Donors Build 100K Homes

Food For The Poor Surpasses 100,000 Housing Milestone

	With a new Food For The Poor home, this family in Honduras has received a second chance in life thanks to the charity's generous donors.
Related Items: Learn More about Maudiel’s Story Documentary Illustrates Housing Needs See Photos of Families in their Homes

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (March 23, 2015) – Food For The Poor’s generous donors have built more than 100,000 housing units for destitute families in the Caribbean and Latin America. The desperate living conditions of the poor inspired Food For The Poor to begin its home building initiative in 1985 in Jamaica.

Food For The Poor’s homes are well-built, safe and secure. These permanent homes not only benefit the families receiving them, but also provide much-needed work for local laborers. With the help of donors, Food For The Poor is on schedule this year to build approximately 8,000 housing units.

Food For The Poor donors constructed 7,367 housing units in 2014 and gifted them to destitute families. The greatest number of homes were built in Jamaica (2,057 housing units), Honduras (1,812), Haiti (1,774), and Nicaragua (1,594).

Special housing matches have fueled Food For The Poor’s ability to help change the dire circumstances of destitute families. Through the end of 2015, generous friends of Food For The Poor have offered to match any gift received to build homes in Nicaragua, Honduras and Jamaica. This means that every gift received to build a home in these countries will be matched dollar-for-dollar.

“The poor live in very dangerous situations and struggle with overwhelming circumstances every day,” said Robin Mahfood, Food For The Poor President/CEO. “It is difficult for many of us to imagine what it must be like to be surrounded by rain-soaked, muddy floors, and walls made of plastic on a daily basis. To escape a life of poverty, destitute families need a proper roof over their heads, clean water and sanitation.”

Click here to watch a photo documentary that illustrates the critical need for housing that exists in developing countries. 

Dilapidated shacks made of scraps of wood, metal, plastic and cardboard offer little protection from the elements, insects and rodents. As a result, illness and disease are rampant, especially among those who are most vulnerable — the young and elderly. In addition, the poor who live in these conditions are particularly devastated by natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods and hurricanes.

Last year, Food For The Poor donors built then 4-year-old Maudiel and his family a new, solid home in Nicaragua. By replacing the family’s primitive shack, which was strung together with dried palm fronds and ripped plastic tarps, Maudiel can now sleep peacefully through the night. He no longer wakes scared when the wind rattles the roof, or worries that the rain will turn the floor into mud. His new Food For The Poor house keeps him safe. Learn more about Maudiel’s story here.

In 1995, Food For The Poor-Haiti began a housing program and began building homes in Cite Soleil. Since then, 11,068 double-unit homes have been built in Haiti, 5,015 of them since the earthquake in January 2010. These sturdy homes provide the poor with shelter, safety and hope for the future.

A gift of $3,200 will build a single-unit home with sanitation; a gift of $6,400 will build a double-unit home with sanitation and a water component. In countries like Haiti, where the average household has seven members, Food For The Poor builds only double-unit homes by combining two single-unit donations.

For information regarding Food For The Poor’s home building initiative, or to support the program, please call 954-427-2222 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/home.

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.

World Water Day

Every Child Should Have Access to Clean Water

	Dania is often sick from drinking the contaminated river water, but it is her only water source.
Related Item: Watch Dania's Search for Water

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (March 19, 2015) – Locating and maintaining a fresh water source is no easy task for the poor living in undeveloped communities throughout the world. But it’s especially difficult for children, young girls in particular, who often are assigned the task of collecting water for their families. In many cases, children must walk miles to gather water that may appear clean, but is filled with harmful and potentially deadly bacteria.

Millions around the world will be celebrating the 22nd annual World Water Day on March 22, which began in 1993 to bring attention to a different water issue every year. The 2015 theme for World Water Day is “Water and Sustainable Development.”  Water is at the core of sustainable development, reducing poverty, stimulating economic growth and environmental sustainability. 

Clean water prevents diseases and provides young girls with an opportunity to go to school and get an education.

Near the Nicaraguan town of Ocotal, located northwest of Managua, lives Dania. She’s a little girl who walks down a steep mountain every day to collect water from hand-dug watering holes near the banks of Rio Coco River. The water Dania collects is contaminated with bacteria and parasites that often make her sick, but it’s her only water source.

“Most of us would never collect water from a local canal or nearby pond for daily usage. We certainly wouldn’t drink it or give it to our children. The thought is incomprehensible, but for many throughout the Caribbean and Latin America, their water source isn’t much better,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “Proper sanitation and access to clean drinking water should to be available for everyone. Food For The Poor is committed to providing the poor we serve with this precious resource.”

Since 1998, Food For The Poor has completed more than 1,943 water projects, which include wells, cisterns, tanks, distribution systems, and water treatment units throughout the Caribbean and Latin America.

To view a short video of Dania’s story, please click www.foodforthepoor.org/water.

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.

Dani Johnson Has Heart for Poor

Dani Johnson is on a Village-Building Mission for Nicaraguan Families

	Life for Pablo, his wife Maria (back), and their daughter, Rosa (center) and her two sons, who are living in a home built on top of an old gold-mining tunnel in Malpaisillo, León, Nicaragua, is no longer safe. Blasts from nearby active mining sites are triggering sink holes. ABC Television’s “Secret Millionaire” and author, Dani Johnson, traveled to Nicaragua with Food For The Poor in January. Johnson will be helping the international relief and development organization to build a village of 100 homes.
Related Items: See Nicaragua Through Dani's Eyes See What Life is Like in Nicaragua Watch a Video of Dani in Haiti

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Feb. 20, 2015) – Life for hundreds of families living in deteriorating homes built on top of a labyrinth of old gold-mining tunnels in Malpaisillo, León, Nicaragua, is no longer safe. León is located in the western department of Nicaragua and is a little more than 57 miles northwest of the capital city, Managua. Blasts from nearby active mining sites are causing these tunnels to crumble, triggering sink holes, which have claimed the lives of several people.

“We are tormented day and night by the blasts. We are so afraid that our house is going to go down into the ground that we take turns sleeping so that we can keep watch over our home and family,” said Pablo, a local resident. “Every time I hear that sound, I say ‘Oh my God, another person may have died’ and it is worse during the rainy season.”

Pablo and his wife Maria have lived in the mining community in León for more than 50 years, and now share their humble dwelling with their daughter Rosa, and her two sons.

Food For The Poor and the American Nicaraguan Foundation (ANF) had been working on securing safe land for these families when Dani Johnson, ABC Television’s “Secret Millionaire,” author, business and relationship expert, learned about their plight. Johnson, whose father is Nicaraguan, had visited her father’s homeland a few times, but traveled for the first time to the Central American country with Food For The Poor in January. Now she wants to help the international relief and development organization to build a village. So far, enough funds have been raised for the construction of 84 homes, but this is only the beginning of Johnson’s home building project for the Central American country.

“I feel like I wasn’t born here in Nicaragua for a purpose and that purpose was for me to come back and to help, not just my family, but as many people as possible,” said Johnson.

The Santa Pancha Village Community Development project will provide a new way of living for hundreds of Nicaraguan families. Each two-bedroom home comes with sanitation and a water component.  A community center also will be built in the central part of the village. Each family will receive two hens and a rooster, and be trained in self-sustaining projects.

“Food For The Poor has helped build thousands of homes, with the loving support of our donors, for destitute families living in some of the most deplorable conditions imaginable. The situation in León is really difficult, the people there are living in a constant state of crippling fear – it’s mental torture,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor.  “We’re so grateful that Dani Johnson has decided to work on another homebuilding project with Food For The Poor; it’s a priceless blessing she wants to provide for these families.”

Johnson’s journey with Food For The Poor began in December 2013, when she traveled to Haiti with the charity. During that trip, she saw what life was like in the remote community of Kadwa in Mirebalais. After speaking with some of the families living in unfathomable conditions, she made a promise to build a village of 70 two-bedroom homes and a sugar cane mill to provide economic growth for the entire region. Nearly one year to the date, Johnson returned to Haiti with Food For The Poor to see her promise fulfilled, and to find people and a community transformed.

"I feel like a human being. Before, I didn't have anything, not even a place for my child to sleep. Now, I can hold my head high in the community because I have my own home and a safe place for my family," said Cesar Salomon, a Kadwa, Haiti, resident.                                                                                             

Each family also received a solar kit, which includes solar panels that can power three accompanying lamps. Click www.FoodForThePoor.org/danihaiti to see Johnson’s mission trip to Haiti 2014.

“Returning at the end of the year and seeing the elation of that entire village in Haiti was amazing, but this time around with Food For The Poor and King’s Ransom, the project in Nicaragua will be even more dynamic because I know what’s coming and I know what I am going to see when I come back,” said Johnson. “I can’t wait to hand them the keys. We are months away from their brand new safe homes and a new life – that’s exciting!”

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.

Grant Helps 72K Schoolchildren

Food For The Poor Helps 72,000 Nicaraguan Schoolchildren

	The McGovern-Dole Food for Education grant was used to improve the lives of 72,000 school-age children, including providing hot meals in 774 schools in some of the most rural regions of Nicaragua.
Related Items: See Photos of the Improvements Find out How Your Company Can Help

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Dec. 16, 2014) – Life for nearly 72,000 children in some of the most rural regions of Nicaragua has been greatly improved, thanks to a McGovern-Dole Food for Education grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The grant was awarded to Food For The Poor to cover a three-year span from the fall of 2011 to the fall of 2014.

During the three-year period, more than 4,500 metric tons of food have been distributed to the most impoverished communities of the Central American country. The majority of the recipients were school-age children who benefited from the feeding programs in 774 schools, located primarily in Managua, Nueva Segovia and Madriz. The students received a morning snack and a hot meal for lunch each day. Expectant and nursing mothers also benefited from the feeding programs within their communities.

“Nicaragua is one of the poorest countries in Latin America, and the second poorest in the Western Hemisphere. This grant has allowed Food For The Poor to provide additional rice, beans, oil, and cereal to thousands of schoolchildren. For many of these students, their only meal of the day is the food they receive while at school, which is why their lunches need to be substantial and nutritious,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “The grant from the USDA has been a blessing. It also has allowed Food For The Poor to provide the participating schools with much-needed upgrades, which will serve students in those communities for many years to come.”

Health and hygiene were also key components of the grant. The installation of 100 latrines and 20 hand washing stations and sinks, along with the repair of 30 school kitchens, have reduced the nutritional deficit in schoolchildren and greatly improved sanitary conditions. School gardens and multi-disciplinary training for parents and teachers were also established, and 71 classrooms received much needed repairs, which have helped to improve the academic benefits of the students.

Food For The Poor has been working in Nicaragua since 1998, partnering with the American Nicaraguan Foundation (ANF) and the Fabretto Children’s Foundation.

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.

Futbol Donations

	Students at Marverley Primary and Junior High School in Kingston, Jamaica, are grateful to have One World Futbols. With access to more soccer balls, the students can now spend more time practicing.
Related Item: See the Children at Play

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (June 25, 2014) – One World Futbol and Food For The Poor have kicked-off their partnership with the distribution of 11,400 soccer balls in Jamaica and 6,000 soccer balls in Nicaragua. The goal is to teach children in disadvantaged communities about the healing power of play, and to restore their ability to dream. This announcement comes as the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team prepares to face off with Germany in their last match of  group play in the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ in Brazil.

“Traveling in developing countries throughout the Caribbean and Latin America, we often see children in poor neighborhoods kicking empty bottles, cans, or whatever they can scrounge up in place of a soccer ball,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor.

Students at Marverley Primary and Junior High School used to play with a plastic bottle during recess until they received a donation of One World Futbols.

“The 15 balls received will make a big difference because we had none and we were actually wondering where we were going to get the funds to purchase what was needed, especially because there is no physical education budget at this time,” said Dorothy Taylor, Principal of Marverley Primary and Junior High School. “Now we have more than enough for the children to utilize. We can even include football as part of the extra-curricular sports activities for the summer school program.” 

“American soccer, also known as football in the countries we serve, is the most popular sport in the world,” said Aloma. “It’s a sport that is loved equally by the young and the old, the rich and the poor.”

Earlier this month, Bob Woodruff, co-anchor of ABC’s “World News Tonight,” recognized the inventors of the One World Futbol – Tim Jahnigen and his wife, Lisa Tarver – as they approach their goal to provide 1 million soccer balls to children throughout the world.

“It is a privilege to partner with One World Futbol to positively impact the lives of children worldwide,” said Aloma. “Every child should have the chance to experience the invigorating thrill of scoring a goal.”    

For every One World Futbol purchased, a second ball is donated to an organization that works with youth in disadvantaged communities worldwide. Unlike the average soccer ball that becomes worn over time, the One World Futbol is nearly indestructible. Even when punctured multiple times, it does not need a pump to inflate, and it never goes flat.

Richard Swanson, 42, also believed in One World Futbol’s mission to bring soccer balls to disadvantaged communities to foster social change. To raise money and awareness for the company's project, Swanson started to dribble a One World Futbol 10,000 miles to Brazil from Seattle to watch the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ games. Two weeks into the journey of a lifetime, Swanson was tragically hit by a pickup truck and died. For the duration of the World Cup 2014 donations can be made in his name at http://www.oneworldfutbol.com/campaigns/richardswanson/.

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.

Little Red Beans are Making a Huge Impact in Nicaragua

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Sept. 7, 2012) - The forces of nature have not been kind to the Central American country of Nicaragua in recent years. Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and back-to-back tropical systems have taken a toll on many, but ironically, these acts of nature have also prepared the land to give back in more ways than one.

The rich and fertile soil in northwestern Nicaragua, in the mountainous region of Ocotal, is just right for producing one of the country’s most consumed crops – beans. Beans are an inexpensive source of protein and are a staple in the daily diet of many families. Last year, the Texas-based Greater Impact Foundation teamed up with Food For The Poor to educate bean famers on how to grow better crops. The farmers are also learning how to earn a living from the fruits of their labor.   

“Our board of directors had expressed a desire to begin funding projects that centered on dignified job creation and a sustainable business model,” said Erica Trani, Executive Director of Greater Impact Foundation. “Since my background is in international development, more specifically grassroots economic development, I was able to contribute my insight to create the specifications of the projects we were most interested in funding as we moved forward.”

More than 800 Nicaraguan farmers are enrolled in the red bean farming program, which is a benefit to a community of nearly 3,500 residents. Under this project, farmers are learning new agricultural techniques, as well as marketing and management strategies. Many women also have been hired to work in the Las Lomas Bean Seed Processing Plant, where the harvested red beans are polished, separated and packaged. The beans are sold in Nicaragua, and to other Central American countries.

“Food For The Poor’s goal has always been to help families with their immediate needs, but more importantly to serve as a catalyst towards self-sustainability,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “Agricultural projects, such as this bean farming program in Nicaragua, are an excellent example of how providing farmers with the proper tools and knowledge are a blessing for all involved.” Trani recently traveled with Food For The Poor to see for herself the various agricultural projects in the communities of Ocotal and Somoto, which include a variety of fruits and vegetables.     

“Although this was my first time visiting Nicaragua, I was immediately impacted by the genuine will, leadership qualities, and earnest expression of the farmers,” said Trani.  “All players involved, including American Nicaraguan Foundation, Food For The Poor, and the farming communities have strongly coalesced around the central mission. Everyone is functioning as a team, ensuring that the project goes as well as it can.”

When it comes to addressing poverty, the Greater Impact Foundation realizes this is a long-term process, and has since committed to working with Food For The Poor for a second phase of agricultural projects to assist Nicaraguan farmers.

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.

Food For The Poor thanks Office Depot Foundation

Thanks to the generosity of the Office Depot Foundation, the international relief and development organization Food For The Poor will be able to provide 4,000 sackpacks for the children in its Angels Of Hope program in Jamaica, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guyana and Guatemala.

“This beautiful donation will allow children to enter the school year with supplies that have the potential to change their lives,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “We know that if we ever are going to break the cycle of poverty, it will come through education. Through this gift, these children will be offered the chance at dignity, success and hope for the future.”

Caring donors to Food For The Poor have sponsored approximately 3,800 children in 95 homes, which are dedicated to serving orphaned, abandoned, abused and malnourished children. Many of the sackpacks already have been distributed at various Day of Celebration events at the Angels Of Hope homes. The next distribution is planned for September in Honduras.

“The Office Depot Foundation is proud to partner with Food For The Poor in our 2012 National Backpack Program,” said Mary Wong, President of Office Depot Foundation. “The fact that this partnership helps to extend the impact of the program internationally is exceptionally gratifying.  We are committed to helping children succeed in school wherever they may be.”

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:
Kathy Skipper
Director of Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.org

Volunteers take a “hands-on” approach: FedEx helps Food For The Poor build homes in Central America

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (July 16, 2012) FedEx Corporation has teamed up with Food For The Poor for the first time and donated enough funds to build 12 two-room homes – six in Honduras and six in Nicaragua. 

The unique aspect of this partnership is that FedEx contractors who work in offices based in these Central American countries volunteered their time and helped with the construction and painting of these homes.

Founded in 1971 as the Federal Express Corporation, FedEx now operates in more than 200 countries. No stranger to giving back, FedEx has a history of donating funds and resources following natural disasters in the United States and abroad. Food For The Poor has a long history in Central America and feels a sense of relief that these new homes have been completed before the start of hurricane season, which was June 1. 

“We began serving in Honduras in 1999, one year after it was devastated by Hurricane Mitch, and we’ve been serving in Nicaragua since 1998. To have a corporation such as FedEx provide the financial support for us to build these homes for deserving families is wonderful, and we’re truly grateful,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor.

Recipients of the houses in Honduras also helped in the building process of their new homes, which were constructed just outside the city of San Pedro Sula. In Nicaragua, the new homeowners in the town of Quezalguaque helped with the painting of their houses.

Each home has two rooms, a living space, indoor sanitation and a water cistern to collect rain water for laundry and other household uses. The structures are built on a cement foundation and are topped with sturdy zinc roofs.  To date, Food For The Poor has built:

·         5,145 homes in Honduras

·         14,110 homes in Nicaragua

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
Director of Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6079
wandaw@foodforthepoor.org                                                         

Village of peace honors son, brother, friend

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (June 8, 2012) – Yeshai Fields was a young man of principle. His family and friends say he was a man who lived with the goal of helping people from all walks of life. So when they lost him in his late 20s, they turned to the international relief and development agency Food For The Poor to help create a memorial to him that would be a reminder of his magical smile and loving ways. This memorial was building a Village of Peace in Nicaragua.

Yeshai Fields

That village in San Agustin, Quezalguaque, Nicaragua, currently is a community of 300 people who live in extreme poverty, battling daily against hunger, disease and the rodents that share the garbage-strewn landscape. It is this community that his family has chosen to transform with homes, water wells, livestock, crops and a community center with a medical clinic.

They are more than halfway to their goal of making it a reality through several fundraisers held by family and friends. The Yeshai Fields Village of Peace will be dedicated this fall.

“The memory of Yeshai Fields will live on. Yeshai always dreamed of providing for the underprivileged. May this tribute and our generosity be in honor of Yeshai’s relentless vision to help bring happiness to others,” his family wrote in an appeal to friends. 

His mother, Nava Fields, said the most important thing in Yeshai’s life was to be generous, and that he was especially compassionate toward the homeless and tried to help them. “He did it because he felt it was the right thing to do, and he wanted to do more. He would always say,’I will make you proud of me,’ and this is one way that I can show him how very proud I was of him,” she said.

Born in Israel in 1982, Yeshai was the younger of twin boys, and was raised on a sheep farm until the age of 5, when his family immigrated to Coral Springs, Fla. When he died, he had graduated from University of Miami’s Law School and was looking for a position as a public defender, with the goal of helping people less fortunate than himself.

“We are so deeply grateful that Yeshai’s family reached out from their grief to create such a beautiful memorial to this amazing young man,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor.  Speaking at a gathering of his friends and family, Aloma went on to say, “You’re beautiful because you came here tonight to really save lives. And that was important to Yeshai, and I thank you for continuing his legacy. From his passing will come new life.”

There will be 24 two-room homes in the village, providing safety and dignity to people who have known only the fragile shelter of plastic, some sticks and, perhaps, some tin. The mission of the group is to develop a self-sustaining village that will be able to take care of its own needs, and provide a life-transforming environment that will reflect Yeshai’s spirit of love and camaraderie.

“We always wanted to help people, and we traveled for a couple of years in developing countries where we got insight into what poverty really is,” said Nadav Fields, Yeshai’s twin brother. “We would take our shirts off our back, and give them whatever we had. This project fits everything my brother and I worked to do, and it is exactly how he would want us to remember him.”

Those interested in helping bring this dream to fruition can visit FoodForThePoor.org/yeshai to make a donation to the project. Checks also can be mailed to Food For The Poor, 6401 Lyons Road, Coconut Creek, Fla., 33073, using the source code 83407 in the memo field.

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:
Kathy Skipper
Director of Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.org

Palm Beach County students organize a benefit concert for Nicaragua

Embarking on a new way to involve South Florida’s youth in philanthropy, Atlantic Community High School junior Samantha Kerker collaborated with students and faculty members at six Palm Beach County high schools to present a benefit concert Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012, at Mizner Park Amphitheater, in Boca Raton. Proceeds from this evening of music will build a Food For The Poor school in Chinandega, Nicaragua.

“By all of the students coming together in these Students For The Poor chapters, it has given us the strength and power to really impact a plethora of students lives,” said Samantha. “This school in Nicaragua will benefit hundreds of students, and will allow them to have a proper education. With more students getting a proper education, the generations will become stronger and wiser, and will eventually overcome their developing country status.”

Performers to include The Kinected (Pop Music), Kasper featuring Syxx Ent (Hip Hop/Rap), Amanda (Pianist, singing Adele songs), and Siren (Rock Band). Participating Students For The Poor chapters include Atlantic Community High School, Suncoast Community High School, A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, Palm Beach Central High School, Boca Raton Community High School, and West Boca Raton Community High School.

For additional information regarding benefit concert sponsorship levels, and tickets, available at $20 per person, please contact Monique Shaw by calling 1-877-654-2960 ext. 6069 or by emailing moniques@foodforthepoor.com. Information about how you can start a Students For The Poor chapter at your school is also available by request.

Samantha’s idea to start Students For The Poor chapters in Palm Beach County was inspired by the questions her peers asked about her Food For The Poor mission trip to Nicaragua. She found the travel experience to a developing country to be so unlike her experiences in the United States.

“The poorest children in our neighborhoods would be considered the fortunate students compared to the children living in a developing country,” said Samantha, who tie-dyed her way to building her first Food For The Poor home for a destitute Nicaraguan family in December 2010. “Here in America, we have a government structure with many resources to aid the poor. In a developing country, there are little to no opportunities for the poor. The students participating in Students For The Poor clubs have come together to help those less fortunate students abroad.”

Students For The Poor is a unique student outreach effort initiated by students and developed by Food For The Poor. Students For The Poor is an organized outreach group on high school and college campuses throughout the United States in which students take time from their busy lives to serve the poor in their local communities, the Caribbean and Latin America.

To support the students’ building initiative, tax-deductible donations can be made through the charity’s secure website at www.FoodForThePoor.org/students. Donations can also be mailed to Food For The Poor, 6401 Lyons Road, Coconut Creek, FL 33073. Please make checks payable to Food For The Poor and include the special source code “SC# 77575” to accurately route your donation to the school-building effort.

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/students.

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

Four Central American countries suffer devastating effects of storm

Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and El Salvador are faced with the prospect of hundreds of dead and thousands homeless, after a relentless 10-day tropical depression flooded out bridges, roads and homes. Those killed include 32 in El Salvador, 29 in Guatemala, 13 in Honduras and eight in Nicaragua, according to local officials in a Tuesday report.

In El Salvador alone, the toll is extreme. Fr. David Blanchard, who has served as a missionary in El Salvador since the late 1980s, provided this report today to Food For The Poor:

“Twelve bridges have been destroyed, isolating much of the country from the capital, ports and airport. Six provinces are completely isolated from the rest of the country. In San Salvador, 10,000 people are now in organized shelters. Across the country, there are an additional 5,000 in shelters, although many more have sought refuge with families and neighbors. The total number of internally displaced persons is estimated at 100,000.”

Food For The Poor is rushing containers of water and hygiene supplies to help, but also needs the help of the public. There is an urgent need for canned meat, canned fish, canned milk, and canned beans. Tarps also are needed. Please take these items to Food For The Poor, 6401 Lyons Road, Coconut Creek, FL. Donations will be accepted starting Wednesday, Oct. 19, at 9 a.m. Cash donations also may be made by calling 1-800-427-9104, and referring to source code 082580.

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:
Kathy Skipper
Food For The Poor
Public Relations Director
954-427-2222 x 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.com

Food For The Poor awarded USDA program funding for Nicaragua

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded Food For The Poor 4,690 metric tons of food for children in Nicaragua over the next three years. The goal is to improve the education, nutrition, and health conditions of school-aged children in under-served communities in Nicaragua. During a three year period, approximately 275 containers of food will be distributed in the country’s most impoverished communities.

The World Food Program identifies Nicaragua as the second poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, behind only Haiti in terms of per capita income and the market value of all goods and services produced in the country. Low literacy rates, high dropout numbers, and poor academic performance are direct measurable consequences of widespread food insecurity, where low-income households often rely on children to increase the family’s income and in some cases, assist with subsistence farming.

“For some of the students who live in extreme poverty, this USDA program may give them the opportunity to taste milk for the first time,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “Malnutrition denies many children the opportunity to live life to their fullest potential. More than half of these families in rural areas live on less than $2 a day.”

Approximately 260 schools will participate in the USDA Food For Education program in Nicaragua. Plans call for 70,000 preschool to primary school-age children in northern and central Nicaragua to benefit from this feeding program. From 2011 to 2014, more than 37 million meals will be provided to students. The children will receive nutritional meals prepared from nonfat dried milk, red kidney beans, rice, textured soy protein, and vegetable oil.

The majority of beneficiaries are located in Estelí, Matagalpa, Jinotega, Nueva Segovia and Madriz. According to recent regional poverty assessments, nearly one-third of the population lives in extreme poverty. Chronic malnutrition and food deficits affect 50 percent of school-aged children and literacy levels fall below national averages – only three out of every 10 will finish high school.

Students will receive a morning snack and a hot meal for lunch each day. In addition, this program will fund the installation of 120 latrines, repairs to school kitchens, establish school gardens, and provide multi-disciplinary training for parents and teachers.

Food For The Poor has assisted Nicaragua since 1997. The American Nicaraguan Foundation has been a partner of Food For The Poor for 14 years, and during 2010 Food For The Poor shipped 343 containers of aid valued at more than $114.5 million to the country.

Food For The Poor was previously awarded a USDA Food For Education program in 2005 to benefit 65,000 school children in Nicaragua. Over the years, Food For The Poor has received additional funding from the USDA to support programs in Belize, Dominica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, and Trinidad.

Food For The Poor, the third-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

Tie-dying teen challenges you to vote and refresh the world

Register to vote in Pepsi’s Refresh Project, and with a click of your mouse you can empower high school students to establish Food For The Poor-related clubs. Samantha Kerker, 16, passionately believes all high school students should have the opportunity to witness poverty firsthand, and to give back to their community before they graduate.

Samantha’s idea to start “Students For The Poor” clubs in Palm Beach County was inspired by the questions her peers asked about her Food For The Poor mission trip to Nicaragua. She found the travel experience to a developing country to be so unlike her experiences in the United States.

“When I returned home from Nicaragua, I had a lot of explaining to do,” said Samantha, who tie-dyed her way to building her first Food For The Poor home for a destitute Nicaraguan family in December 2010. “I had to explain to my friends that in remote villages in developing countries, some people live in dilapidated shacks with dirt floors and have to walk for miles to find water. Their priorities are their immediate needs for survival – food, water, and shelter – not electricity to charge cell phones or to power laptop computers.”

Here’s how you can help Samantha realize her dream. Cast your vote each day, from Sept. 1-30 to support your cause on Pepsi’s Refresh Project website. Samantha’s idea is competing for votes to earn $50,000 in funding.

“The most important thing I want people to know about my idea is that we all think we know what poverty is, and we have all seen pictures of people living in poverty. But seeing and experiencing it firsthand changes lives,” Samantha said.

Every vote counts. Look for the Power Vote code on specially-marked Pepsi products. It should be under the bottle cap or printed on the inside of your multi-pack. Yellow bottle caps contain extra votes – 100, 75, 50 or 25. Enter the Power Vote code when you login and click "Activate" to support ideas that refresh the world.

Food For The Poor, the third-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 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
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com

Outreach and Food For The Poor celebrate milestone meals

Since 2007, Outreach has donated 7.5 million meals, packaged by volunteers throughout the United States, to Food For The Poor. In the last year alone, Outreach has donated four containers of food, exceeding 1 million meals.

These meals of rice-vegetable casserole, fortified with soy protein and vitamins, have been distributed to countries through Food For The Poor’s network in Latin America and the Caribbean – principally Haiti, Jamaica, Guatemala, and Nicaragua.

“Food For The Poor feeds more than 2 million people each day in the 17 countries we serve. We depend on organizations such as Outreach to help us supply the necessary food to feed the hungry,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “We are grateful to them, because without them, many more lives would be threatened by malnutrition and starvation.

Outreach Inc., a nonprofit based in Iowa, was created in 2004 when founders Floyd and Kathy Hammer returned from their second trip to Tanzania, Africa, on a construction mission. During their trips, they witnessed the death of many children from hunger and related diseases. They dreamed of a world free of poverty and limitations. Their response was to form Outreach.

Today, Outreach is delivering more than 100 million meals to the hungry in the United States, Haiti, Africa, and around the world.

Outreach arranges packaging events with faith and service organizations, schools, and civic groups. These food packaging events, held in church halls, school gymnasiums, and even stadiums, bring hundreds, sometimes thousands, of volunteers, each prepared to donate time and money to package meals. Five hundred volunteers can typically produce 50,000 meals. For more information on how to participate, go to www.outreachprogram.org.

“Our food packaging events are extraordinary spiritual events of giving and caring that draw congregations, communities and neighborhoods together,” said Floyd Hammer. “We are grateful that Food For The Poor has been able to take it from the packaging events to the countries where the food is most needed.”

Food For The Poor, the third-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 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:
Kathy Skipper
Food For The Poor
Director of Public Relations
(954) 427-2222 x 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.org

Father Chuck’s legacy transforms lives in Haiti and Nicaragua

Have you ever been hugged so tightly you could feel the other person’s heartbeat? Embraces full of gratitude welcomed Monsignor Francis X. Schmidt and residents from the Philadelphia area to villages in Haiti and Nicaragua that they have helped to transform with the relief and development organization Food For The Poor.

“We, working with Father Chuck’s Challenge in partnership with Food For The Poor, are performing important corporal works of mercy,” said Msgr. Schmidt. “God blesses us with very generous donors to help very poor but very grateful beneficiaries.”

Msgr. Schmidt’s first group journeyed by boat to Father Pfeffer’s Fishing Village in Baussan, Haiti, on May 25 to inaugurate the 30 two-room home coastal fishing village. Along the conch shell-lined beach, crowds of thankful villagers waded in the shallow water to greet the travelers with song and dance. In addition to building much needed homes in Baussan, the group also represented donors who funded the income-generating fishing village project in the community.

“What I like about Father Chuck's Challenge and Food For The Poor is that they commit to places, and they stick with those places for extended periods of time to transform lives,” said Eugene ‘Gene’ Halus, Jr., Associate Professor of Politics at Immaculate University in Pennsylvania. “That's what I saw in Haiti, and why I'm happy to keep raising funds for Father Chuck's Challenge and for Food For The Poor.”

Father Pfeffer’s Fishing Village is just one of the 33 fully operational fishing villages Food For The Poor has built along destitute coastal communities throughout Haiti. Fishing villages are a prime example of the effectiveness of self-sufficiency projects. The cooperative is supplied with boats, motors, fishing tackle and safety gear, refrigeration equipment, a storage facility and, most importantly, training for the fishermen. The fishermen are then able to fish in deeper, more bountiful waters and catch larger, more profitable fish. The entire village benefits from this enterprise because many of the villagers buy fish wholesale in order to sell them retail, while others sell the cooked fish to local residents.

During the June 6-10 trip, group members witnessed how donations from their parish communities were able to provide families with safe, sturdy housing, sanitation facilities, access to clean water, schooling and healthcare, in addition to the supplies and resources necessary to raise chickens.

Since 2007, Msgr. Schmidt also has supported projects in Nicaragua in honor of Father Chuck Pfeffer, a priest who was beloved by the community. Through the construction of 525 two-room homes in Nicaragua, Father Chuck’s Challenge provides a constant reminder to all who knew him about the importance of addressing the needs of the poorest of the poor – especially the young.


Fr. Chuck’s Challenge Projects in Nicaragua include:

-Fr. Pfeffer’s Village, 100 homes and St. Eleanor Health Clinic, in Bijagual
-Fr. Chuck’s Challenge II, 200 homes (Frances’ Village and Father Michael McGivney Village) and Holy Family Health Clinic, in La Rica
-Fr. Chuck’s Challenge III, 100 homes (San Estefano Village and San Augustin Village), in El Tuma-La Dalia
-Fr. Chuck’s Challenge at San Ramon, 50 total homes (San Patricio Village) and San Patricio School, in San Ramon

Msgr. Schmidt is currently fundraising to build the remaining 25 homes in Pantasma. The project consists of 100 homes and development projects. In Nicaragua, a donation of $3,200 provides a destitute family with a permanent two-room house with a latrine. Proper sanitation is essential to the health and welfare of a thriving family and helps prevent life-threatening illnesses.

On this month’s trip, the group revisited the once impoverished community of San Ramón, Nicaragua, located 9 miles outside of Matagalpa. The purpose was to inaugurate 50 furnished homes with access to safe drinking water and sanitation facilities, a two-room schoolhouse, a community center, a reforestation project and an animal husbandry project. Each family will receive a chicken coop, one rooster and two hens so that they can expand their stock of chickens for meat and eggs, which will supply the family with much needed protein and an additional source of income.

During the ceremony, the Mayor of San Ramon honored guests when he said, “You have led our people to the promised land.” A 25-year-old member of the community also spoke at the inauguration to express the villagers’ gratitude for their new homes. She reminded the crowd “that the one who mocks the poor offends the Creator. You have not mocked us, but delivered us from plastic homes to new safe ones.”

To support Father Chuck’s Challenge, please make checks payable to Food For The Poor, Inc. and include the special source code “SC # 74186” so the money can be properly allocated. Donations can be mailed to Food For The Poor, Inc., 6401 Lyons Road, Coconut Creek, FL 33073. All gifts are tax-deductible. Online donations can also be made through the charity’s secure Web site at www.FoodForThePoor.org/fatherchuckschallenge.

Food For The Poor, the third-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 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
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com

Doral Overseas Chinese Business Chamber honors Food For The Poor

The Doral Overseas Chinese Business Chamber will honor the work of the international relief and development organization Food For The Poor on May 14, when the chamber has its second annual gala to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.

Food For The Poor has had a long and fruitful partnership with the Taiwan International Cooperation and Development Fund (ICDF), resulting in numerous projects in several of the countries served by Food For The Poor. For three years, Taiwan worked through Food For The Poor to send 40 containers of rice each month to Haiti. Then, immediately after the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake, Taiwan again stepped up to help with a donation of more than 400 tons of rice. The two organizations also have partnered on computer, agriculture and aquaculture projects, providing long-term solutions to hunger, not only in Haiti, but in Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and El Salvador.

“We’re blessed to have the support of the Doral Overseas Chinese Business Chamber and the Taiwan ICDF, two organizations that care about the poor,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “Together, we can make a tremendous difference in the lives of those who have nothing. We are honored to be recognized by them on this very important occasion.”

George Yap, CEO of LEASA Industries Co, Inc. also will be honored at the dinner and awards ceremony. Yap, a Jamaican Chinese, is active in South Florida Jamaican and Asian communities and is a champion of the poor.

The event will be at 6:30 p.m. on May 14 at Doral Golf Resort & Spa, 4400 NW 87th Ave., Doral, FL 33178. Guests will enjoy dinner and special dance performances, in addition to the awards ceremony.

“We are extremely pleased to be partnering with Food For The Poor, and hope to do our part in raising money for our neighbors in Haiti. After learning about how Food For The Poor helped Haitians build new homes, our chamber donated enough money to build one home for a Haitian family,” said Charles Cheng, CEO of the chamber. “I hope we will be able to raise more money on May 14 so Food For The Poor may build many more homes in Haiti and help transform the lives of many more people in Haiti.”

For more information about how to purchase tickets for the event, contact the Doral Overseas Chinese Business Chamber:

Charles Cheng, CEO
305-421-8978
doralocbc@gmail.com

Pedro Cheng, VP
305-793-8673
doralocbc2pedrocheng@gmail.com

Food For The Poor, the third-largest international relief and development organization in the United States, does much more than feed millions of the 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:
Kathy Skipper
Food For The Poor
Director of Public Relations
954.427.2222, ext. 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.com

Food For The Poor’s Christmas Catalog Offers Gifts of Love For Those Who Have Everything and Those Who Have Nothing

In today’s current economy, the South Florida-based humanitarian organization Food For The Poor offers unique gift ideas that will continue to provide comfort and joy long after Christmas has passed. Food For The Poor’s gift catalog is filled with opportunities to change lives in this season of love and hope.

The heartfelt gifts offered through Food For The Poor’s gift catalog epitomize the spirit of giving – and will positively change the lives of those who have nothing. For $36, you can give the gift of life by feeding a malnourished child for a year. Or you can even choose to give farm animals – like chickens, pigs, goats, donkeys and cows – to provide an income and source of nutrition for destitute families.

Across Latin America and the Caribbean, Food For The Poor remains committed to investing in water projects.

“What we can easily access with the twist of a tap is considered a precious gift by the poorest of the poor,” said Angel Aloma, Food For The Poor’s Executive Director. “Your Christmas gift to provide clean water will help answer the prayers of villagers who desperately need this lifesaving resource.”

Food For The Poor is equally committed to building safe and sturdy permanent housing. Families, companies or groups of employees can jointly fund the cost of $3,100 for a one-room home with latrine. Food For The Poor homes can be built in the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica and Nicaragua. The family who is moved out of a leaking, dilapidated shack into a real home will always remember that they are blessed.

Food For The Poor’s gift catalog is based on the scripture, “…give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven,” (Matthew 19:21).

The catalog offers a wide variety of gifts to fit any budget – from a fruit tree for $10, or a gift of a donkey for $150, to providing a community with a lifesaving water pump for $205.

Some of the catalog’s creative gift ideas enable communities to sustain themselves economically. Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime. Tilapia ponds provide entire villages with an ongoing food source; fishing villages provide the boats, engines, tackle and equipment needed for the fishermen to support their families.

All gifts are tax-deductible. To send a gift, the catalog can be accessed through the charity’s secure Web site or a printed version of the catalog is available by calling 800-427-9104.

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. We provide 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.