Medical-Dental Teams - El Salvador 2010

Plans are well underway for a return visit to El Salvador next February. This will be the first time we have taken our team back to the same country, having been in El Salvador in April 2009.

Our largest team ever (30 people) will leave on Saturday, February 13 and spend the following week treating up to 3,500 patients with primary medical and dental care. Based on a survey in early December by Dr. Tony Brown and Ken Dick, a decision will be made regarding the communities to be visited. We expect to return to some of the same communities visited in April 2009.

This team will consist of six doctors and four dentists, aided by paramedics, nurses, dental assistants, a pharmacist and several support staff. In addition, we will be joined by some of the Feed The Children staff based in El Salvador and Guatemala.

Over the next couple of months there will be a lot of activity – shipping a container from Guelph; purchase of medicines; arranging accommodation for the team; arranging in-country transportation and a number of other logistical things.

This will be our fifth project since we first went to Honduras in February 2007. Interest has increased, as more Canadians hear about what we are doing. Inquiries from doctors, dentists and others are received on a regular basis, most indicating an interest in being part of a future project.

On the subject of “future projects” - we will commence planning for our next project soon. A major decision is always, “where should we go?” Dr. Tony and I are travelling to Haiti in mid-November to scope out possibilities in that country. Watch for further updates.

Art Auction for Nyota

One of our exciting international partners in Kenya, the Nyota Home, has a fund raising initiative being held in Guelph ON, the location of the FTC Canada head office. We would encourage you to attend this event and support the work of the Nyota Home for children. Ticket information is shown below.

Nyota means “Star” in Swahili, and their goal is to provide Kenyan children education and love that will allow them to achieve their dreams and become stars! Nyota is totally dependent on private donations and through the support of FTC Canada, Canadians can receive a tax receipt for their donations.

Visit www.ftccanada.ca/mission_in_action to learn more.

FTC CANADA AND CARAVAN LOGISTICS INC. PARTNER FOR THANKSGIVING FOOD DROP IN HAMILTON ONTARIO

Hamilton, Ontario – Saturday, October 13, 2009 – FTC Canada partnered with Caravan Logistics Inc. and Hamilton Tiger Cat centre Marwan Hage and his community initiative, Hage’s Heroes, to provide food to 1,500 needy Hamilton families this past Thanksgiving weekend (Saturday October 10).

This has become an annual event for FTC Canada. In 2008 they provided food and supplies to 1000 families in the City of Hamilton. Marwan Hage stepped up, providing 1000 hams in 2008 to add to donations collected in partnership with numerous churches, businesses, companies and individuals.

This year Caravan Logistics joined the partnership and provided the logistics support for the day held at Ivor Wynn Stadium in Hamilton.

In addition to providing two 53’ trailers for transporting food from the FTC Canada warehouse in Guelph to Hamilton, Caravan also provide over 35 volunteers for the afternoon event hosted under tents at the outdoor stadium facility. Employees along with their families prepared for the event setting up tables and supplies, handed out food boxes and bread and carried the family food boxes to waiting vehicles.

Denis Iwaniura, Manager of Corporate Accounts for Caravan was really pleased with what his volunteer team could offer. “If we can offer a helping hand for 1500 families on Thanksgiving and it puts a smile on their face, then it’s good for everyone involved.”

Each family arriving to pick up boxes had received a voucher from one of 5 Hamilton agencies in attendance on Saturday. The 22+ pound food box contained such things as pasta, sauce, jam, peanut butter, crackers, popcorn, cereal and drink mix.

“We heard directly from families on Saturday that they were so grateful for the box of food” notes FTC Canada president, Ken Dick. “In some cases this helped supplement a Thanksgiving meal, for others this was the meal all together.”

This story was edited for publication in the Truck News. [October 19, 2009]

Learn more about the recent food drop in the City of Hamilton at www.ftccanada.ca/hamilton

HAGE TEAMS UP WITH FTC CANADA FOR FOOD DROP IN MONTREAL

Tiger-Cats CFLPA all-star offensive lineman Marwan Hage is teaming up with FTC Canada (Feed The Children) Wednesday May 27 to provide 680 family food boxes to needy families.

See the full article at: http://www.ticats.ca/article/hage-teams-up-with-ftc-canada-for-food-drop-in-montreal

Marwan Hage teams up with FTC Canada

HAMILTON -- Tiger-Cats CFLPA all-star offensive lineman Marwan Hage is teaming up with FTC Canada (Feed The Children) to provide 680 family food boxes to needy families in partnership with Sun Youth Organization, a downtown Montreal community centre serving youth, seniors and low income families and people with special needs. Hage also plans to donate $3000.00 from his Hages Heroes program towards Sun Youth's youth football program which will enable participants play free of charge.

See the full article at http://www.cfl.ca/article/hage-teams-up-with-ftc-canada

PARTNERSHIPS HELP PROVIDE FOOD TO 680 FAMILIES IN DOWNTOWN MONTREAL

Montreal, QC - Monday, May 26, 2009 – FTC Canada (Feed The Children) is providing 680 family food boxes to needy families in downtown Montreal on Wednesday May 27. This is in partnership with Sun Youth Organization, a downtown community centre serving youth, seniors and low income families and people with special needs.

FTC Canada is also partnering with Keltic Transportation Inc. (Moncton NB) for the food drop into the heart of downtown Montreal. New Brunswick driver, Kevin Desilva, saw a story about the need for transporting the food boxes in the Owner-Operators Independent Business Association (OOIDA) newsletter. The story had originally appeared at Today’s Tucking.com.

Desilva called FTC Canada and threw his support behind transporting the food in his own truck from Guelph to Montreal.

The final partnership came from Marwan Hage, former Sun Youth participant and CFL Centre for the Hamilton Tiger Cats. Marwan will be on hand to greet families and to hand out boxes. Hage who grew up in Montreal, credits Sun Youth for keeping him out of jail and off the streets when he was a kid.

FTC Canada partners with organizations and companies to provide food and supplies to those in need throughout Canada. The food boxes going to Montreal contain over 22 pounds of nutritious, non-perishable food - enough to feed a family of 4 for 3-4 days.

Recipients are identified by local social service organizations and receive a food voucher which they redeem at the event.

Check out Marwan Hage at CFL.ca