Summary
Founded in 1982 by Ferdinand Mahfood, Food for the Poor (FFP) is an inter-denominational Christian relief and development ministry helping the poor of the Caribbean and Latin America. Aid is channeled through pastors, missionaries, and churches in the area to serve the poor. FFP follows the principle that education and self-help must fortify charity work so recipients learn to break the cycle of poverty. To that end, FFP not only provides food for the starving, but also builds small houses for the destitute, digs water wells for parched villagers, provides medicine and medical equipment for the sick and elderly, supports orphanages and education for children, and much more.
Since its inception, FFP has provided more than $4 billion in aid to the destitute. Total support received in 2008 was more than $1.5 billion, with fundraising and administrative costs comprising only 2.26% of expenses - the organization’s lowest ratio ever. More than 96% of all donations received went directly to programs that benefit the poor.
Contact Information: [ Back to top ]
| Mailing Address: | 6401 Lyons Road
Coconut Creek, FL
33073-3073 |
| Website: | www.foodforthepoor.org |
| Phone: | (954) 427-2222 |
| Email: | You need to enable javascript to see the email |
Organization Details [ Back to top ]
EIN: 592174510
| CEO/President: |
Robin G. Mahfood
|
Tax Deductible: |
Yes |
| Chairman: |
Mr. P. Todd Kennedy |
Fiscal Year End: |
December 31 |
| Board Size: |
11 |
Financial info from: |
990 |
| Founder: |
Mr. Ferdinand Mahfood |
Member of ECFA: |
No |
| Year Founded: |
1982 |
Member of ECFA since: |
|
Food for the Poor aims to improve the health, economic, social and spiritual conditions of the men, women and children. Food For The Poor raises funds and provides direct relief assistance to the poor, usually by purchasing specifically requested materials and distributing them through the churches and charity organizations already operating in areas of need. More than providing food for the starving they help build small houses, dig water wells, provide medicine and medical equipment as well as supporting orphanages and education for the children.
Their mission is also guided by a commitment to prayer to maintain the purity of the mission. Staff will conduct regular prayer services, praying over specific prayer requests received as well as general prayer for the poor.
The mission of FFP is to link the church of the First World with the church of the Third World in a manner that helps both the materially poor and the poor in spirit. Our ministry is shaped by the belief that Christ is alive and can be served directly by serving those in greatest need (Matthew 25:40). Ultimately, we seek to bring both benefactors and recipients to a closer union with our Lord.
Program Accomplishments [ Back to top ]
Feeding
FFP operates and supports feeding programs that feed millions of people regularly. To accomplish this, it partners with churches, schools, hospitals, missionaries and charitable organizations such as the Salvation Army, Caritas, the American-Nicaraguan Foundation, the Knights of Malta, Esperanza de Vida and others. At its main feeding program in Port-au-Prince alone, it’s estimated that approximately 15,000 people are fed each weekday. FFP provided more than 54.4 million pounds of food to countless malnourished children and their families in 2007.
FFP also maintains a longstanding partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on projects that provide food and milk for schoolchildren and their families, and which promote agricultural education in impoverished communities. In 2007, more than 22.8 million pounds of food were distributed to impoverished communities in Jamaica and Guatemala through USDA grants. In addition, the USDA’s Food for Progress program in Jamaica provides small farmers and families with seeds, tools, agricultural training and techniques to successfully market their crops.
Housing
Throughout the Caribbean and Latin America, thousands of families lack adequate shelter. The poor often live in dilapidated shacks made of scraps of wood, metal, plastic and cardboard. This type of shelter offers little protection from the elements, insects and rodents. As a result, illness and disease are rampant, especially among those who are most vulnerable — the young and elderly. In addition, the poor who live in these conditions are particularly devastated by natural disasters such as floods and hurricanes.
Since its inception, FFP has built more than 46,000 housing units for destitute families in the Caribbean and Latin America. The homes are basic, yet safe and secure. These homes not only benefit the families receiving them, but also provide a source of much-needed work for local laborers. House designs and construction materials vary slightly in different countries.
In Haiti, a village of homes has been established for elderly men and women who had been homeless. The village is located next to FFP’s Notre Dame de l’Espoir boys home. We also maintain a girls orphanage, Maison d’ Amour, and a home for the handicapped. These housing projects were planned to encourage interaction and provide a real sense of community for orphans, the elderly and the handicapped.
After the tragedy of September 11th, 2001, the staff of FFP honored fallen heroes by building 403 houses in Jamaica in memory of those who died in the service of others.
Education
The importance of education in breaking the cycle of poverty is crucial. FFP ships books, school supplies, furniture, computers and other needed items to schools throughout the Caribbean and Latin America. FFP solicits used school desks, furniture and other equipment from school districts in the United States when they replace these items. Such classroom necessities are then shipped to schools in need.
In addition to providing supplies, FFP also supports countless school feeding programs in the countries it serves. 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.
Medical Care
Medical care and treatment is often minimal or under funded in the countries served by FFP. So, it solicits donations from major manufacturers of medical supplies and medicines for distribution throughout the Caribbean and Latin America. In Haiti, FFP operates outpatient clinics and supplies hospitals with food, medicine and medical equipment. It also supports hospitals, clinics, AIDS facilities, homes for the elderly, and orphanages throughout the Caribbean and Latin America by providing food, medicine and medical supplies. In 2007, 496.5 tractor-trailer loads of medicines and medical supplies were sent to help care for the sick in the countries we serve.
Orphanages
Throughout the Caribbean and Latin America, thousands of children have been orphaned or abandoned. These precious children need a safe, loving environment in which they can grow and develop. FFP has specially selected orphanages to participate in its Angels of Hope program. These orphanages are nongovernmental homes where the children can grow and develop mentally, physically and spiritually in a loving, Christian environment.
FFP donors have sponsored approximately 3,600 children in nine countries. The ministry encourages its donors to correspond with sponsored children to encourage them and let them know that they are loved and valued. In addition to the Angels of Hope program, more than 450 orphanages received aid from FFP in 2007.
Water Projects
The need for clean, safe drinking water is critical in the countries in which FFP serves. In some cases, local water sources might be polluted or contaminated. In other instances, women and children must walk for hours to a safe source of drinking water, returning home with heavy buckets that contain their family’s daily water supply.
FFP provides villages and communities with safe alternatives to drinking polluted water. Water wells, pumps, cisterns and sanitation facilities greatly reduce illnesses, diseases and parasites associated with polluted or contaminated water. Freed from the tedious and grueling chore of walking for hours to and from a water source, children are able to attend school and women can utilize their time for more productive tasks. Since 1998, FFP has completed more than 560 water projects for thirsty villages and communities.
Micro-Enterprise Development
Providing the poor with long-term, sustainable solutions to poverty is a priority at Food For The Poor. To accomplish this, it has developed several micro-enterprise programs that help the poor help themselves. Some of these projects include: Fishing villages in Jamaica and Haiti; agricultural research and training centers in Nicaragua, El Salvador and Jamaica; Tilapia farms in Guatemala, Honduras, the Dominican Republic and Haiti; animal rearing projects; woodworking shops; sewing enterprises; automobile repair shops; and, bakeries. These skills training and micro-enterprise projects not only help provide the poor with income; they also restore hope and human dignity. In many cases, those receiving help will in turn help others in their community.
Fishing villages provide a prime example of the effectiveness of self-help projects. Destitute coastal villages are selected and a cooperative is formed. 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. Additionally, the fishermen are required to return a portion of their proceeds to those who are less fortunate. Currently 17 fishing villages are in operation in Jamaica, and 12 have been established in Haiti; six more are now being established in Haiti.
Disaster Relief
Whenever the need arises, FFP stands ready to send immediate assistance to those who are affected by natural disasters.
The 2007 hurricane season brought an enormous amount of damage and destruction to several countries in the Caribbean and Latin America. Jamaica, Nicaragua, Haiti and the Dominican Republic were particularly affected by the severe weather. Both immediate and long-term relief are needed following such disasters. In response to the devastation caused by Hurricanes Dean, Felix and Tropical Storm Noel, FFP sent 310 tractor-trailer loads of relief supplies to countries devastated by these storms. After the tsunami in Indonesia in 2004, it assisted by providing relief supplies to devastated areas.
The ministry also responds to help victims of local disasters. Following the devastation caused by Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma in 2005, FFP partnered with local churches and other organizations to bring relief to those affected in states along the Gulf Coast.
Distribution
Since 1982, FFP has shipped more than 43,000 tractor-trailer loads of goods valued at more than $4.8 billion. Agreements with the governments of the countries that receive aid allow these shipments to enter the countries duty-free. FFP works directly with churches, the clergy, missionaries and other nongovernmental organizations in the countries where it serves. It asks what is needed and then supplies the requested items. This direct distribution method helps assure that only those items that are actually needed are shipped; it also helps keep operational costs to a minimum.
Partnerships
FFP partners with local organizations in the countries it serves in order to be effective and efficient. The first country assisted by FFP – Jamaica – today includes more than 1,800 churches as partners in the distribution of food, medicine, educational supplies and other needed items. The street feeding program in Kingston has been in operation for more than 15 years and is run in partnership with the Salvation Army.
Haiti, the second country to receive aid from FFP, has a network of more than 2,000 partners, including schools, churches, hospitals, orphanages and other nongovernmental organizations – groups that help deliver aid to those who need it most. These organizations are located throughout the country and are served by extensive warehouses and distribution facilities in both Port-au-Prince and Cap-Haitien.
Statement of Faith [ Back to top ]
This organization has not provided a Statement of Faith. At such time that MinistryWatch receives this information it will be posted.
Since its founding in 1982, FFP, a Christian international aid organization, distributed more than $3 billion in food, medical, educational, building and small business supplies to 16 countries in the Caribbean and Central America. The organization maintains an average administrative overhead of four percent — ensuring the poor receive 96 percent of all donations.
FFP follows the principle that education and self-help must fortify charity work so recipients learn to break the cycle of poverty. FFP supports programs to teach recipients how to raise livestock, develop small businesses and provides agricultural assistance to independent farmers.
FFP was founded in 1982 by Ferdinand Mahfood. His vision was instrumental in guiding FFP as it became the most significant relief organization in the Caribbean and Central America. Robin Mahfood, who has extensive experience in business management and an in-depth knowledge of the Caribbean, assumed the Presidency in 2000 and provides the leadership for FFP during this time of explosive growth.
Created to help destitute people in Central America and the Caribbean, FFP has forged a spirit of cooperation between churches of the First World and churches of the Third World. FFP collects funds from North American and European benefactors, purchases goods cost-effectively on the world market, ships the items duty-free and arranges for their distribution to the poor through churches, missionaries and charity organizations in 16 countries.
Currently, there are numerous opportunities to support the work of FFP. Children and families in the western hemisphere’s poorest nation, Haiti, are served FFP. The ministry is also actively working in Guatemala, meeting essential needs there. One can utilize the “gift catalog” to provide for essential needs of people helped by FFP. On special occasions, give friends and loved ones something that will be cherished and touch their hearts. Through the Angels of Hope child sponsorship program, about a dollar a day will help support a child. Through Angels of the Poor program, one can express their ongoing concern for the most disadvantaged of Gods children. Tribute gifts and matching gifts are also encouraged. To learn of other ways to help, visit the “How to Help” section of the website.
Research Analysis
Transparency Grade [ Back to top ]
| Transparency Grade of : A |
| Criteria category | Grade | Other Comments |
| Timeliness: | 100 | 6/2/2005 4:19:04 PM: Organization made financial information available less than 5 ½ months after their fiscal year end. |
| Financial Information: | 100 | 6/2/2005 4:19:08 PM: Organization provided all financial information requested. Information was clear and thorough. |
| Foundational Clarity: | | |
| Level of Cooperation: | | |
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MinistryWatch.com 5 Star Financial Efficiency Ratings [ Back to top ]
| Ranking Category | Rating | Overall Rank | Relief and Development Sector |
|---|
| Overall Efficiency Rating |  | 7 of 352 | 7 of 54 |
| Fund Acquisition Decision |  | 64 of 352 | 19 of 54 |
| Resource Allocation Decision | | 17 of 352 | 12 of 54 |
| Asset Utilization Decision | | 2 of 352 | 2 of 54 |
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MinistryWatch.com’s Take
September 2004
By Dan Wray
Updated July 2008
By Michael Barrick
Feeding the Poor
Food for the Poor (FFP) exists to help the impoverished and destitute throughout Latin America and the Caribbean by raising money and providing direct relief assistance. Distribution and direct aid is normally accomplished through established area churches and charitable agencies in an effort to minimize social or cultural stigma that might associate with public charity. As stated in FFP’s mission purpose, a primary motive is to bring together the churches of the First and Third worlds without respect to race, status or creed for their mutual benefit, empowering the poor in spirit and bringing resources to the poor in substance, all with a view toward “a closer union with our Lord.” Scriptural inspiration for FFP’s mission to the “least” among society’s misfortunate is taken from Matthew 25:31-46. Referencing the “unconditional love” of God, and encouraging prayer, trust and faith in openly evangelical terms, FFP is a Christian international aid organization, also providing a combination of education and self-help strategies to break the cycle of poverty.
Meeting Physical Needs
Utilizing long-established partnerships and distribution points, Food for the Poor (FFP) is among the most efficient and effective ministries at meeting the physical needs of the poorest of the poor in Latin American and the Caribbean. The Florida-based inter-denominational Christian relief and development ministry’s name does not convey the full picture, for FFD offers more than its significant feeding programs. Recognizing that an individual’s dignity – not to mention very life – depends upon having other basic needs met, FFP also provides those it serves with housing, education, medical care, water projects, micro-enterprise development, orphanages and disaster relief.
Distribution and direct aid is normally accomplished through established area churches and charitable agencies in an effort to minimize social or cultural stigma that might associate with charity. A primary objective of FFP is to bring together the churches of the First and Third worlds for their mutual benefit, empowering the poor in spirit and bringing resources to the poor in substance. Referencing the “unconditional love” of God, and encouraging prayer, trust and faith in openly evangelical terms, the many strategies of FFP work in concert to help break the cycle of poverty in the regions where it serves. FFP collects funds from North American and European benefactors, purchases goods on the world market, ships the items duty-free, and arranges for their distribution to the poor through local clergy.
Commitment to Efficiency and Effectiveness
Among the most efficient ministries in the MinistryWatch database and its sector, FFP has also earned a four-star rating from Charity Navigator and for four consecutive years (2004 though 2007) has seen at least 96 percent of the contributions raised going directly to those for whom the ministry exists. In addition, in 2007, Forbes magazine rated FFP as having an efficiency level of 96 percent in charitable commitment and 97 percent in fundraising efficiency.
Its philosophy of partnering with existing churches, schools, hospitals, missionaries and charitable organizations helps the ministry be highly efficient. This strategy also makes its efforts highly effective because it is partnering with individuals and agencies intimately familiar with the communities served by FFP. This strategy is equally significant for what it accomplishes for the individual – a sense of dignity. The fishing villages in Haiti and Jamaica, for example, provide work, strengthen the villages and are self-sustaining, as those who benefit also are expected to help others in the village.
Filling Specific Needs
FFP’s pattern of acquiring specifically requested materials or resources, provided to the needy by existing local distribution points such as churches and community agencies, has helped FFP to emerge as a significant evangelistic relief force in the region, due largely to the efforts of its founder and first president, Ferdinand Mahfood. Knowledge of the region coupled with clear business acumen continues to distinguish Mahfood’s family and FFP’s current leadership.
Pictures Worth Thousands
FFP’s impressive website is straightforward, with information, reports, illustrations, and numerous support opportunities, demonstrating a belief that effective, comprehensive and open communication are critical in the information age. Online donations may be made through secure servers. Audits are available online and FFP’s portrayal of projects and service fields in black and white photography quietly dignifies the information with a dramatic quality that transcends the starkness it conveys. With appropriate source attribution, FFP allows generous use of many photos from the website to publicize the charity. Web visitors are also invited to download Virtual Pilgrimage videos, featuring various facets of the charity’s overseas involvement. For anyone desiring, FFP will also schedule speakers and clergy members to make presentations to church and civic groups.
Fundamental of the Faith
Scripture is clear. Jesus, in his earthly ministry, alleviated suffering. However, He was guided by more than compassion. While genuine love, concern and kindness for people motivated Jesus, so to did the desire to glorify God. While acknowledging the need for water to meet our physical needs, he also spoke of the “living water” – faith in Him. Implicit in the example set by Jesus is that, in order to have attentive ears, one must first fill the stomach or otherwise meet basic needs. So, too, does FFP. Partnering with not only other ministries and charities, but also the United States Department of Agriculture, the ministry provides tens of thousands of meals daily; indeed just in Port-au-Prince, more than 15,000 people are fed each weekday. It has built nearly 50,000 housing units for families throughout Latin American and the Caribbean. FFP cobbles together school supplies from school systems in the United States to supply schools in the communities it serves, thus helping to provide a key to breaking the cycle of poverty. While doing so, it also provides meals to children attending the schools. It operates orphanages, provides medical care, and provides villages and communities with safe drinking water. Not only does this increase the health of those in the communities, it also frees children and women from the tedious task for sometimes spending hours collecting and transporting water so that they can focus on school and family.
Proven Methods
FFP’s pattern of acquiring specifically requested materials or resources and providing them to the needy by existing local distribution points such as churches and community agencies has helped FFP to emerge as a significant evangelistic relief force in the region, due largely to the efforts of its founder and first president, Ferdinand Mahfood. Knowledge of the region coupled with clear business acumen continues to distinguish Mahfood’s family and FFP’s current leadership. With a stated emphasis on astute business practices and Christian stewardship, FFP strives for cost-effectiveness in acquiring goods on the international market, and transporting the supplies at little or no cost to the organization
Theological Considerations
FFP may be broadly termed a Christian charitable relief organization. As such, it is non-sectarian, though enjoying notable endorsement of Roman Catholics. A stated tactical mainstay of FFP’s relief effort is its utilization of existing agencies and distribution media such as local charities and churches. In many third world countries the presence of Roman Catholicism all but overwhelms Protestant groups. For some this is problematic, as policy-driven cooperation with local Catholic churches is considered tantamount to theological compromise on fundamental precepts. This uncertainty is not assuaged by statements – excerpted from FFP’s Mission Statement – such as, “We aspire to bring benefactors, recipients and ourselves to a closer union with our Lord.” With neither an expressly evangelistic policy nor any consistent mechanism for witnessing the Gospel, broadly presumptive reference to recipients of FFP’s relief as having union with Christ is, to many, troubling. Question is further begged by FFP’s stated goal of “improv(ing) the spiritual condition” of those FFP serves and the organization’s “direct ministry of teaching, encouragement and prayer.” While it is difficult to imagine anyone interested in nominally Christian charity objecting to a ministry of teaching, encouragement and prayer, questions about content of the teaching as well as the nature of ministry and prayer are largely unanswered. Nevertheless, FFPs overall commitment to transparency may provide the needed confidence that similar accountability is applied as FFP considers the theological beliefs and practices of native churches, missions and agencies it assists. Compassionate to be sure, FFP’s work certainly encompasses a legitimately humanitarian ideology clearly associated with historical Christianity. The degree to which FFP is advancing the Gospel is not as measurable as some may like because of the nature of its collection and distribution policy as well as its view of native collaboration.
“The least of these...”
In the waning days of His earthly ministry Jesus forewarned His disciples on future things, including time sequences and historically future events, confirming that many saints would experience suffering, imprisonment, and in many cases even death. With particularly pointed and sublime reference, the Lord saluted His followers in advance for their demonstrable willingness to minister to “the least of these” (Matthew 25:40). In the near context of this reference – in the very same phrase – Christ clearly identifies “the least of these” as His brethren, those clearly related to Him, identified with His Name and His cause, His very persecution and suffering. By no valid rule of interpretation can this statement of Christ be made to apply to anyone other than those so identified by His qualifying remarks in the passage. Notwithstanding its clearly poignant appeal, this instructive passage cannot be taken as a broadly general reference to simply anyone who is destitute, disenfranchised, despairing or debilitated. Neither should it be substituted for other legitimate and pointed Scriptural injunctions to followers of Christ that they dare not overlook the poor – whether or not they are saints – that Christianity without practically observable kindness is not Christ-like and has no distinguishing characteristic before the watching world.
Just Doing It
Food For The Poor raises money – a lot of it – for feeding the poor in regions of the world where hunger is a constant companion and death is the uninvited silent witness. With focus reminiscent of a global merchandizing giant’s searingly pointed marketing slogan, Food For The Poor is leading the pack, getting it done – just doing it.