On February 26, 2023, Food For The Poor (FFTP) founder Ferdinand “Ferdy” Mahfood went to be with the Lord.
“Ferdinand was a visionary leader who leaves behind a legacy of Christian service,” said NRB President & CEO Troy A. Miller. “The organization he founded has touched the lives of millions of people in need across the Caribbean and Latin America, and he set a Christlike example with his unwavering dedication to serving those less fortunate.”
After witnessing abject poverty, illness, and devastation caused by natural disasters in his homeland of Jamaica, Mahfood felt a calling from God to take action. His decision to accept Christ in 1976 led to the establishment of FFTP, initiating a lifelong dedication to compassion and benevolence. In February of 1982, FFTP was officially founded in Florida by Mahfood and his three brothers, Sam, Joe, and Robin. In June of 1983, FFTP inaugurated its operations in Jamaica and developed a blueprint that it would subsequently duplicate in other areas of the Caribbean and Latin America.
“This is not about any one of us,” Mahfood once said. “This is about God. And Food For The Poor is an answer to God.”
Mahfood’s initiatives were aimed at helping families and children who received aid to ultimately escape the vicious cycle of poverty. He believed that education and self-reliance were vital components of philanthropy that could bring about a genuine transformation.
As a result, FFTP initiated programs that have for decades trained beneficiaries on how to establish small businesses and raise livestock, while also delivering agricultural aid to self-sufficient farmers—efforts that continue to this day.
FFTP is an interdenominational Christian ministry that operates as one of the largest relief and development organizations in the United States. It goes beyond merely feeding millions of hungry families and children living in poverty across nineteen countries in the Caribbean and Latin America: the ministry also offers critical services, including emergency relief assistance, access to clean water, medical aid, educational resources, housing assistance, support for vulnerable children, care for senior citizens, vocational training, and micro-enterprise development.
Food For The Poor has been an NRB member since 1997. To learn more about FFTP click here.
