TORONTO, June 03, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Food For The Poor Canada (FFPC) calls upon Canadians to join in the effort to raise $1M in a campaign to feed an additional 50,000 people in the Caribbean and Latin America during COVID-19. This is a matter of survival.
“What we are witnessing in Haiti right now is a deadly combination of COVID-19 and a shortage of food,” explained Bishop Oge of FFP Haiti. He praised Canadians who are also suffering but who continue to support communities that are in far more vulnerable positions. The need for food has already exceeded the regular shipments from FFP (USA), who feeds 800,000 people daily.
Countries like Haiti that were already facing incredible challenges around access to and affordability of food are now pushed to the brink in the struggle individuals face feeding their families. Millions have lost work and have been confined to their homes. Without the ability to work, parents are unable to feed their children.
“We have changed our focus from development and sustainability to aid,” announced Samantha Mahfood, FFPC Executive Director, during the first virtual AGM reception on April 27th, 2020. In response to the global pandemic, FFPC has paused school and housing construction in Haiti and Jamaica until it is safe to resume such projects; instead, they have pivoted to address the urgent and growing need for food.
Thanks to the generosity of FFPC lead donors Grant Burton, Margaret McCain, and The Raymond Chang Foundation, Canadian gifts will be matched up to $185,000 to help towards the $1M goal.
Generous Canadians help FFPC tackle crises through steadfast logistics and strong, long-term networks of partners on the ground; these local partners distribute the goods and ensure they reach the people who need them most. Canadian donors have responded quickly; in May, FFPC sent 1.1 million meals to Haiti in the form of soup mix. On June 9th another container of soup, beans and vegetables leaves for Haiti, followed by 8 containers destined for Jamaica, Haiti, Guyana and Honduras later in the month. Despite all this, even more needs to be done.
“There isn’t a country that we serve that isn’t asking us for whatever we can send,” says Ed Raine, CEO and President of FFP US, noting that this is a critical time to help people survive. "We don't get to do anything without the generosity of the donors."
About Food For The Poor Canada
Food For The Poor Canada (FFPC) empowers communities in the Caribbean and Latin America through five areas of programming: food, housing, education, health and livelihood. FFPC responds to urgent needs while building community and social infrastructure. FFPC utilizes the pre-existing infrastructure of local affiliated organizations to better sustain and grow the communities they serve and responds effectively to emergencies and natural disasters when they occur. Over the last 12 years, FFPC and its Canadian donors have built 124 homes and 32 schools, as well as shipped and distributed $32 million worth of food, educational and medical supplies.
FFPC is part of the Food For The Poor family of charities; the founding organization in the USA is Food For The Poor, an interdenominational Christian organization that works in 18 countries in the Caribbean and Latin America.
For interviews or more information, contact:
Samantha Mahfood
Executive Director
(416) 921-4008
Samantham@foodforthepoor.ca
www.foodforthepoor.ca
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/356859b7-bc67-40ca-8199-644a76b57455