AN IMPORTANT MILESTONE IN OUR HISTORY

We are very excited to announce this important milestone in the history of our organization, FTC Canada has changed its name to Speroway.

What does Speroway mean? Our unique name combines Spero, the Latin word for “hope”, with way, representing the path we follow. Pronounced spare-o-way, it represents a hopeful way forward, both for our organization and the people we assist.

In many ways, it represents FTC Canada coming into its own as a relief and development agency. In the five years since we began with our first food drop in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, we have become a leading contributor to meeting the needs of hungry children and their families in many countries with the help of caring Canadians. We hope that our new name and logo will bring greater visibility to our organization and strengthen our ability to communicate with our supporters so that our efforts to pass on their love and compassion for those in need can continue to grow.

Foremost in our decision to change our name was a desire to assert ourselves as an independent Canadian organization with its own projects and unique ways of serving those in need. The name “FTC Canada,” which came about through a distant affiliation with Feed the Children International, has caused some confusion over the years. As Speroway, we will continue to partner with Feed The Children and other international aid agencies on select projects, as well as pursue our own unique overseas projects.

We are also excited to unveil our dynamic new logo. A globe encompassed by a gentle wing. It represents the caring embrace of God, who makes all things possible and inspires us to bring hope to children both at home and around the world. Our new tagline “Delivering hope to needy children”, affirms our promise to serve those around the world.

Changing the name of FTC Canada also gives us “wings” to explore new ways of providing support. Food distribution will continue to be at the core of our efforts. But we’re increasingly excited by new opportunities to provide medical and dental care, education, housing and other essentials that will enable us to make a more lasting impact on hungry children and their families.

Thank you for being part of FTC Canada’s success in delivering hope! As we embark on our next phase of growth, as Speroway, we hope we can count on your continued support and encouragement.

Please visit the new website and blog by clicking HERE.

GUELPH SCHOOL HELPS PACK FOOD BOXES

8 March 2011 Last updated at 16:45 ET

Guelph Community Christian School arrived at FTC Canada in a big way!  Over 40 grade 1 & 2 students along with teachers and parents arrived at the Guelph Head Office to help pack food and hygiene boxes.

When I arrived in the warehouse, students in one line had just completed packing 40 hygiene boxes.  The boxes filled with supplies like soap and other toiletries are given to out to needy families at special Family Food Box distributions.

The hygiene boxes go with the Family Food boxes.  In the other line they were just finishing up their 40th box.  Each box contains over 35 pounds of good quality food.  This helps feed a family of four, for about one week.

GCCS has been here before at FTC Canada helping to pack up thousands of Crocs shoes.  While the shoes went to places like Central America and Africa, the Family Food Boxes will be distributed here in Canada.  These boxes may be distributed locally to families here in Guelph or may make there way to Hamilton.

Update: The students packed over 100 each of hygiene and food boxes

Click on the photos to see larger size.

FTC CANADA BLUE & WHITE GALA COMING SOON!

This is a reminder that you are invited to join us in Burlington, ON on April 9th as we celebrate together at the 3rd Annual FTC Canada Blue & White Gala.

We have some very exciting news to share with you that night so we definitely want you to be there if you can.

This year's event will feature live entertainment and a silent auction.  Click HERE to order your tickets now.

BLUE & WHITE GALA: NEW LOCATION

Please join us in Burlington, ON on April 9th as we celebrate together at the 3rd Annual FTC Canada Blue & White Gala.

This is an opportunity for you to join with others in the life saving work of feeding children.

This year's event will feature live entertainment and a silent auction.  Click HERE to order your tickets now.

HAITI: PARTNERSHIP BRINGS HOPE

The new school

Nature's Sunshine Canada has partnered with FTC Canada and the people of Haiti to build a new school building at the Mission of Hope (MOH).

As noted by our partner in Haiti:

Quality education is vital in our effort to improve the economic structure of Haiti. The School of Hope has approximately 2,500 students enrolled per school year in Kindergarten through High School. 

Garry Ford opens the school

Nature's Sunshine fully funded the new 2 room school building which was completed in the Fall of 2010.  FTC Canada Manager, Procurement & Logistics, Gary Richard joined Garry Ford, Nature's Sunshine Products Manager and Brian Dyck in October 2010 on a site visit to see the completed project.

The goal of providing the next generation of Haitians with skills that will create self-sufficient and productive students is one that resonates with all the people involved in this essential partnership.

Garry Ford with Brian Dyck

FTC Canada would like to thank Nature's Sunshine Products Canada for their commitment to the communities in Haiti and their desire to bring about long-term change in the lives of the students at MOH.

Garry Ford, Principal Souffrant Jean Romain and Gary Richard

HOMES FOR HAITI: NEW HOPE

Washrooms

In partnership with Mission of Hope Haiti, FTC Canada is looking forward to a plan that brings renewed hope to families in Haiti.

The homes that we have raised funds to build, and continue to raise funds for are going to give Haitian families a safe roof over their heads. There's an additional dose of dignity in receiving a plot of land, a fruit bearing tree and a shade tree, gardening space and a separate sanitary washroom facility. 

Over time we hope to raise up a new community. Four homes were already up as of January 25, 2011.

When the earthquake struck in January 2010, it struck hard.  Some people lost family, others lost limbs, so many lost their homes.  The hope they hang on to now, is that the Mission of Hope and FTC Canada will help them start again.

With your support we can.  Please give generously - CLICK HERE.

Homes for Haiti

FTC CANADA MEDICAL TEAM GUATEMALA 2010 PRESENTATION

In November 2010, FTC Canada took a Medical Team to Guatemala.  The team provided medical and dental care to over 4000 people at 5 different locations just outside the capital Guatemala City.

The team went to a village just below the base of a recently active volcano.  They also went into a region that had been impacted by heavy rain and flooding.  The people the team saw were in desperate need of primary medical care.  Many were seeing a dentist for the first time in their lives.  For most this was a chance to get medications and treatment for ailments that really need more constant attention.  They were extremely grateful for this return visit.

The video/slide show below shows the team in action.  We set up in schools generally, transforming classrooms into clinics.  Doctors take two rooms, the dental team takes one room, pharmacy, distribution and for this trip, eyeglasses set up in their own rooms as well.  You will see all of this in the presentation below.

Thank you for your support.  Another team is preparing to head back into El Salvador for the third time in March (2011).  We will definitely see some of the same families again which is going to be a tremendous experience for everyone.  Please show your support CLICK HERE.

HIGH SCHOOLS MAKE A DIFFERENCE PT2

FTC Canada is deeply concerned that a lack of proper sleep for First Nation's children is detrimental to their development and health. Changes in sleeping habits can impair a child’s learning, memory and ability to concentrate. To try and address the problem of a serious shortage of adequate beds, FTC Canada has developed the First Nations Bunk Bed Program.

Meadowvale High School and West Credit High School in Mississauga are helping to implement such a vision, by partnering with several vendors in the Mississauga, ON and with FTC Canada. Together we are building bunk beds to send to First Nations communities north of Sioux Lookout, where conditions for families are deficient.

Please consider a gift towards the building of 300 beds by 2012!  CLICK HERE!

LOOKING AHEAD: MEDICAL TEAM TO EL SALVADOR MARCH 2011

The March 2011 Medical Team to El Salvador is comprised of medical and dental professionals: nurses, doctors, dentists, dental assistants, hygienists, paramedics and pharmacists. A small support staff will also accompanies the team to El Salvador.

This marks the third time FTC Canada has taken a Medical Team into the city and surrounding regions of the capital of San Salvador.

Through the medical programs (since Honduras 2007) we have developed long-term relationships with health care professionals in Central America.  Mentoring local medical and dental professionals has made a lasting impact.

How you can help?: Go to the Medical Team page (click here) to make a donation to the March Team to El Salvador.

Also, click here to open a promotional piece ~ please share this by email and on your social networks to share the news about what we are doing in Central America.

Thank You!

HAITI: BUILDING HOPE

On January 12, 2010 a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck near Port au Prince, Haiti, with a devastating outcome. Aftershocks measuring 4.5 or greater were recorded over the next 12 days, an estimated three million people were staggered.

To this day, families are living under tents, in what were meant to be makeshift, temporary, tent-cities. These "cities" are not a place to raise a family and the tents are not suitable structures.

WE WANT TO PROVIDE HOMES FOR HAITI

FTC Canada is currently preparing to build 10 homes! Click Here to see the plans (pdf file). A front level view is shown below.

Families lost their homes. Restore their hope, restore their future and give generously to this home building program. A year after the disaster, help families by giving them a roof over their head and restoring dignity. There is no way in the world they can do this on their own; they have lost everything!

It's your turn to bring new hope to Haiti!

CLICK HERE to help build hope!

HAITI TRIBUTE: TO MAKE YOU FEEL MY LOVE

This article was originally featured on this blog on April 16, 2010.

Ali Matthews is an accomplished Singer-Songwriter from Stratford, ON. Her love for creating and producing music has earned her respect from her peers and fans throughout North America. She is also a long time supporter and spokesperson for FTC Canada.

Her brother is Dr. Anthony Brown, FTC Canada Medical Team Advisor, who helped lead the very first FTC medical team to Honduras in 2007. In January, just days after an earthquake rocked Port-au-Prince Haiti, Dr. Brown was working diligently to secure medicines and supplies and coordinating plans with FTC to send a medical team to the country.

As Ali stood back watching all this unfold, she wondered how she might help too. In the best way she knew how, Ali headed into the studio to produce her own version of the Bob Dylan classic, "To Make You Feel My Love". When images started coming back from the team in Haiti, it was a natural next step to pair music and photos and share it with her fans. The following video can also be found on YouTube.

To learn more about Ali Matthews visit www.alimatthews.com

FIRST NATION BUNK BED PROGRAM: REPORT FROM MISH

Reports from the community of Mishkeegogamang, ON (Mish) indicate that the first 50 beds are assembled and that by all accounts, “It's been a great experience.”

Karen Ward, FTC Canada First Nations Programs, reported that her team of young adults, most from the Mish Adventure Summer Program, have had a truly amazing time helping assemble beds and seeing the immediate impact it is having.

Parents are appreciative, perhaps overwhelmed by the generosity of the gift of bunk beds.  One young person commented, “Lots of people come up to Mish - but I've never seen anyone do anything like you are doing - giving us beds to make sure the kids have a place to sleep.” He said it's such a blessing for his people.

You can be a part of this work in the far North.  Your gift will go immediately to helping ensure children are not sleeping on a cold floor this winter. Click here to go to the Bunk Bed donation page or click the button below to make your donation immediately.

 

AWARD WINNING SINGER-SONGWRITER LENDS A HAND

It was a partnership that started back in 2005 and culminated in a song!  “After the Song” was penned by multi-award winning Singer-Songwriter, Ali Matthews and added to a reissue of her Christmas CD, “On Angels’ Wings”.

Ali Matthews

On Sunday December 5th Ali held her Annual Christmas Concert in support of FTC Canada. The event held in Stratford, Ontario, at the elegant Church Restaurant, was hotly anticipated by people far and wide and was packed out.

During the concert, Ali talked about how “After the Song” came to be.  In thinking about the struggles of others around world, she could not help but think that, once Christmas ended, those people were likely still struggling.  It became clear to her, and she wrote:

Finding the lost, feeding the hungry

The motherless child without a prayer

Ending the wars, calming the angry

And soothing the souls in despair

When we can love a world that’s broken apart

That’s when Christmas will start

Ali will donate a portion of her concert ticket sales to FTC Canada to support the ongoing work of feeding hungry children in Canada and around the world.

You can receive a copy of “On Angels’ Wings” for a $20.00 donation.  Just click the button below to donate now. Please share this post with your friends so they can enjoy this special offer.
(offer available to December 17, 2010: we can not guarantee delivery for December 25, 2010)

On Angels' Wings

2005 Seasonal Song Of The Year*: "On Angels’ Wings"

2006 Seasonal Song Of The Year*: "Brand New Miracle"

*GMA Canada Covenant Awards

CHARACTER: HIGH SCHOOLS MAKE A DIFFERENCE

It used to be that the phrase, “a person of character”, inherently meant “good” character. As we look at more than a decade where our politicians, business leaders, sports stars and celebrities have drained the previous positive inference, out of the word character, a ray of hope is emerging ... from our high schools.

It is one thing to employ a tag-line or slogan that includes the idea of building character in our students of today, it is another to build and implement programs that both teach our children and put into practice the principles held forth.

Meadowvale High School and West Credit High School in Mississauga are achieving integrity in implementing such a vision, by partnering with several vendors in the city and with FTC Canada. Together we are building bunk beds to send to First Nations communities north of Sioux Lookout, where conditions for families are deficient.

According to the 2007 Child Health Summit, "Living conditions for First Nations people rank 63^rd in the world - comparable with developing countries - and one of the root causes of poor health in these communities."

A lack of proper sleep for children is detrimental to their development and health. Changes in sleeping habits can impair a child’s learning, memory and ability to concentrate. To try and address the problem of a serious shortage of adequate beds, FTC Canada has developed the First Nations Bunk Bed Program.  
 

This Christmas is the launch of a three-year program that FTC Canada has initiated with the support of major corporate partner, Vale.  The goal is to deliver at least 100 beds a year for three years to several First Nations communities.

“Our hope is to provide proper sleeping spaces for at least 600 children in these communities”, said FTC Canada’s First Nations Coordinator Karen Ward.

We have the support of many people, however, more beds need to be built, bedding and other supplies are still required and the product needs to be delivered to the Far North. We invite you to be a part of this vital project. 

Please CLICK HERE to help now!
  

FEEDING HUNGRY CHILDREN IN NICARAGUA

It is not always possible to obtain video footage of the work we do with our partners, amateur or otherwise.

Over the last several years we have shipped tens of thousands of meals to our partner World Mission Outreach in Nicaragua. One of our donation partners involved in supporting that cause is the Ontario Christian Gleaners.

Here are some images that a volunteer has provided in thanks of the work that we have been able to facilitate with our Canadian partners feeding children in Nicaragua.

Cliff Cline
Vice President - Chief Operating Officer

UNISYNC CANADA PRESIDENT: PARTNERSHIP WITH FTC CANADA

Unisync Canada President Carmin Garofalo talks to FTC Canada VP-COO Cliff Cline about the partnership that was formed and ultimately galvanized by the disaster in Haiti.

Love From Guatemala

Medical Team In Action

Everyday in Guatemala put the Medical Team into a school room.  Schools or churches with classrooms are generally made available for us to use, and if they are not free that day, school children are given the day off like they were in Palencia.

The medical portion of the team this week was made up of 6 doctors, one paramedic and two nurses (two other nurses were on the team, one in dental and one handing out glasses).  They would split into groups of 4 each day, meeting up with their Guatemalan interpreters.  Set-up for the "doctor's office" required a chair for interpreter and "doc", chairs for patients, tables for various medical tools and then it was off to work.

You can see that it also became a small operating theater near the end of this video.  Dr. Muhn removed some non-dissolving stitches from a woman's C-section as they were creating a reoccurring infection in her abdomen.

Day 5: Heartbreak in El Morlon

“My heart’s just breaking.” the doctor said to me, tears accompanying her obvious anguish.

A little 9 year old boy had been brought to the clinic today here in El Morlon by his aunts. They were deeply concerned. He had not been eating enough and was vomiting, something was clearly wrong.

Paola and Daniele

As Dr. Sasha High and her interpreter Paola spoke to the boy he began to tell a story that was no doubt the source of his sickness. A year ago his parents left him to go to the US and they have not been heard from since. His parents left him behind.

What do you do with this emotion? How do you treat it? Can you prescribe a pill, some sort of medicine that will make it go away? I think you know the answer.

Dr. Sasha and Paola could only listen like they have never listened before. The cried with Daniele and held him hard in their arms. In this midst of all this there was a sickening realization that that he had not only been abandoned by his parents, but there was a distinct possibility he may never see them again.

Dr. Sasha with Daniele

In the exchange of tears, Daniele told his care givers that he wants to be a doctor when he grows up. With a sense of urgency and love they told him that he was very special and that they loved him very much.

With each word came more heartbreak.

Outside there are hundreds of families that I can hear talking and laughing. If I look out the window I see beautiful, idyllic country, a lake in the distance, mountains and blue sky dotted with puffy white clouds. If I pretended for a moment, maybe close my eyes ... I could be in a cozy villa or seaside resort. I’m not at one of those places. I’m in the middle of heartbreak.

Dental Team In Action

The Dental Team is a group of consumate pros!  On these Medical Teams they work hard for long hours often confined to very limited spaces.  While this may seem problematic, but the spirit of unity among the groups is palatable and the closer they get the better it is for doctor and patient alike!