not been tapped into. There’s room for experience and growth in that area. Many don’t know how important agriculture is in Jamaica, we have the natural resources and we want to teach people how to work and grow the land,” Mair said.  “There’s tremendous opportunity for corporations in Jamaica to work with Food For The Poor to expand these agricultural projects.”  

The 16 Food For The Poor fishing villages in Jamaica, another ongoing project that has proven successful, are located throughout coastal communities on the island. The charity will continue to monitor and train the fishermen to become even more productive with environmentally sound fishing techniques.

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.

Jamaica schools get boost

A Small Group is Making a Big Impact in Jamaica’s Schools

	Eight 4 World Hope co-founder, Tom D'Amico, helps a student during the ribbon cutting ceremony at St. Theresa All Age School in St. Andrew Parish.
Related Item: View Photos of the Schools

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (June 16, 2014) – A compassionate seed of generosity has blossomed into projects that are greatly improving the educational experience of hundreds of Jamaica’s schoolchildren. Eight 4 World Hope, a Rochester, N.Y- based organization, is making this possible through Food For The Poor.

“Our hope is to help the children gain an education, but it won't happen unless they have the tools to succeed,” said Deacon Kevin Carges, Eight 4 World Hope founder. “Every child deserves a chance to learn and to succeed. Education is critical to lifting them up out of poverty and giving them a life filled with hope and promise.”

Five schools, two located in St. Ann Parish and three in St. Andrew and St. Catherine Parishes, have received much-needed structural repairs and expansions. These expansions include separate restrooms for boys and girls with flush toilets, which replaced decades-old pit latrines.

“Basic and Primary schools always have been the foundation of the educational system in Jamaica. Unfortunately, many of the nation’s school buildings are dilapidated and are in need of renovation,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “Eight 4 World Hope may be a small organization, but they have made a big impact and Food For The Poor is extremely grateful for their generosity. The physical improvement to these schools is having a positive impact on both the students and staff.”

Carges traveled on his first mission trip to Jamaica with Food For The Poor in 2006. Three years later, he founded the charity Eight 4 World Hope at St. John Fisher College, and with the help of six members from the college’s class of 1984, began changing lives. Five years later, the size of the organization remains the same, but interest in the group’s work continues to grow.

In May, Eight 4 World Hope, along with the spouses, children and friends of some of its members, traveled to Jamaica with Food For The Poor and attended the inaugurations of its latest projects. These projects included a new school annex with dozens of new desks to alleviate overcrowding at St. Theresa All Age School in St. Andrew Parish, and a new sanitation building with private restrooms for boys and girls with flush toilets at Planters Hall All Age School in St. Catherine.

During the group’s trip, they revisited earlier projects at Concord Sacred Heart Early Childhood Institution and Bensonton Primary School in St. Ann, and High House Basic School in McCook’s Pen, St. Catherine, which was replaced with a new building last year.

“It’s a blessing to bring people with me to share the experience in Jamaica. I believe they all will return home having a better understanding of why I am so passionate about this ministry,” said Carges. “I have watched many of these children grow up before my eyes. I brought back pictures of some of them from our first meeting four years ago and we shared some laughs. I have grown to love them all very much.”

Eight 4 World Hope is currently fundraising for their next project. Davis Primary School, located in Old Harbour, St. Catherine, was built in 1970 to accommodate 200 students. The school is severely overcrowded, with 720 children currently enrolled and an estimated 200 more on a waiting list. Eight 4 World Hope’s goals include building additional buildings for added classrooms, new bathrooms, school furnishings and supplies for both students and teachers.

“One thing I have learned over these four years is that while the problems and needs may be large, the grace and gifts of God are even larger,” said Carges.  

Since 2006, more than 145 educational facilities have been built, extended or renovated by Food For The Poor. More than 75 of these are complete school buildings, 36 of which have been funded through the Jamaica 50/50 campaign, which promises to build 50 schools in 50 months in honor of Jamaica’s 50th year of independence.

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.

First Group of “Jamaica 50” Schools to Open in September. Food For The Poor is Committed to Educating Jamaica’s Youth

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Aug. 29, 2012) - In celebration of Jamaica’s golden anniversary as an independent nation, Food For The Poor has launched the “Jamaica 50 Campaign” to build 50 basic schools in 50 months. The organization has committed to build a new school or replace an existing school that has been deemed as an unfit space for children to learn. 
Holding fast to that promise, the first three schools of this initiative will be dedicated in late September. They are:

• Greenvale Early Childhood Institution (new school) in Greenvale, Manchester.

• Longville Basic School (existing school in need of proper facilities) in Whitehouse, Westmoreland. The school will be renamed to King’s Infant School upon opening.

• St. Margaret’s Real Success Basic School (existing school in need of proper infrastructure) in Kingston.

“It is important for those who have decided to leave Jamaica to pursue their dreams in Canada or the United States to remember their homeland, the homeland of their parents, their grandparents,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “The best gift of all is the gift of knowledge, and those who are in a position to help can do so by providing the children of Jamaica with safe and inspiring places to learn.”  
Education has always been a seed deeply planted into the minds of the Jamaican people. The Caribbean nation has experienced its share of economic hardship – many parents cannot afford to pay school fees, or buy the books, school supplies or uniforms necessary to send their children to basic school.  Many of the nation’s school buildings are dilapidated or in desperate need of repair.
The basic schools or Early Childhood Institutes are the backbone of the educational system in Jamaica because it is where young children develop their character, and get the educational foundation needed to advance to primary school, which is equivalent to an elementary school in the United States.
Each basic school constructed will have an office, sick bay, kitchen, bathroom/sanitation, and one large classroom that can be subdivided into three learning spaces. There’s an average capacity of 40 students per school, but depending on the size of the structure, up to 100 students could be attending one school at a time. There’s typically one teacher and a teacher’s assistant in the smaller schools, and three or more in the larger schools.
The “Jamaica 50 Campaign” is a monumental, but exciting commitment by Food For The Poor to build these schools for children ages 3 to 6 years old. The ministry is looking forward to working with its donors on making this project between Jamaica, the United States and Canada a lasting legacy for generations to come.
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.

Jamaica’s Golden Jubilee inspires investment in island’s youth

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Aug. 1, 2012) – Jamaica will celebrate 50 years of independence from British rule on Aug. 6, 2012. Jamaica’s golden jubilee anniversary is especially meaningful to Food For The Poor, which earlier this year commemorated its three decades of service to the hungry, destitute, and abandoned. In 1982, the nonprofit started out as a feeding program in Jamaica, and since then has grown exponentially to become the largest international relief organization in Jamaica and the United States.

Housing, education and agriculture are now also major areas of focus for Food For The Poor, all with the goal of meeting the immediate needs of the poorest of the poor and helping the destitute rise out of poverty. Some Food For The Poor accomplishments in Jamaica:

• The charity continues to replace dilapidated shacks across the island with safe, permanent housing. Since inception, the nonprofit has built 33,389 housing units in Jamaica. Today, thousands of poor remain on the waiting list to receive a Food For The Poor house.

• More than 18,500 containers of essential goods have been shipped to Jamaica since 1982. These items have been distributed to clinics, prisons, schools, and underserved neighborhood institutions.  

• Seventeen fishing village initiatives, fruit tree planting projects, animal husbandry and agricultural programs provide food and income, which help to create self-sustaining communities.

• Food For The Poor continues to provide clean water, build schools, training centers, and clinics, and to support nursing homes and orphanages.  

To mark the island’s golden anniversary, Food For The Poor launched the “Jamaica 50 Campaign” to build 50 schools in 50 months. The initiative will work like this: 

• In August of 2012, the first school will open, and then a new school will open each month for the next 50 months.

• Food For The Poor will replace schools that have been deemed as an unfit space for children to learn. 

“It is important for those who have decided to leave Jamaica to pursue their dreams abroad to remember their homeland, the homeland of their parents, their grandparents,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “The best gift of all is the gift of knowledge, and those who are in a position to help can do so by providing the children of Jamaica with safe and inspiring places to learn.”  

The Consulate General of Jamaica Miami Sandra Grant-Griffiths, will honor Food For The Poor and Robin Mahfood, on Saturday, Aug. 18, for the charity’s long-term commitment to Jamaica.

Other honorees include Bevan “Duke” Earle, CEO, The Duke of Earle Group; Wayne C. Golding, Sr., Principal, The Golding Law Group; Pauline Grant, CEO, Broward Health North Broward Medical Center; Marlon Hill Esq., Partner, DelancyHill LLC, Miami; Honorable Dale V.C. Holness, Commissioner, Broward County Board Commissioner; Captain Barrington Irving, Aviator, Experience Aviation Ltd.; Dunbar McFarlane, General Manager, National Building Society of Cayman; Honorable Hazelle P. Rogers, Florida State Representative, District 94; Robert W. Runcie, Superintendent of schools, Broward County; Marlene Williams, Vice President, XEROX Corporation; and Clinton F. Wong, President, Skymark Development Company.

The Jamaica Nurses Association, Florida (JNAF) will also be honored.

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
       

A gift of two schools A priceless legacy of learning for dozens of Jamaica’s children

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (May 9, 2012) – A mission trip to Jamaica with Food For The Poor ignited a spark in the heart of one young woman whose compassionate enthusiasm is making a positive impact in the lives of dozens of young children today.

“I believe helping the children is where everything starts,” said Rebecca Block. “As long as they have safe schools to learn and to thrive in, that is all that matters. It gives me joy, it gives me hope, and it makes me excited for the future of these kids.”

It all started when Block and a group of student volunteers from Lynn University traveled to the island nation in January 2010 with the international relief and development agency Food For The Poor. On that trip, Block said she saw many things, but when the group was told that schools were being closed due to improper classrooms and facilities, and children had nowhere to learn, she knew she had to help.

“I told my parents about my emotional trip and this need to do something positive about it. I brought up the idea of a school because of what I had heard, and my family agreed,” said Block.

With the support of the Hahn-Block Family Foundation, a philanthropic organization based in Westlake Village, Calif., founded by Block’s parents nearly 15 years ago, the Morris Hall Basic School in St. Catherine, Jamaica, was built through Food For The Poor in 2010. Fast-forward two years, and Block’s determination has resulted in funding for a second school. The United Basic School, located in Pepper District, St. Elizabeth, Jamaica, also will be built through Food For The Poor.

“Education is so very important because it provides people with an opportunity to break the cycle of poverty, but these much needed skills must be introduced to the minds of Jamaica’s children while they are very young,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “It’s unfortunate, but many school buildings in Jamaica need to be torn down and reconstructed, so Rebecca’s desire to get these basic schools built not only will help children now, but hundreds of children for years to come will benefit from her effort. She’s truly an amazing young woman.”

The future looks bright for 23-year-old Block, who will be graduating on Saturday from Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla. with a Bachelor of Arts in Advertising and Public Relations. She says she’s then heading out to Los Angeles to attend the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising for a degree in Visual Communications. Block says wherever she goes she will always remember Jamaica, and that the experience there has changed her life for the better.

Food For The Poor has constructed 41 basic schools in Jamaica since 2004, and has replaced 50 pit latrines with flush toilet systems in schools across the island.

To mark Jamaica’s golden anniversary on Aug. 6, 2012, Food For The Poor is launching the “Jamaica 50 Campaign” to build 50 schools in 50 months. The initiative will work like this:

• In August of 2012, the first school will open, and then a new school will open each month for the next 50 months.
 • Food For The Poor will replace a school that has been targeted by a community that’s been deemed as an unfit space for children to learn.

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.

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