A HOME OF THEIR OWN - Jamaica Observer - September 28, 2015

Scotiabank comes to the aid of St Ann family

The Scotiabank and Food for the Poor teams pose with the Tucker Family after completing the two bedroom house.

Twenty-eight members of the Scotiabank Corporate and Commercial Banking team recently came to the rescue of a family in Nine Miles, St Ann by assisting with the building of a two bedroom Food for the Poor house.

Ethel Tucker and her eight member family were in a dire situation having been asked to vacate the one bedroom they had shared for over a year.

There was no where to go as Mrs Tucker had no regular source of income and the earnings from her husband Trevor, a farmer, were woefully insufficient.

The children, too, were affected by the situation, and although they are performing well in school - one accepted to Northern Caribbean University, the other at the top of her class at Fern Court High - the impact on them was evident.

At one point, the family was also separated as some of the children were forced to stay with relatives at different locations, as the one room could not accommodate them all. With nowhere else to turn, the family reached out to Food for the Poor who solicited the assistance of Scotiabank.

"We were looking for a team project, and when we heard the plight of this family we unanimously agreed we needed to step in and assist", said Craig Mair, Senior Vice President Corporate and Commercial at Scotiabank.

When Food for the Poor called and said Scotiabank would assist Mrs Tucker was overwhelmed.

"We were so happy for the help. My heart sang when we were handed the keys by Mr Mair and his team. We had reached the end of our rope and I was actually considering setting up a make-shift tarpaulin-covered shelter on a piece of land," she explained. I'm grateful to Scotiabank because now I know my God is real."

The two bedroom house comes equipped with bathroom, kitchen, living and dining, solar panels, and a water tank.

"Thanks to Food for the Poor," said Mair, adding, "We really appreciate that they allowed us to be part of this experience."

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/A-home-of-their-own_19230122

Ethel tucker happily accepts the keys to her new house from Scotiabank's Craig Mair, Senior Vice President Corporate and Commercial Banking. Sharing in the moment are (from left) Marsha Burrell of Food for the Poor, Peter Mohan, branch Manager Scotiabank St Ann’s Bay, and members of the Tucker family.

Members of the Tucker Family pose in front of their new house built by Scotiabank in association with Food for the Poor.

CHARITY PUMPS $50-M INTO HANOVER SCHOOL - Jamaica Observer - September 20, 2015

HAPPY FACES: These students of the Green Island Primary School in Hanover are quite pleased with the renovation of their school by Food For The Poor and the Yaggie family from the United States of America. (PHOTO: PETRI-ANN HENRY)

GREEN Island Primary School is in an enviable position. When construction and renovation works there are complete in another few weeks, the Hanover school will not only emerge more spacious and better equipped, but it will represent Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica's largest single spend in any one school in the 31 years since the charity has been operating.

The renovations total some $50 million.

The 95-year-old school, which has a population of more than 500 students and 22 staff members, has been in dire need of assistance for some time. It currently operates in a crammed structure which also houses staff offices, a storage area and a kitchen. In has overcrowded classrooms separated by chalkboards, poor ventilation, poor lighting, and leaking roofs, sections of which were covered by tarpaulin.

"Our charity organisation, therefore, decided to adopt this school," FFP executive director David Mair said. "With funding from donors from the United States of America, primarily the Yaggie family, we have been able to go into the school, demolish the zinc roof of the original structure, install new roofing material, new ceiling rafters, lathes and zinc sheets. We also installed dry wall partitions to separate the classrooms, rewired all classrooms, repainted the interior and exterior structures and installed new fans and school furniture," he explained.

Food For The Poor also renovated the existing library, installed new windows and doors, demolished a dilapidated stand-alone structure which housed three classrooms, constructed a two-storey block to accommodate 10 new classrooms and a two-unit kitchen.

"Green Island Primary School is extremely grateful to Food For The Poor and the donors for this facelift we have received. It is a remarkable improvement!" principal of the school, Vaccianna Moseley said.

"We are extremely grateful. Food For The Poor has done so much for our school. At one point, the roof was covered with tarpaulins. Today, partitions have been installed, the existing building has been repainted and retiled and very soon we will open 10 new classrooms. This is a tremendous gift from Food For The Poor and their donors," she continued.

The Yaggie family said they decided to assist FFP with the school upgrade out of their love for Jamaicans.

"We love the people's spirit and are touched by the Jamaican children. Food For The Poor is a wonderful faith-based organisation which is very efficient with the funds we give. They make sure our donations are used specifically as we ask," they said in a statement.

Construction of the project and handover are scheduled for November.

-- Ainsworth Morris

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/career/Green-with-envy_19229445

THANK YOU, FOOD FOR THE POOR: Green Island Primary School located in Hanover received a much needed facelift thanks to Food For The Poor and donors from the United States. Here, students pose in front of a renovated area of the school. (PHOTOS: PETRI-ANN HENRY)

OUR NEW LIBRARY: Principal of Green Island Primary School, Mr. Vaccianna Moseley, and some of his students, happily pose in front of their library which was recently renovated by Food For The Poor Jamaica.

THANK YOU, YAGGIE FAMILY: Representatives from Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica (from left), Susan James-Casserly, Projects Manager; David Mair, Executive Director and John Dahl, Director of Construction Services with Vaccianna Moseley, Principal of Green Island Primary School, sharing a moment with two Yaggie family members, (from second right) Mary and Jamer Yaggie and The Very Reverend Burchell McPherson, Bishop of Montego Bay and Board Member of FFP Inc, during a recent visit to observe the construction and renovation work at the school.

DEVELOPING GREEN ISLAND PRIMARY SCHOOL: David Mair (left), Executive Director of Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica, having a discussion about the development of Green Island Primary School with Vaccianna Moseley (center), Principal of the school and The Very Reverend Burchell McPherson, Bishop of Montego Bay and Board Member of FFP Inc. In the background is a new building for the school, being constructed by FFP and donors, the Yaggie family from the United States.

BUILDING HOMES, TOO: Mary Yaggie, her family and members of her church – St John the Evangelist Church, USA – also participated in the construction of houses for the needy with Food For The Poor. Here, she poses in front of one of the houses with a happy recipient and a child.

COURTS JAMAICA CONSTRUCTS HOMES FOR THE NEEDY - The Gleaner - September 14, 2015

Marsha Burrell (left), development/marketing manager at Food For The Poor and Carren Royal (right), executive assistant and corporate social responsibility co-ordinator, celebrate as with Denise Russell as she opens the door to her new home.

True to its mantra of 'bringing value home', Courts Jamaica volunteers worked assiduously every Friday in August to build four homes in collaboration with Food For The Poor (FFP).

The retail furniture and appliance provider mobilised more than 100 staff members to construct housing solutions to support needy families living in undesirable conditions. As an important part of its mandate to support nation building, the company has a keen interest in community development and, to date, has assisted with building six of a 12-home partnership with FFP to be completed by March 2016.

"Courts has been a part of the lives of Jamaicans since 1959 and we recognise and value the contribution each person has made to our success. We want to continue to support the people and the communities we serve," said Dennis Harris, managing director of Courts Jamaica. On Labour Day, two homes were built and furnished for families in Trelawny and Clarendon, while in August, homes were built in St Thomas, St Ann, Westmoreland and St Catherine.

INTRIGUING STORIES

The needy families all had intriguing stories. A client of the Victim Support Unit who suffered abuse at the hands of her husband, which almost claimed her life, became the sole provider for three children and experienced tremendous difficulties maintaining a place to live. The construction of her home made a big difference in their lives and provided well-needed assistance.

A St Ann mother of five living in a derelict, one-room, board structure received a new lease on life with the improvement of her living conditions. The home also alleviated the hassle of severe overcrowding. In Westmoreland, a family of nine was able to move from their termite-infested dwelling that had a leaky roof and poor sanitary conveniences. A single mother of four children, one of whom is mentally ill and requires supervision, was living in a dilapidated structure that was beyond repair.

The homeowners all expressed their gratitude for the comfortable dwellings comprising two bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchenette and a patio, with furnishing of beds, a combination chest of drawers and dresser. The handover of keys was a special moment for these families and the volunteers.

daviot.kelly@gleanerjm.com

Kevin Brown, warehouse assistant at Courts Jamaica, is hard at work hand nailing the new roof of a house built to benefit a needy family in St Ann. Brown was a volunteer as part of Unicomer Jamaica’s corporate social responsibility partnership with Food for the Poor to build 12 homes islandwide.

Kaysia Mitchell, administrative assistant at Unicomer Jamaica, shows she is not afraid of hard work at a recent house building for a needy family.

http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20150914/courts-jamaica-constructs-homes-needy?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

PHOTO: THANK YOU, FOOD FOR THE POOR - Jamaica Observer - September 13, 2015

Food For The Poor Jamaica presented approximately $6 million in bursaries to over 300 needy students and their parents at the organanisation's head office in Ellerslie Pen, St Catherine on August 28. Here, some parents, guardians and children rejoice upon receiving their cheques.
(PHOTO: PETRI-ANN HENRY)

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/magazines/career/Thank-you--Food-for-the-Poor-_19228461


NEWS RELEASE

FOOD FOR THE POOR ASSISTS STUDENTS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Kingston, Jamaica - September 14, 2015: Food For The Poor (FFP) awarded approximately $6 million in scholarships and bursaries to 300 needy students at their annual back-to-school presentation ceremony on August 28.

The back-to-school presentation took place in the Chapel of the charity organisation’s head office located in Ellerslie Pen, St Catherine.

A team from FFP, including Susan Moore, Director of Recipient Services, FFP Jamaica, handed over the cheques to parents, guardians and students who were present.

Prior to handing over, Moore told the recipients and their parents that the donations were provided through funding from donors.

“Food For The Poor is grateful once again to Friend of Food For The Poor, our overseas and local donors for their generosity. Without their funding, today would not be possible. FFP’s back-to-school programme was established to assist persons who faced severe challenges with sending their children back to school. For years, the focus of FFP’s back-to-school programme, has been mainly to assist needy individuals with tuition and books. The majority of the persons who benefit are part of other FFP intervention programmes, such as: social outreach, prison ministry, housing, agriculture and fishing,” Moore said.

She further stated, “We receive multiple applications. However, given the limited funding we have had to employ a prioritization method. Therefore, persons who have received previous assistance are included if the student received a B average or higher as outlined in the letter signed and given to the parents or student.”

Paula Byfield, one of the hundreds of parents gathered, said she has been a part of FFP’s back-to-school programme for years, and she is grateful annually for funding.

“I first got help from Food For The Poor a few years ago, when a friend gave me some
-more-
food and materials received from Food For The Poor. I then made a personal request and, since then, my 4 children have been on the back to school programme, which is about three years now,” Byfield said during an interview after she was given bursaries for her children.

“I am a single mother but I try as best as possible to help my children so they have been maintaining A and B averages since they have been on the programme, because involved parents lead to better students. Parents, I encourage you to get involved because you can’t be too busy for your children. Spend less time on the phone and talking to neighbours because spending time with your children will make a difference. I cannot imagine how I would survive without the assistance of Food For The Poor. I look forward to it every year,” she added.

Among the recipients was Trecia Bent, a student of the Jamaica Theological Seminary. She said she was now happy that a bad experience in the past connected her with the charity organization.

“It is with great humility that I thank Food For The Poor for allowing me to be a beneficiary of this wonderful programme. My relationship with FFP started due to an unfortunate incident that my family and I experienced over a year ago, when we became fire victims. We tried to get our life back to some level of normality, but it proved futile because of a serious financial strain that we were going through, mainly due to a series of deaths in the family for three consecutive years,” Bent said.

“Not knowing what to do, I contacted FFP for help. We were given food items, building materials, furniture and even counselling. The assistance offered to me through this programme has filled a huge gap, offset outstanding balances that I have owed and sent me to school which has helped to put my mind at ease for the last academic year,” she further stated.

-end-

For more information, please contact:
Ainsworth Morris, PROComm. Tel: 926-6740 or 375-6136
Petri-Ann Henry, Public Relations Officer, Food For The Poor Jamaica. Cell: 564-2886

Prepared by PRO Communications Limited

(PHOTOS: PETRI-ANN HENRY)

THANK YOU, MR. MAIR: Avianne Byfield (center), student of Grants Pen Primary School, proudly accepts a cheque for her back-to-school supplies from David Mair (right), Executive Director of Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica, during the charity organisation’s recent distribution of bursaries. Sharing in the moment is her mother Paula Byfield. Smiling in the background is Myrtle Brown, Social Outreach Officer, FFP.

GIVING THANKS FOR SMALL MERCIES: Amputee, Izett Francis (left), was among the happy parents who benefitted recently from back-to-school grants Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica made to parents at their head office on August 28. Handing him a cheque for his children is Jodianne Darien, FFP intern.

ALL THE BEST, LITTLE ONE: Kishana Alexander, Social Outreach Officer at Food For The Poor Jamaica, congratulates Ackedah White, seven-year-old student of St. John's Primary School and one of this year’s primary school beneficiaries after the handing over ceremony for back-to-school grants by the charity organisation.

GIVING TO THOSE IN NEED: Trecia Bent (left), a final year student at Jamaica Theological Seminary, gracefully accepts her back-to-school grant from Susan Moore, Director of Recipient Services at Food For The Poor Jamaica, during the charity’s annual back-to-school cheque presentation ceremony.

SINGLE MOTHER GIVING THANKS: Karlene Jarrett, a single mother of three and a housing recipient from Food For The Poor (FFP) Jamaica, displays cheques she received from FFP to assist with her children’s back-to-school expenses.