Orlando’s 13th annual A Celebration of Hope gala will raise money to build safe, permanent Food For The Poor homes for at least 50 Haitian families who remain homeless more than two years after the devastating earthquake. Committee members invite those interested in rebuilding and learning about Haiti to attend the Caribbean-themed gala at Buena Vista Palace Hotel & Spa on Oct. 13.
Winter Park Construction will build a prefabricated 12-by-12 foot house in the ballroom so that guests can see how a modest house makes a significant difference in the lives of the truly destitute. Food For The Poor builds safe, permanent two-room houses with sanitation and access to water for families in need of shelter.
In August, Dr. Lynne Nasrallah, who serves on the Food For The Poor Board of Directors and as the gala’s Chairwoman, traveled to Manneville, Haiti, with several committee members. There they met the families who are relying on their voice to raise the money necessary to construct 50 two-room homes in Emmanuel Village VII.
“The impact of sheltering just one poor family reverberates from the heart of that family directly to the heart of God,” said Nasrallah. “I never tire of seeing a rusty tin shack being replaced by a sturdy Food For The Poor home.”
A Celebration of Hope gala will include a cocktail reception, silent auction, house rally, and a memorable dinner with friends. Bidding on silent auction prizes, such as exclusive art and collectibles from the Caribbean and Latin America, designer jewelry, luxury vacations, and golf and dining packages, offers opportunities for guests to support and donate to the cause.
For additional information regarding A Celebration of Hope gala, sponsorship levels, and tickets, available at $150 per person, please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/orlando.
Tropical Storm Isaac’s recent path over the Caribbean nation reminded many of Haiti’s vulnerability, and of the hazardous living conditions still being endured by the approximately 390,000 Haitians who still live in tents and makeshift shacks. Thanks to the past support of Orlando residents, gala proceeds have relocated more than 636 families from garbage-filled swamps, and moved them into secure two-room Food For The Poor homes.
“There are so many more families that urgently need our help,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “Dilapidated shacks made of scraps of wood, plastic and cardboard offer families little or no protection from natural disasters, insects and rodents.”
Since the 2010 earthquake, Food For The Poor has escalated its homebuilding initiative, and has built more than 3,523 permanent two-room homes for displaced families.
A Celebration of Hope gala committee members include Anibal and Maritza Beltran, Linda Bonnewitz, The del Campo Family, Janice Chong, Cynthia Hawkins, Jackie Heaps, Eva Pegan Hill, Marissa Iannaccone, Dr. Aida Jimenez and Isabel Jimenez, Rebecca James, Kathy Kinchla, Donna Larson, Paul Mylod, Desirae Nasrallah, Nicole Nasrallah, Nancy Padilla, Lisa Padilla, Patricia Perfito, Amira Rivera, Diane Rogers, Roseline and Pelfrine Saint-Fort, The Santana Family, Marie Schwarz, Kelly Wilkes, Jean and Donna Wilson, and Holly 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
Showing posts with label home. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home. Show all posts
Monday, September 24, 2012
Friday, March 9, 2012
Food For The Poor, partners move 2,000 into Haiti homes
Food For The Poor joined with key partners on Feb. 27 to move 400 families displaced by the 2010 earthquake into sturdy homes. The Inter-American Development Bank, and Fonds d' Assistance Économique et Social, along with Food For The Poor committed to building the homes on the outskirts of Port-au-Prince in the fall of 2011.
“The people who will live in these homes are among the poorest of the displaced people directly affected by the earthquake, and living in tents and other makeshift shelters around the city,” said Alvaro Pereira, Executive Vice President of Food For The Poor. “This development is not only providing the dignity and safety of homes, but also offering hope through jobs. Local residents have found jobs building the homes, and with those skills they are able to go find other work.”
More than 2,700 two-room homes have been built by Food For The Poor in Haiti since the January 2010 earthquake. While 1.3 million people were initially left homeless by the earthquake, about 500,000 are still without shelter, according to the United Nations’ shelter committee. Moving the people out of the makeshift tents pitched in the city’s parks, plazas and public places is a challenge because most have no place to go. Through the charity’s housing initiative, about 13,500 people have a safe place to live.
The Inter-American Development Bank funded the site development in Orangers and a portion of the cost of every home, while the balance is being matched by caring donors of Food For The Poor. The original plan for 100 homes built by Food For The Poor was increased by 40 when the other two partners expressed their satisfaction at the quality of the homes, and the speed with which they were built.
The colorful homes in the Orangers development have poured cement foundations, cement block construction and sturdy metal roofs. Each house has two rooms, a cooking area, a bathroom and connections to a septic tank, water and electricity services. The neighborhood also has paved roads, playgrounds, a community center and areas for shops. Based on an average family size of five, the 400 homes in the development will house about 2,000 people.
Those who will live in the homes expressed their gratitude, as they were handed the keys by President Michel Martelly and offered a new chance at life.
Meaningful change in Haiti will come through self-sustaining programs, allowing Haitians to take the reins of their own future by providing jobs that will help support the country’s people and local economy. That kind of economic impact is evident in the Orangers project. More than 75 people who are heads of households helped to build the homes, directly impacting the economic wellbeing of almost 300 people. Another 140 or so are benefitting from selling supplies, foods and other commodities in the local markets.
“Since the quake, we have escalated our homebuilding in Haiti,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “It is heartbreaking to see the conditions in which people are living, and it is dangerous to their health and safety. By working together with IDB, FAES and our loyal and generous donors, we have been able to get some of the displaced out of the tent cities. There are so many more that urgently need our help.”
The project will continue building more homes outside of the Port-au-Prince region this year, and about 750 homes will be built in the north, where Food For The Poor and IDB are working on a regional development plan anchored by the soon-to-be-completed Caracol Industrial Park.
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.
To learn more, please visit www.foodforthepoor.org.
Contact:
Kathy Skipper
Food For The Poor
Public Relations Director
954-427-2222 x 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.com
“The people who will live in these homes are among the poorest of the displaced people directly affected by the earthquake, and living in tents and other makeshift shelters around the city,” said Alvaro Pereira, Executive Vice President of Food For The Poor. “This development is not only providing the dignity and safety of homes, but also offering hope through jobs. Local residents have found jobs building the homes, and with those skills they are able to go find other work.” More than 2,700 two-room homes have been built by Food For The Poor in Haiti since the January 2010 earthquake. While 1.3 million people were initially left homeless by the earthquake, about 500,000 are still without shelter, according to the United Nations’ shelter committee. Moving the people out of the makeshift tents pitched in the city’s parks, plazas and public places is a challenge because most have no place to go. Through the charity’s housing initiative, about 13,500 people have a safe place to live.
The Inter-American Development Bank funded the site development in Orangers and a portion of the cost of every home, while the balance is being matched by caring donors of Food For The Poor. The original plan for 100 homes built by Food For The Poor was increased by 40 when the other two partners expressed their satisfaction at the quality of the homes, and the speed with which they were built.
The colorful homes in the Orangers development have poured cement foundations, cement block construction and sturdy metal roofs. Each house has two rooms, a cooking area, a bathroom and connections to a septic tank, water and electricity services. The neighborhood also has paved roads, playgrounds, a community center and areas for shops. Based on an average family size of five, the 400 homes in the development will house about 2,000 people.
Those who will live in the homes expressed their gratitude, as they were handed the keys by President Michel Martelly and offered a new chance at life.
Meaningful change in Haiti will come through self-sustaining programs, allowing Haitians to take the reins of their own future by providing jobs that will help support the country’s people and local economy. That kind of economic impact is evident in the Orangers project. More than 75 people who are heads of households helped to build the homes, directly impacting the economic wellbeing of almost 300 people. Another 140 or so are benefitting from selling supplies, foods and other commodities in the local markets.
“Since the quake, we have escalated our homebuilding in Haiti,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “It is heartbreaking to see the conditions in which people are living, and it is dangerous to their health and safety. By working together with IDB, FAES and our loyal and generous donors, we have been able to get some of the displaced out of the tent cities. There are so many more that urgently need our help.”
The project will continue building more homes outside of the Port-au-Prince region this year, and about 750 homes will be built in the north, where Food For The Poor and IDB are working on a regional development plan anchored by the soon-to-be-completed Caracol Industrial Park.
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.
To learn more, please visit www.foodforthepoor.org.
Contact:
Kathy Skipper
Food For The Poor
Public Relations Director
954-427-2222 x 6614
kathys@foodforthepoor.com
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
Boca committee members committed to Building Hope in Haiti
One way South Floridians can keep Haiti on the radar and continue to help the rebuilding progress is to attend Food For The Poor’s annual Building Hope Gala on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012 at The Polo Club of Boca Raton.
In November, seven committee members from the Boca Raton/Lighthouse Point communities traveled to Haiti with Food For The Poor. While in-country, the committee members decided this year’s Building Hope Gala goal would be to raise enough money to construct 100 housing units, a community center, and to initiate an animal husbandry project to include 20 cows in Olivier, Deuxieme Plaine, Haiti.
“It was a very sad day, but a great experience – a life adjusting experience,” said Rene Mahfood, the event’s Honorary Chairperson after her first day in Haiti. “What we saw today puts everything in perspective. You think about how expensive life is back home and all the things you can’t afford. Then you realize that all those material things don’t matter. None of it matters. All that matters is having a roof over your head, being able to clothe your children and having food to eat.”
Attendees will be invited to create a legacy by pledging to build critically needed houses during the charity’s live house-rally. For additional information regarding the Building Hope Gala, sponsorship levels, and tickets, available at $225 per person, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/boca.
“We’re blessed,” said Ronda Gluck, Event Co-Chairperson, after she visited a family in Cité Soleil who will soon receive a new Food For The Poor house. “We have no idea the luxuries we live in, compared to this house. I feel terrible. These families are blessed to be receiving a home.”
Travelers included Ronda Gluck, Rene Mahfood, Becky Carlsson, Julie Mahfood, Allison Venditti, Traci Wilson, and Kara Seelye.
Additional committee members include Cathy & Abdol Moabery (Event Co-Chairpersons), David Gluck (Event Co-Chairperson), Francis Mahfood (Honorary Chairperson), Ronda Ellis Ged, Michele Greene, Pamela Matsil, Natasha Singh, and Patricia Wallace.
“Hundreds of thousands of displaced Haitians have been forced to live under tarps and tents for almost two years,” said Robin Mahfood, Food For The Poor’s President/CEO, who traveled with members of the Boca committee. “As a result of these inhumane living conditions, the spread of disease and waterborne illnesses have thrived, causing even more devastation.”
Media master of ceremonies will be Calvin Hughes, an Emmy Award-winning newscaster for WPLG-TV ABC Local 10 News. For years, he has reported how nonprofits such as Food For The Poor continue to improve lives and living conditions throughout the country.
Event sponsors include Gregory’s Fine Jewelry, Arrigo Fiat of West Palm Beach, TD Bank, N.A., Regal Home Health, Premier Aircraft Sales, American Nicaraguan Foundation, Jeffery and Agnes Stoops, Dennis Charley & Associates, Quadriga Art. Inc, Haiti Shipping Lines, Seaboard Marine Ltd., Dusco Doors, The Pereira Family, Bernuth Agencies, Boca Home Care Services, Comerica Bank, The Ross Group of UBS, Mailing Service of Pittsburg, and Jox Sox.
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:
Jennifer Leigh Oates
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com
In November, seven committee members from the Boca Raton/Lighthouse Point communities traveled to Haiti with Food For The Poor. While in-country, the committee members decided this year’s Building Hope Gala goal would be to raise enough money to construct 100 housing units, a community center, and to initiate an animal husbandry project to include 20 cows in Olivier, Deuxieme Plaine, Haiti.“It was a very sad day, but a great experience – a life adjusting experience,” said Rene Mahfood, the event’s Honorary Chairperson after her first day in Haiti. “What we saw today puts everything in perspective. You think about how expensive life is back home and all the things you can’t afford. Then you realize that all those material things don’t matter. None of it matters. All that matters is having a roof over your head, being able to clothe your children and having food to eat.”
Attendees will be invited to create a legacy by pledging to build critically needed houses during the charity’s live house-rally. For additional information regarding the Building Hope Gala, sponsorship levels, and tickets, available at $225 per person, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/boca.
“We’re blessed,” said Ronda Gluck, Event Co-Chairperson, after she visited a family in Cité Soleil who will soon receive a new Food For The Poor house. “We have no idea the luxuries we live in, compared to this house. I feel terrible. These families are blessed to be receiving a home.”
Travelers included Ronda Gluck, Rene Mahfood, Becky Carlsson, Julie Mahfood, Allison Venditti, Traci Wilson, and Kara Seelye.
Additional committee members include Cathy & Abdol Moabery (Event Co-Chairpersons), David Gluck (Event Co-Chairperson), Francis Mahfood (Honorary Chairperson), Ronda Ellis Ged, Michele Greene, Pamela Matsil, Natasha Singh, and Patricia Wallace.
“Hundreds of thousands of displaced Haitians have been forced to live under tarps and tents for almost two years,” said Robin Mahfood, Food For The Poor’s President/CEO, who traveled with members of the Boca committee. “As a result of these inhumane living conditions, the spread of disease and waterborne illnesses have thrived, causing even more devastation.”
Media master of ceremonies will be Calvin Hughes, an Emmy Award-winning newscaster for WPLG-TV ABC Local 10 News. For years, he has reported how nonprofits such as Food For The Poor continue to improve lives and living conditions throughout the country.
Event sponsors include Gregory’s Fine Jewelry, Arrigo Fiat of West Palm Beach, TD Bank, N.A., Regal Home Health, Premier Aircraft Sales, American Nicaraguan Foundation, Jeffery and Agnes Stoops, Dennis Charley & Associates, Quadriga Art. Inc, Haiti Shipping Lines, Seaboard Marine Ltd., Dusco Doors, The Pereira Family, Bernuth Agencies, Boca Home Care Services, Comerica Bank, The Ross Group of UBS, Mailing Service of Pittsburg, and Jox Sox.
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:
Jennifer Leigh Oates
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Orlando residents to present findings from Haiti at annual gala
Residents from the Orlando area are committed to rescuing Haitian families who call garbage-filled swamps “home.” Central Florida residents interested in Haiti’s rebuilding process are encouraged to attend Food For The Poor’s 12th annual fundraising event, A Celebration of Hope, Nov. 12, at Buena Vista Palace Hotel & Spa. Proceeds from the annual Orlando gala have built homes for more than 586 families.
“The impact of sheltering just one poor family reverberates from the heart of that family directly to the heart of God,” said Lynne Nasrallah. “I never tire of seeing a rusty tin shack being replaced by a sturdy Food For The Poor home. I have witnessed many fathers’ hands trembling with emotion and many mothers’ tears streaming from their eyes as they are given keys to their new front door. This scene is ‘a celebration of hope’ – a hope that tells the poor that God has indeed remembered His People.”
The evening will include live music, a silent auction, house rally, dancing, and a memorable dinner with friends. Bidding on silent auction prizes offers opportunities for guests to shop and donate to the cause at the same time. Prizes include exclusive art and collectibles from the Caribbean and Latin America, designer jewelry, vacations, golf and dining packages.
Event proceeds will be used to construct critically needed homes and water projects in Haiti. Last year’s event raised enough funds to build 42 two-room Food For The Poor homes in Haiti.
For additional information regarding A Celebration of Hope event, sponsorship levels, and tickets, available at $150 per person, please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/orlando.
A Celebration of Hope event sponsor, Winter Park Construction and their staff, will build a prefabricated, 12-by-12 foot house in the ballroom, to afford guests the opportunity to appreciate the significance a modest house makes in the lives of the truly destitute. For $6,400, Food For The Poor can build a safe, permanent two-room house with access to water and sanitation. A certificate of appreciate will be mailed to donors along with a photo of the house and housing recipients.
Committee members include: Anibal & Maritza Beltran, Linda Bonnewitz, The del Campo Family, Janice Chong, Cynthia Hawkins, Jackie Heaps, Dr. Aida Jimenez and Isabel Jimenez, Kathy Kinchla, Donna Larson, Tom Murphy, Paul Mylod, Desirae Nasrallah, Nicole Nasrallah, Robin Neel, Nancy Padilla, Lisa Padilla, Patricia Perfito, Amira Rivera, Diane Rogers, Roseline and Pelfrine Saint-Fort, The Santana Family, Marie Schwarz, Kelly Wilkes, Jean and Donna Wilson, and Holly Wilson.
In September, two Orlando residents traveled to Haiti on a Food For The Poor mission trip to witness first hand the conditions of the people and to see how the nonprofit continues to improve lives and living conditions throughout the country. The visitors traveled through swamps, blessed Emmanuel Village V, visited a home for handicapped children and the neonatal unit at Bernard Mevs Hospital, and learned how sustainable initiatives empower villages and increase in-country production of food. These initiatives include tilapia ponds, chicken rearing and animal husbandry projects.
“As pilgrims with Food For The Poor, we begin to personally understand the command: Love one another,” said Nasrallah. “We show our love by the way we look into the eyes of the poor, or by the way we greet them or by the way we clasp their hand. This love lends value to our action.”
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:
Jennifer Leigh Oates
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com
“The impact of sheltering just one poor family reverberates from the heart of that family directly to the heart of God,” said Lynne Nasrallah. “I never tire of seeing a rusty tin shack being replaced by a sturdy Food For The Poor home. I have witnessed many fathers’ hands trembling with emotion and many mothers’ tears streaming from their eyes as they are given keys to their new front door. This scene is ‘a celebration of hope’ – a hope that tells the poor that God has indeed remembered His People.”The evening will include live music, a silent auction, house rally, dancing, and a memorable dinner with friends. Bidding on silent auction prizes offers opportunities for guests to shop and donate to the cause at the same time. Prizes include exclusive art and collectibles from the Caribbean and Latin America, designer jewelry, vacations, golf and dining packages.
Event proceeds will be used to construct critically needed homes and water projects in Haiti. Last year’s event raised enough funds to build 42 two-room Food For The Poor homes in Haiti.
For additional information regarding A Celebration of Hope event, sponsorship levels, and tickets, available at $150 per person, please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/orlando.
A Celebration of Hope event sponsor, Winter Park Construction and their staff, will build a prefabricated, 12-by-12 foot house in the ballroom, to afford guests the opportunity to appreciate the significance a modest house makes in the lives of the truly destitute. For $6,400, Food For The Poor can build a safe, permanent two-room house with access to water and sanitation. A certificate of appreciate will be mailed to donors along with a photo of the house and housing recipients.
Committee members include: Anibal & Maritza Beltran, Linda Bonnewitz, The del Campo Family, Janice Chong, Cynthia Hawkins, Jackie Heaps, Dr. Aida Jimenez and Isabel Jimenez, Kathy Kinchla, Donna Larson, Tom Murphy, Paul Mylod, Desirae Nasrallah, Nicole Nasrallah, Robin Neel, Nancy Padilla, Lisa Padilla, Patricia Perfito, Amira Rivera, Diane Rogers, Roseline and Pelfrine Saint-Fort, The Santana Family, Marie Schwarz, Kelly Wilkes, Jean and Donna Wilson, and Holly Wilson.
In September, two Orlando residents traveled to Haiti on a Food For The Poor mission trip to witness first hand the conditions of the people and to see how the nonprofit continues to improve lives and living conditions throughout the country. The visitors traveled through swamps, blessed Emmanuel Village V, visited a home for handicapped children and the neonatal unit at Bernard Mevs Hospital, and learned how sustainable initiatives empower villages and increase in-country production of food. These initiatives include tilapia ponds, chicken rearing and animal husbandry projects.
“As pilgrims with Food For The Poor, we begin to personally understand the command: Love one another,” said Nasrallah. “We show our love by the way we look into the eyes of the poor, or by the way we greet them or by the way we clasp their hand. This love lends value to our action.”
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:
Jennifer Leigh Oates
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com
Friday, August 19, 2011
Out of debris and despair, progress in Port-au-Prince
Rubble that has lined vacant sections of Port-au-Prince since the Jan. 12, 2010 earthquake is finally being cleared to make way for much needed housing in the Caribbean nation's capital and most populous city. Food For The Poor is about to start a major housing development project on the outskirts of the city with the Inter-American Development Bank.
"I am thrilled because the construction projects we've been able to accomplish in other parts of Haiti can now begin closer to Port-au-Prince," said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. "Thanks to our donors, we have built more than 2,200 homes in Haiti since the earthquake. People desperate for shelter will now have a chance to move from the tents into sound houses."
"I am thrilled because the construction projects we've been able to accomplish in other parts of Haiti can now begin closer to Port-au-Prince," said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. "Thanks to our donors, we have built more than 2,200 homes in Haiti since the earthquake. People desperate for shelter will now have a chance to move from the tents into sound houses." Late last week, Food For The Poor, the Inter-American Development Bank, and Fonds d' Assistance Économique et Social made the commitment to construct the first phase of 100 houses. The homes will be built on land donated by the Haitian government in Orangers, which is located just north of Port-au-Prince. The Inter-American Development Bank will fund the site development and half of the cost of every home, while the other half will be matched by Food For The Poor's donors.
“The organization has received the allocated funds toward this housing project, which also will create much needed jobs in the region,” said Alvaro Pereira, Executive Vice President of Food For The Poor. “Construction should start next week.”
While 1.3 million people were initially left homeless by the earthquake, about 600,000 are still without shelter, according to the United Nations’ shelter committee. Getting the people out of the makeshift tents pitched in the city’s parks, plazas and public places is a real challenge because most have no place to go.
Leaders have said the way for meaningful change in Haiti is to help implement self-sustaining programs, which will eventually allow Haitians to take the reins of their own reconstruction and future by providing jobs that will help support its people and its local economy. The home building project helps meet those goals.
There are other signs of progress in Port-au-Prince, Food For The Poor is close to completing the Jean-Marie Gilloux School, which should be ready to welcome students on the first day of school. The two-level building is near the ruins of the famed Notre Dame d’Haiti Cathedral. Three more schools are also being constructed, and each school is being built with earthquake resistant materials. More than 3,400 students will benefit from the construction of the four new schools.
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:
Wanda Wright
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6079
wandaw@foodforthepoor.com
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Thanks to 13 strangers, homes are being built in Honduras
Just three months after a group of 13 strangers from varied backgrounds traveled to San Pedro Sula, Honduras, with Food For The Poor, the group has generated enough donations to build a double-unit home.
The new home funded by the group will be built in the Santa Barbara region later this summer. The group wants to build three more double-unit homes and will need to raise $9,600 to make this dream a reality for three more families in desperate need of sturdy housing.
With many families in the mountain region of Santa Barbara living in makeshift dwellings, the construction of even one home can become a community event. The group experienced happiness after they completed Efigenia Ramirez’s 400-square-foot house in April. Ramirez’s neighbors gathered and clapped with joy when Food For The Poor presented her with the key to a new home for herself and her family of 11.
“When we take groups on a mission trip, it’s primarily for them to meet the people who are benefiting from their generous donations, for them to see for themselves how their gifts in kind and monetary contributions are being put to use,” said Food For The Poor’s Executive Director Angel Aloma. “The fact that the mission group on their first ever ‘Journey of Hope’ to Honduras committed themselves to building homes for the people they met there is truly wonderful.”
Food For The Poor began serving in Honduras in 1999, soon after Hurricane Mitch devastated the Central American country, and has built more than 3,000 homes to date, providing thousands of families with sturdy houses. The concrete block houses are built on a cement foundation and have porches, windows, bathrooms and are topped with a sturdy zinc roof.
Because of the Honduras House Matching Program, Food For The Poor is now able to construct a double-housing unit for each family selected to receive a home. This program was developed to address the critical housing shortage in Honduras. Funds are earmarked for a house matching project, meaning that for each single-unit home that Food For The Poor builds, another single-unit home will be built. Therefore, every $3,200.00 donated will result in the construction of one double-unit home, consisting of two bedrooms, one living room, and a bathroom.
To help with the project, please visit the mission group's Champions For The Poor page.
Chicago-area lawyer Susan O’Neal, who was one of the mission trip participants, recently was featured in an American Bar Association Journal photo.
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:
Wanda Wright
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6079
wandaw@foodforthepoor.com
The new home funded by the group will be built in the Santa Barbara region later this summer. The group wants to build three more double-unit homes and will need to raise $9,600 to make this dream a reality for three more families in desperate need of sturdy housing.
With many families in the mountain region of Santa Barbara living in makeshift dwellings, the construction of even one home can become a community event. The group experienced happiness after they completed Efigenia Ramirez’s 400-square-foot house in April. Ramirez’s neighbors gathered and clapped with joy when Food For The Poor presented her with the key to a new home for herself and her family of 11.“When we take groups on a mission trip, it’s primarily for them to meet the people who are benefiting from their generous donations, for them to see for themselves how their gifts in kind and monetary contributions are being put to use,” said Food For The Poor’s Executive Director Angel Aloma. “The fact that the mission group on their first ever ‘Journey of Hope’ to Honduras committed themselves to building homes for the people they met there is truly wonderful.”
Food For The Poor began serving in Honduras in 1999, soon after Hurricane Mitch devastated the Central American country, and has built more than 3,000 homes to date, providing thousands of families with sturdy houses. The concrete block houses are built on a cement foundation and have porches, windows, bathrooms and are topped with a sturdy zinc roof.
Because of the Honduras House Matching Program, Food For The Poor is now able to construct a double-housing unit for each family selected to receive a home. This program was developed to address the critical housing shortage in Honduras. Funds are earmarked for a house matching project, meaning that for each single-unit home that Food For The Poor builds, another single-unit home will be built. Therefore, every $3,200.00 donated will result in the construction of one double-unit home, consisting of two bedrooms, one living room, and a bathroom.
To help with the project, please visit the mission group's Champions For The Poor page.
Chicago-area lawyer Susan O’Neal, who was one of the mission trip participants, recently was featured in an American Bar Association Journal photo.
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:
Wanda Wright
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6079
wandaw@foodforthepoor.com
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Homes for Haitians builds hope
Hoisted high in the air, 11-year-old Rachel Wheeler caught her first glimpse on Wednesday of the Food For The Poor village she worked for two years to build. From above the crowd, Rachel could see the rows of vibrantly painted pink, blue and green homes, nestled along the coast in Leogane, near the epicenter of the January 2010 earthquake. Villagers surrounded Rachel, clapping and singing songs of praise and thanks. One-by-one the residents embraced and kissed the young girl, who helped to move 27 families out of dilapidated shacks into permanent two-room homes.
"There’s a lot of happy people there," said Rachel, who visited with several residents inside their homes. "It’s nice and it’s clean."
Her mother described "Rachel’s Village" as unbelievable.
"This reception is overwhelming, and to look around and know these people have homes because of Rachel’s efforts is just amazing, it really is, it is amazing. It’s unbelievable," said Julie Wheeler.
Rachel, named one of America’s top 10 youth volunteers for 2011 earlier this month, journeyed with her family and Food For The Poor representatives to inaugurate the village she raised more than $170,000 to build.
“I wanted to see what it would look like,” said Trey Wheeler, 10, Rachel’s younger brother. “She is only 11-years-old, and I didn’t know an 11-year-old could do this.”
“We are pretty fortunate where we are in our country, where we live,” said Eddie Wheeler, Rachel’s dad who is a fishing captain. “It is a different atmosphere for them [Rachel and Trey] and something different for them to see and they can learn from it and be very grateful for what we have.”
Rachel’s Village houses one of the 33 fully operationalfishing villages Food For The Poor has installed in destitute coastal communities throughout Haiti. Fishing villages provide 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 it retail, while others sell the cooked fish to local residents.
As Rachel boarded one of the Food For The Poor fishing boats to leave “Rachel’s Village,” the residents called out and waved to her from the beach, “You are always welcome here. Please come back.”
With the village completed, Rachel has decided to fundraise to build a school in Haiti.
On Thursday, the group visited the Food For The Poor sponsored school, Ti Aiyti in Cité Soleil. The students, dressed in blue and white uniforms, greeted guests with laughter, smiles, handmade cards, and performances.
“I believe that knowledge is power,” said Julie Wheeler. “Education is the solution to poverty. Seeing the school in the slum of Haiti gave me hope, those children are the future leaders of their country.”
In addition to providing supplies, Food For The Poor also supports countless school feeding programs. For many poor children, the nutritious meal they receive at school may be their only meal of the day. The meals not only help a child concentrate, learn and develop, but they also serve as a powerful incentive for parents to send their children to school.
At Food For The Poor’s feeding center in Port-au-Prince, Rachel and her family rolled up their sleeves to help serve hot meals of rice and stew. Every day, six days a week, the feeding center provides approximately 15,000 hot meals.
To continue to support Rachel’s building initiative, tax-deductible donations can be made through the charity’s secure Web site at www.foodforthepoor.org/rachel.
To view additional photos from Rachel's trip, please visit Food For The Poor's Facebook page. To view a CBS Miami Channel 4 news report documenting the trip, please visit Food For The Poor's YouTube page.
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
"There’s a lot of happy people there," said Rachel, who visited with several residents inside their homes. "It’s nice and it’s clean."Her mother described "Rachel’s Village" as unbelievable.
"This reception is overwhelming, and to look around and know these people have homes because of Rachel’s efforts is just amazing, it really is, it is amazing. It’s unbelievable," said Julie Wheeler.
Rachel, named one of America’s top 10 youth volunteers for 2011 earlier this month, journeyed with her family and Food For The Poor representatives to inaugurate the village she raised more than $170,000 to build.
“I wanted to see what it would look like,” said Trey Wheeler, 10, Rachel’s younger brother. “She is only 11-years-old, and I didn’t know an 11-year-old could do this.”
“We are pretty fortunate where we are in our country, where we live,” said Eddie Wheeler, Rachel’s dad who is a fishing captain. “It is a different atmosphere for them [Rachel and Trey] and something different for them to see and they can learn from it and be very grateful for what we have.”
Rachel’s Village houses one of the 33 fully operationalfishing villages Food For The Poor has installed in destitute coastal communities throughout Haiti. Fishing villages provide 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 it retail, while others sell the cooked fish to local residents.
As Rachel boarded one of the Food For The Poor fishing boats to leave “Rachel’s Village,” the residents called out and waved to her from the beach, “You are always welcome here. Please come back.”
With the village completed, Rachel has decided to fundraise to build a school in Haiti.
On Thursday, the group visited the Food For The Poor sponsored school, Ti Aiyti in Cité Soleil. The students, dressed in blue and white uniforms, greeted guests with laughter, smiles, handmade cards, and performances.
“I believe that knowledge is power,” said Julie Wheeler. “Education is the solution to poverty. Seeing the school in the slum of Haiti gave me hope, those children are the future leaders of their country.”
In addition to providing supplies, Food For The Poor also supports countless school feeding programs. For many poor children, the nutritious meal they receive at school may be their only meal of the day. The meals not only help a child concentrate, learn and develop, but they also serve as a powerful incentive for parents to send their children to school.
At Food For The Poor’s feeding center in Port-au-Prince, Rachel and her family rolled up their sleeves to help serve hot meals of rice and stew. Every day, six days a week, the feeding center provides approximately 15,000 hot meals.
To continue to support Rachel’s building initiative, tax-deductible donations can be made through the charity’s secure Web site at www.foodforthepoor.org/rachel.
To view additional photos from Rachel's trip, please visit Food For The Poor's Facebook page. To view a CBS Miami Channel 4 news report documenting the trip, please visit Food For The Poor's YouTube page.
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
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Stephanie’s Mission builds schools and houses in Jamaica
In their continuing effort to honor their daughter's legacy, Lenny and Lin Crispinelli will travel to Jamaica for a second time to follow in Stephanie's footsteps with Food For The Poor. In less than two days, the team of 33 friends and family members will build a school to serve children, like the ones that first inspired Stephanie's enthusiasm to "Do work" on a mission trip with the charity.
One of the people making the trip, Nikki Fantauzzi, was with Stephanie in Haiti with a group from Lynn University on a Food For The Poor mission trip when the 7.0 magnitude earthquake instantly claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.
Fantauzzi, a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, drove four boxes of educational supplies from the Crispinelli's home in New York to Food For The Poor's headquarters in Coconut Creek, Fla. On Monday, May 23, before they left for Jamaica, the group stuffed backpacks for the children who attend Gimme-Me-Bit's school in Clarendon, Jamaica.
“Even though Stephanie is no longer physically here, through the work of her friends and family her mission and dream of making a difference continues,” said Fantauzzi.
Construction of this school named ‘Steph’s Place II’ will begin on Fantauzzi’s birthday. Through Fantauzzi’s Champions For The Poor web page, you can donate to help complete Steph’s Place II.
“Stephanie’s parents are doing a tremendous amount of good for Jamica’s youth by constructing a school each year in her honor,” said Robin Mahfood, Food For The Poor’s President/CEO. “By providing disadvantaged children with the opportunity to learn, Stephanie’s parents guarantee her memory, and her passion for serving others will continue to live in many hearts.”
While in Jamaica, Stephanie’s family and friends will also visit the school they built last year, ‘Steph’s Place’ in Race Course, Clarendon. The other sites to be visited are the same places Stephanie experienced while in Jamaica on her first mission trip with Food For The Poor. In her footsteps, group members will feed lunch to handicapped children, create arts and crafts with AIDS-affected children, shoot soccer goals with orphaned boys, and care for at-risk girls.
This year, in addition to funding Steph’s Place II, three homes for destitute families have been built with resources collected through the Stephanie Crispinelli Humanitarian Fund. At W R Berkley Corporation’s annual holiday party in Greenwich, Conn., Lin Crispinelli and friends successfully auctioned off a Wizard of Oz-themed gingerbread house, paying for the first installation of Steph’s Place II. Yorktown Jewelers and its customers have helped to host and support fundraisers that promote Stephanie’s mission.
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
One of the people making the trip, Nikki Fantauzzi, was with Stephanie in Haiti with a group from Lynn University on a Food For The Poor mission trip when the 7.0 magnitude earthquake instantly claimed hundreds of thousands of lives.
Fantauzzi, a graduate student at the University of Pennsylvania, drove four boxes of educational supplies from the Crispinelli's home in New York to Food For The Poor's headquarters in Coconut Creek, Fla. On Monday, May 23, before they left for Jamaica, the group stuffed backpacks for the children who attend Gimme-Me-Bit's school in Clarendon, Jamaica.
“Even though Stephanie is no longer physically here, through the work of her friends and family her mission and dream of making a difference continues,” said Fantauzzi.Construction of this school named ‘Steph’s Place II’ will begin on Fantauzzi’s birthday. Through Fantauzzi’s Champions For The Poor web page, you can donate to help complete Steph’s Place II.
“Stephanie’s parents are doing a tremendous amount of good for Jamica’s youth by constructing a school each year in her honor,” said Robin Mahfood, Food For The Poor’s President/CEO. “By providing disadvantaged children with the opportunity to learn, Stephanie’s parents guarantee her memory, and her passion for serving others will continue to live in many hearts.”
While in Jamaica, Stephanie’s family and friends will also visit the school they built last year, ‘Steph’s Place’ in Race Course, Clarendon. The other sites to be visited are the same places Stephanie experienced while in Jamaica on her first mission trip with Food For The Poor. In her footsteps, group members will feed lunch to handicapped children, create arts and crafts with AIDS-affected children, shoot soccer goals with orphaned boys, and care for at-risk girls.
This year, in addition to funding Steph’s Place II, three homes for destitute families have been built with resources collected through the Stephanie Crispinelli Humanitarian Fund. At W R Berkley Corporation’s annual holiday party in Greenwich, Conn., Lin Crispinelli and friends successfully auctioned off a Wizard of Oz-themed gingerbread house, paying for the first installation of Steph’s Place II. Yorktown Jewelers and its customers have helped to host and support fundraisers that promote Stephanie’s mission.
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
Friday, May 6, 2011
Gifts sure to delight, restore the ability to dream
This Mother’s Day, celebrate your mom by giving her a gift that honors her legacy and improves the lives of mothers in developing countries. From child sponsorship opportunities, to milk-producing goats and sewing machines used for micro-enterprise, Food For The Poor’s online catalog is brimming with unique gift options for every budget.
For $34 a month you can share a mother’s love by sponsoring a child through Food For The Poor’s Angels Of Hope program. Your gift will provide orphaned and abandoned children throughout the Caribbean and Latin America with food, shelter and access to medical care and an education. The charity has expanded its Angels Of Hope program, so now there are more children than ever in need of monthly sponsors.
“When a child is born into a life of poverty there is little time for them to dream,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “Instead, these children have nightmares about surviving, fighting off illness and quenching their thirst. Their consciousness is consumed with survival – day-to-day, hour-by-hour. The Angels Of Hope program is a way for you to reach into the darkness and to pull a child into the light.”
Food For The Poor’s gift catalog epitomizes the spirit of giving and offers a wide variety of gifts – from a solar-powered handheld light for $20, or a gift of a goat for $90, to providing a community with a lifesaving water pump for $205.
“When I saw the water for the first time, I was crying tears of joy… it is a miracle,” said Aurelia Pac, a mother and beneficiary of a Food For The Poor water project in Guatemala. This gift of clean, safe drinking water means Pac and other women and children in the village no longer have to trek for miles to fetch water for their family’s daily needs.
Additionally, the gift of a new, permanent house can move families out of dangerous living circumstances near garbage dumps and coastal swamps. For only $3,200, you will do more than build a house with sanitation – you will empower a family to help themselves and to share their good fortune with others.
All gifts are tax-deductible. To send a gift, the catalog can be accessed through the charity’s secure website at www.foodforthepoor.org/giftcatalog, 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 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
For $34 a month you can share a mother’s love by sponsoring a child through Food For The Poor’s Angels Of Hope program. Your gift will provide orphaned and abandoned children throughout the Caribbean and Latin America with food, shelter and access to medical care and an education. The charity has expanded its Angels Of Hope program, so now there are more children than ever in need of monthly sponsors.
“When a child is born into a life of poverty there is little time for them to dream,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “Instead, these children have nightmares about surviving, fighting off illness and quenching their thirst. Their consciousness is consumed with survival – day-to-day, hour-by-hour. The Angels Of Hope program is a way for you to reach into the darkness and to pull a child into the light.”
Food For The Poor’s gift catalog epitomizes the spirit of giving and offers a wide variety of gifts – from a solar-powered handheld light for $20, or a gift of a goat for $90, to providing a community with a lifesaving water pump for $205.
“When I saw the water for the first time, I was crying tears of joy… it is a miracle,” said Aurelia Pac, a mother and beneficiary of a Food For The Poor water project in Guatemala. This gift of clean, safe drinking water means Pac and other women and children in the village no longer have to trek for miles to fetch water for their family’s daily needs.
Additionally, the gift of a new, permanent house can move families out of dangerous living circumstances near garbage dumps and coastal swamps. For only $3,200, you will do more than build a house with sanitation – you will empower a family to help themselves and to share their good fortune with others.
All gifts are tax-deductible. To send a gift, the catalog can be accessed through the charity’s secure website at www.foodforthepoor.org/giftcatalog, 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 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
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Strangers unite in a journey of hope for Honduras
It’s been 12 years in the making, and now 13 strangers from varied backgrounds will be forever united after making a commitment to help the poorest of the poor in Honduras. The group decided to put words into action, and fund a home building project after traveling with Food For The Poor on its first mission trip to the Central American country in early April.
“I was at my happiest on this trip when we as a group were doing something to help the people,” said Jeanne Johnson, a volunteer from Kansas. “I was so pleased that we actually got to do projects instead of driving past the people and observing from afar.”
On the first day, the team braved the heat as they gathered in the courtyard of a Food For The Poor-sponsored warehouse in San Pedro Sula. They stuffed big plastic bags with smaller bags of beans, rice, sugar, juices, personal care items and treats for the children. After a few hours in the still-rising heat, nearly 200 bags were delivered to the village of Ocotillo, a 30-minute ride from the complex.
Dozens of women, children and elderly waited patiently for their monthly supply of much needed and much appreciated goods. Many in the group of travelers did not speak Spanish, but that didn’t matter because the exchange between giver and receiver spoke louder than any words.
“Realizing that one family must live off of one bag of sugar, one bag of beans, and one bag of rice seemed ludicrous,” said Sarah Rohrman, from New Jersey. “However, knowing that this is how so many families live day-by-day really puts things into perspective.”
“In spite of their plight, the sincere happiness I see in these children’s faces is truly amazing. They have so little, I will never forget what I am seeing here today,” said Joshua Miller of Ohio.
The second stop in Ocotillo was at the city dump. Vultures, cows, pigs, goats, and dogs wandered, while people picked through mounds of garbage, working side-by-side in search of sellable goods and food. For some, this way of life has existed for generations. The “pickers,” as they’re called, wanted the group to ask God to please bless the garbage in order that their daily needs would be found in the trash – an odd request that brought all who heard it to tears.
“Mentally, the most meaningful site was the Ocotillo village and the dump. Both locations brought home to me the true sense of the need for education, and the assistance the very poor of the country also need,” said Doug Frederick, from Pennsylvania.
With many in need of sturdy housing, the second workday began with a two hour drive from San Pedro Sula into the mountain region of Santa Barbara. After weaving through hairpin turns, and cruising near cliffs so high the valley below was barely in view, the group reached the work site. They hiked up a steep hill and began constructing the foundations of two, two-room homes for a family of 16, who all shared a one-room hut on a ridge very close to the construction site.
“I am blown away by all of this because I am actually building a house for someone and it feels great!” said Anita Buckmaster of Texas.
The home building didn’t end there, the group traveled to a third housing site where they mortared, installed windows, and painted the front of the house green and orange. The 400-square-foot house has a porch, rests on a cement foundation, has a bathroom and is topped with a sturdy zinc roof.
The excitement came full circle when Efigenia Ramirez was presented with a key to a new home for herself and her family of 11.
“It’s beautiful, it’s so beautiful,” said Ramirez, in Spanish. “I thank you; thank you all for helping me and my family. I love the colors.”
The third and final workday began at the Pimienta Training Center in the Sula Valley where the group got to experience the harvesting of tilapia from a fish farm, animal husbandry projects and the planting of Moringa trees.
“My daughter, Ellie, and I feel blessed to have this opportunity to help the people of Honduras. The hands-on approach to various projects, such as planting these amazing trees, is one of many unforgettable experiences for us,” said Sofia Goerdt of Minnesota.
“Each site was very meaningful, but I recognize the vital importance of the training center because it teaches people how to be self-sufficient,” added Diana Scheeler from Illinois.
The team also visited an AIDS hospice facility and passed out hygiene kits to patients who are well enough to live outside the facility. The time the volunteers spent with the residents may have been short, but the precious moments of loving kindness and the exchange of compassion made a powerful impact.
“Those who are poor, and/or disabled in the United States have access to programs like free clinics, social security, disability, public aid, etcetera – they don’t,” said Susan O’Neal of Illinois.
The third workday ended with a visit to a home for 33 children living with HIV/AIDS. To hear their laugher and to see their smiles made it easy to forget they are ill. Many in the group paired off and distributed toys, school supplies and treats to the children.
“This was one of the greatest learning experiences of my life. I feel blessed to have been a part of this mission,” said Deacon Ron Karcher of Illinois.
“We are so excited to finally be able to send a mission group to Honduras for the first time so they see for themselves the various projects we have in place there,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “I am looking forward to many more mission trips to the Central American country in the near future. By working together we will be able to permanently transform lives.”
Please visit www.foodforthepoor.org/hondurasapril2011 to learn how to help with this home building project.
To view more pictures from the trip, please visit Food For The Poor's Facebook page.
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:
Wanda Wright
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6079
wandaw@foodforthepoor.com
“I was at my happiest on this trip when we as a group were doing something to help the people,” said Jeanne Johnson, a volunteer from Kansas. “I was so pleased that we actually got to do projects instead of driving past the people and observing from afar.”
On the first day, the team braved the heat as they gathered in the courtyard of a Food For The Poor-sponsored warehouse in San Pedro Sula. They stuffed big plastic bags with smaller bags of beans, rice, sugar, juices, personal care items and treats for the children. After a few hours in the still-rising heat, nearly 200 bags were delivered to the village of Ocotillo, a 30-minute ride from the complex. Dozens of women, children and elderly waited patiently for their monthly supply of much needed and much appreciated goods. Many in the group of travelers did not speak Spanish, but that didn’t matter because the exchange between giver and receiver spoke louder than any words.
“Realizing that one family must live off of one bag of sugar, one bag of beans, and one bag of rice seemed ludicrous,” said Sarah Rohrman, from New Jersey. “However, knowing that this is how so many families live day-by-day really puts things into perspective.”
“In spite of their plight, the sincere happiness I see in these children’s faces is truly amazing. They have so little, I will never forget what I am seeing here today,” said Joshua Miller of Ohio.
The second stop in Ocotillo was at the city dump. Vultures, cows, pigs, goats, and dogs wandered, while people picked through mounds of garbage, working side-by-side in search of sellable goods and food. For some, this way of life has existed for generations. The “pickers,” as they’re called, wanted the group to ask God to please bless the garbage in order that their daily needs would be found in the trash – an odd request that brought all who heard it to tears.
“Mentally, the most meaningful site was the Ocotillo village and the dump. Both locations brought home to me the true sense of the need for education, and the assistance the very poor of the country also need,” said Doug Frederick, from Pennsylvania.
With many in need of sturdy housing, the second workday began with a two hour drive from San Pedro Sula into the mountain region of Santa Barbara. After weaving through hairpin turns, and cruising near cliffs so high the valley below was barely in view, the group reached the work site. They hiked up a steep hill and began constructing the foundations of two, two-room homes for a family of 16, who all shared a one-room hut on a ridge very close to the construction site.
“I am blown away by all of this because I am actually building a house for someone and it feels great!” said Anita Buckmaster of Texas.
The home building didn’t end there, the group traveled to a third housing site where they mortared, installed windows, and painted the front of the house green and orange. The 400-square-foot house has a porch, rests on a cement foundation, has a bathroom and is topped with a sturdy zinc roof.
The excitement came full circle when Efigenia Ramirez was presented with a key to a new home for herself and her family of 11.
“It’s beautiful, it’s so beautiful,” said Ramirez, in Spanish. “I thank you; thank you all for helping me and my family. I love the colors.”
The third and final workday began at the Pimienta Training Center in the Sula Valley where the group got to experience the harvesting of tilapia from a fish farm, animal husbandry projects and the planting of Moringa trees.
“My daughter, Ellie, and I feel blessed to have this opportunity to help the people of Honduras. The hands-on approach to various projects, such as planting these amazing trees, is one of many unforgettable experiences for us,” said Sofia Goerdt of Minnesota.
“Each site was very meaningful, but I recognize the vital importance of the training center because it teaches people how to be self-sufficient,” added Diana Scheeler from Illinois.
The team also visited an AIDS hospice facility and passed out hygiene kits to patients who are well enough to live outside the facility. The time the volunteers spent with the residents may have been short, but the precious moments of loving kindness and the exchange of compassion made a powerful impact.
“Those who are poor, and/or disabled in the United States have access to programs like free clinics, social security, disability, public aid, etcetera – they don’t,” said Susan O’Neal of Illinois.
The third workday ended with a visit to a home for 33 children living with HIV/AIDS. To hear their laugher and to see their smiles made it easy to forget they are ill. Many in the group paired off and distributed toys, school supplies and treats to the children.
“This was one of the greatest learning experiences of my life. I feel blessed to have been a part of this mission,” said Deacon Ron Karcher of Illinois.
“We are so excited to finally be able to send a mission group to Honduras for the first time so they see for themselves the various projects we have in place there,” said Angel Aloma, Executive Director of Food For The Poor. “I am looking forward to many more mission trips to the Central American country in the near future. By working together we will be able to permanently transform lives.”
Please visit www.foodforthepoor.org/hondurasapril2011 to learn how to help with this home building project.
To view more pictures from the trip, please visit Food For The Poor's Facebook page.
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:
Wanda Wright
Food For The Poor
Public Relations
954-427-2222 x 6079
wandaw@foodforthepoor.com
Monday, November 15, 2010
Woman Hopes to Turn Trash to Treasure for the Poor
Paying for a home with money raised from a yard sale may seem a like a stretch, but it’s not out of reach if the house on the market is selling for $2,600. That’s all it takes to move a family living in poverty on the island of Jamaica into a cozy new home built from the ground up.
With that thought in mind, and with the holidays quickly turning the corner, one Georgia woman came up with an idea of doing something different this year. It’s an idea, she says, that resulted from of a life-changing trip to Jamaica.
Sara Nix is a 43-year-old woman who lives in the quiet town of Dallas, Ga. She’s a wife and a mother of three children, but last December Nix suffered a devastating blow when she gave birth to a baby boy who did not survive. Four days after the delivery, she suffered heart failure and had to wear a defibrillator vest for several months.
In April, Nix says she decided to go on an eight-day mission trip with Food For The Poor to Jamaica, where she helped with the construction of two houses in St. Elizabeth. She says reaching out to others helped her to heal from her pain.
“God’s grace was so amazing!” said Nix. “It helped me so much, and it allowed me to get up and go help other people.”
With the support of her family, Nix decided to dedicate this holiday season to the memory of her son, whom she and her husband named Luke. Nix says building a home for a family in Jamaica for Christmas is a tribute to him, and a blessing for someone in need.
“With the love of my family, and the support of my spiritual family at Fortified Hills Baptist Church, we decided a yard sale would be a great way to raise the needed funds to build a home in Jamaica. The holidays are supposed to be about helping others,” said Nix.
The yard sale is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 19, and Saturday, Nov. 20, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 95 Valleyside Dr., Dallas, Ga. Nix says they still need merchandise to sell; if you have items to donate please call (404) 663-5549. All unsold items will be donated to charity.
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.
With that thought in mind, and with the holidays quickly turning the corner, one Georgia woman came up with an idea of doing something different this year. It’s an idea, she says, that resulted from of a life-changing trip to Jamaica.Sara Nix is a 43-year-old woman who lives in the quiet town of Dallas, Ga. She’s a wife and a mother of three children, but last December Nix suffered a devastating blow when she gave birth to a baby boy who did not survive. Four days after the delivery, she suffered heart failure and had to wear a defibrillator vest for several months.
In April, Nix says she decided to go on an eight-day mission trip with Food For The Poor to Jamaica, where she helped with the construction of two houses in St. Elizabeth. She says reaching out to others helped her to heal from her pain.
“God’s grace was so amazing!” said Nix. “It helped me so much, and it allowed me to get up and go help other people.”
With the support of her family, Nix decided to dedicate this holiday season to the memory of her son, whom she and her husband named Luke. Nix says building a home for a family in Jamaica for Christmas is a tribute to him, and a blessing for someone in need.
“With the love of my family, and the support of my spiritual family at Fortified Hills Baptist Church, we decided a yard sale would be a great way to raise the needed funds to build a home in Jamaica. The holidays are supposed to be about helping others,” said Nix.
The yard sale is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 19, and Saturday, Nov. 20, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 95 Valleyside Dr., Dallas, Ga. Nix says they still need merchandise to sell; if you have items to donate please call (404) 663-5549. All unsold items will be donated to charity.
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.
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