Shaggy to Perform at Gala

Grammy award-winning reggae star Shaggy to celebrate gala milestone

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Cheryl Ladd

Actress Cheryl Ladd to Speak at Food For The Poor’s Palm Beach Gala

	Since 2011, Cheryl Ladd has asked others to open their hearts and answer the prayers of children and families living in severe poverty.
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COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Sept. 4, 2014) – One of Charlie’s most beloved angels now uses her voice to save lives alongside the nonprofit Food For The Poor. Actress Cheryl Ladd will speak at Food For The Poor’s 12th annual Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures gala, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2015, at The Mar-a-Lago Club.

“I am looking forward to this very special evening,” said Ladd, who will be accompanied by producer and author Brian Russell, her husband of 33 years.

Ladd, who has a lead in the faith-based film The Perfect Wave (2014), is best known for her role as Kris Monroe, from the ABC television series Charlie’s Angels. This role as an angel prepared Ladd to champion the needs of the destitute, as spokesperson for Food For The Poor’s Angels Of The Poor program.

Since 2011, she has asked others to open their hearts and answer the prayers of children and families living in severe poverty.

“Helping those in such desperate need is what we are all called to do,” said Ladd. “I thank each and every person who has answered that call. Together we can bring hope and a chance for a better tomorrow for so many who fight a daily battle to survive.”

The annual event is chaired by distinguished Palm Beach philanthropists Donald and Melania Trump (National Honorary Chairs), Patrick Park (Honorary Chair), Arlette Gordon and Elizabeth Bowden (Gala Co-Chairs), and Herme de Wyman Miro (International Chair).

The Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures 2015 committee members include Michael Dixon, Emilio Guerra, Lorrain and Malcom Hall, Moneca Kaufmann, Tova Leidesdorf, Faith Morford, Michael Nadeau, Daniella and Alfredo Ortiz, Russell Sherrill, Mary Frances Turner, and Carol Weltz.

The Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures gala will open with a superb wine-tasting reception provided by Dreyfus Ashby & Co. and Trump Winery. The evening will culminate with a four-course gourmet dinner and wine pairing. Exotic escapes, jewelry, fine wines, and golf packages are among the varied prizes in the silent and live auctions.

A golf package at Trump International Golf Club is one of several golf packages that are available for bid. The course offers 27 holes of premium golfing, and Florida Golf Magazine rates it “the #1 course in the state of Florida.”

Ladd, a golf enthusiast, authored the autobiographical book Token Chick: A Woman’s Guide to Golfing with the Boys. Russell has a sequel in the works to his novel Scribe, which debuted last year to rave reviews.

For additional information regarding the Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures gala, tickets, sponsorship and benefactor levels, please call 1-888-404-4248 or email carolc@foodforthepoor.org. Proceeds from the 2015 Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures gala will be used to build homes for destitute families in Jamaica.

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.

Orlando Residents Celebrate the Joy of Rebuilding Homes in Haiti

ORLANDO (Oct. 30, 2012) – Thanks to the generosity of Orlando residents attending Food For The Poor’s 13th annual A Celebration of Hope gala on Saturday, Oct. 13, at Buena Vista Palace Hotel & Spa, funds were raised to construct a village in Haiti. Families who have remained homeless since the devastating 2010 earthquake will receive safe, permanent Food For The Poor homes in Emmanuel Village VII, the seventh village constructed from funds raised through the yearly gala.

“Emmanuel Village VII will be a living example of how lives can be changed and hope can be restored,” said Robin Mahfood, President/CEO of Food For The Poor. “You have made a tangible difference in the lives of those who suffer, and those who have felt abandoned by the world in Manneville, Haiti.”

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 with several committee members. There they met the families who will receive the new homes.

A Celebration of Hope gala committee members included Anibal and Maritza Beltran, Linda Bonnewitz, The del Campo Family, Janice Chong, Trevor and Freda Dieffenthaller,
Cynthia Hawkins, Jackie Heaps, Marissa Iannaccone, Rebecca James, Dr. Anis Khalaf, Kathy Kinchla, Donna Larson, Bernadette McComb, Laura McDonald, Paul Mylod, Dr. Desirae Nasrallah, Nicole Nasrallah, Robin Neel, Lisa Padilla, Nancy Padilla, Patricia Perfito, Anne Pinkosh, Amira Rodriguez, Roseline and Pelfrine Saint-Fort, The Santana Family, Marie Schwarz, Ryan Shaughnessy, Kelly Wilkes, Holly Wilson, and Jean and Donna Wilson.

“A great deal remains to be done, but together with your tremendous support, we can continue to help desperate and homeless Haitians,” said Mahfood. “You will forever change the lives of those who live in cardboard shacks and fragile tents with little or no protection from natural disasters, insects and rodents.” At the gala, Winter Park Construction built a prefabricated 12-by-12 foot house in the ballroom so that guests could see first hand how a modest house in Haiti can make 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. Thanks to the ongoing 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.

For additional information regarding A Celebration of Hope gala and future sponsorship opportunities, please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/orlando.

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.

Orlando residents answer need for housing in Haiti

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

Patrick Park to join Arlette Gordon and Elizabeth Bowden as the 2013 Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures chairmen

Food For The Poor’s 10th annual Palm Beach Gala, Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures will be Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, at The Mar-a-Lago Club, Palm Beach. The annual event is chaired by distinguished Palm Beach philanthropists Patrick Park (Grand Honorary Chair), Arlette Gordon and Elizabeth Bowden (Honorary Chairs), Herme de Wyman Miro (International Chair), Mary Frances Turner (Ladies Committee Chair) and Russell Sherrill (Men’s Committee Chair).

The Palm Beach community has worked to transform Gordon’s Village in Bluefields, Jamaica, since 2007. Proceeds from the 2013 Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures Gala will fund the expansion and renovation of Bluefields Health Centre. The clinic serves 25,000 residents with preventive and basic medical services, including pre- and post-natal care and pediatric care.

“Current clinic conditions are severely cramped and inadequate,” said Susan James, Food For The Poor’s Jamaica Country Manager. “Due to overcrowding in the waiting room, patients needing treatment, including pregnant mothers and sick children, often have to sit outside on the ground. With much needed renovation and expansion, the staff will be better equipped to provide medical service and patient care to those in the community.” 

In November, construction on the school named in Robert G. Gordon’s memory, near Gordon’s Village, will be completed. The school will serve approximately 100 disadvantaged children, and was funded with proceeds from the 2012 Palm Beach gala.

The Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures Gala opens with a superb wine tasting reception of selected wines sponsored by Dreyfus, Ashby & Co. Unique wine selections, jewelry and exotic escapes to such places as Hong Kong are among the varied prizes in the silent and live auctions. The evening culminates with a 4-course gourmet dinner and wine pairing.

For additional information regarding the Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures event, tickets, sponsorship and benefactor levels, please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/palmbeach.

Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures 2013 committee members also include Franklyn de Marco, Michael Dixon, Henry and Mary Virginia Fong, Karen Mason, and Renee Smith.

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

Five Months, 50 Homes, 50 Families

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Palm Beach philanthropists to celebrate life of Robert G. Gordon at Food For The Poor’s Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures Gala

Food For The Poor’s ninth annual Palm Beach Gala, Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures, will be Sunday, January 29, 2012, at The Breakers, Palm Beach. The annual event is chaired by distinguished Palm Beach philanthropists Arlette Gordon and Elizabeth Bowden (Honorary Chairwomen), and Paul Marino (Event Chairman).

The gala will honor the life of Robert G. Gordon, one of Palm Beach’s finest treasures. With a passion for both culinary achievement and charitable giving, Robert and Arlette Gordon served for five years as the gala’s Honorary Chairpersons. Together, the Gordon’s invited members of the Palm Beach community to become involved in this philanthropic cause and transform lives of poverty and suffering into ones filled with hope and thanksgiving.

“Robert and I considered it an honor to be part of Food For The Poor’s Palm Beach Gala,” said Arlette Gordon. “Robert prided himself on recognizing good company, wine, food and efficient philanthropic giving. He was impressed that more than 96 percent of all donations to Food For The Poor go to programs that directly benefit the poor.”

This year’s proceeds will be used to build a critically needed school in Robert Gordon’s honor to benefit approximately 100 disadvantaged children near Gordon’s Village in Bluefields, Jamaica. In developing countries, school classes are sometimes held under a tree or in a dilapidated building. Both of these scenarios make it difficult for the students to concentrate on their studies.

“We believe education is the foundation for a successful future,” said Arlette Gordon. “Robert would be touched by the generosity of his friends to know that so many had gathered together to build a school in his honor to extend his legacy.”

Food For The Poor’s Palm Beach Gala will begin with a superb wine tasting reception with selected wines compliments of Republic National Distributing Company, and Dreyfus, Ashby & Co. Throughout the reception, unique wine selections, jewelry and exotic escapes to such places as Hong Kong are among the varied silent and live auction prizes. The event’s wine sponsors specially paired fine wines to enhance each of the five courses and to highlight the executive chefs and restaurants of The Breakers, Palm Beach.

“Robert’s love of life was large, so it’s only fitting that at this year’s gala we honor him by serving some of his favorite things,” said Marino. “It was through his efforts and years of dedication that we were able to build an entire community in Bluefields, Jamaica. We cherish it in his memory – Gordon’s Cove.”

For additional information regarding the Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures event, benefactor levels, and tickets, available at $450 per person, please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit www.FoodForThePoor.org/palmbeach.

Proceeds from Food For The Poor’s previous Fine Wines & Hidden Treasures - The Best of Palm Beach galas raised funds to establish a self-sustainable fishing village in Bluefields, Jamaica. The project replaced dilapidated shacks with more than 125 safe, permanent houses, a school for 80 children, a fish processing facility, and provided residents with access to water and sanitation.

In addition to Food For The Poor’s International mission, the organization also supports many charities in Palm Beach and Broward counties.

Grand benefactors include Florence DeGeorge. Benefactors include Elizabeth Bowden, Arlette Gordon, Helene and Stanley Karp, Lois Pope, and Hermé de Wyman Miro – The International Society of Palm Beach. Gala sponsors include Dreyfus, Ashby & Co., Russ Reid Company, Republic National Distributing Company, TerraGroup and The Frankino Foundation.

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

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

Building Hope Gala’s House Rally Sets Record of 60 Housing Units

More than 350 compassionate South Florida residents attended Food For The Poor’s sold-out Building Hope Gala on Saturday, Feb. 5 at the Boca West Country Club. As the gala’s names implies, attendees gathered to create a legacy by pledging to build critically needed houses during the charity’s live house-rally. This year, the energized crowd pledged to construct a record 60 housing units – to restore hope and to shelter the destitute in the Caribbean and Latin America.

“Imagine being afraid of the very structure that serves as your home,” said Robin Mahfood, CEO/President of Food For The Poor. “No one can fight poverty alone. Together, we can continue to improve the conditions of endangered communities, one family at a time.”

Food For The Poor can build a simple housing unit with a latrine for $3,200. Food For The Poor homes are built with a strong corrugated zinc roof, a solid concrete foundation, cement block walls, windows for ventilation and a front door that can be locked.

At the helm, event co-chairpersons, Cathy and Abdol Moabery and Rene and Francis Mahfood, steered a new course for Food For The Poor’s 16th annual Building Hope Gala. Committee members included Ronda Gluck, Julie Mahfood, Pamela Matsil, Natasha Singh, Patricia Wallace and Traci Wilson.

The event’s elegant cocktail reception and exclusive silent auction began with the sounds of saxophonist, Leo Casino. Bidding on silent auction prizes offered opportunities for guests to donate to the cause at the same time. Prizes included exclusive art and collectibles from the Caribbean and Latin America, designer jewelry, luxury vacations, and golf and dining packages. The Building Hope Gala offered a full night of exceptional dining, dancing and inspirational moments.

“We are blessed to live in this country while in other parts of the world a Food For The Poor home provides a secure, dry and potentially warm place to sleep at night,” said Cathy Moabery. “It is our hope that receiving a Food For The Poor home will give them the will and determination to build stronger family units, while also building on their dreams.”

The event co-chairpersons and committee members devised a unique way to inspire gala attendees to contribute toward making a difference in the lives of others. For a donation, 50 guests purchased a starfish to see what they would win. Each starfish represented a unique gift. The grand prize was a pair of beautiful diamond earrings donated by Gregory’s Fine Jewelry in Boca Raton. Gregory’s Fine jewelry also donated necklaces and gift certificates for prizes.

Master of ceremonies, Calvin Hughes, an Emmy Award-winning newscaster for WPLG-TV ABC Local 10 News, shared stories from his personal journeys to Haiti where he reported how nonprofits such as Food For The Poor continue to strive to improve lives and living conditions throughout the country.

“What a small price to pay, to give someone the joy of having a place to call home; a place where they can have hope and, most importantly, a place where families can dream,” said Rene Mahfood.

Event sponsors included Aljoma Lumber, American Nicaraguan Foundation, Bernuth Agencies, Inc., Dennis Charley & Associates, Inc., Dusco Doors, Gregory’s Fine Jewelry, Haiti Shipping Lines, Japs-Olson Company, McFFe Group, MSP, The Pereira Family, Quadriga Art, Inc., SEACOR Holdings Inc., Seaboard Marine Ltd., Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Miami (Taiwan), TD Bank, N.A., United Healthcare, and VITAS Innovative Hospice Care.

For information regarding next year’s Building Hope Gala please call 1-888-404-4248 or visit the event page.

Food For The Poor, the third-largest international relief and development organization in the United States, does much more than feed millions of hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian agency provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 96 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor. For more information please visit www.foodforthepoor.org.

Contact:
Jennifer Leigh Oates
Public Relations
(954) 427-2222 x 6054
jennifero@foodforthepoor.com