Boca Grande Hope For Haitians Builds on 16 Years of Impact in Haiti
COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Feb. 2, 2026) – After six years of continued fundraising and project support through virtual efforts, Boca Grande Hope For Haitians will welcome supporters back for its first in-person fundraising event since 2019, reaffirming a longstanding commitment to helping families in Haiti build safe, permanent homes through Food For The Poor (FFTP).
The event will take place Tuesday, February 3, at The Gasparilla Inn Beach Club in Boca Grande, Fla., bringing together donors, community leaders, and partners for an evening focused on hope, resilience, and rebuilding lives.
For more than 16 years, Boca Grande Hope For Haitians has partnered with FFTP to fund sustainable development projects across Haiti. Since its founding, the committee has helped build 10 villages totaling 660 homes, along with three schools, two dormitories, one clinic, eight community centers, and two fishing villages, while also supporting families with fruit trees, farm animals, and agricultural equipment.
“This gathering represents far more than a return to an in-person event,” said FFTP President/CEO Ed Raine. “It reflects a steadfast commitment to stand with Haitian families, even amid extraordinary challenges, and to invest in solutions that uphold the dignity of the beneficiaries and restore their stability and hope.”
A Resilient Community
In 2024, the Boca Grande Hope For Haitians Committee successfully raised funds to build 25 safe, sturdy homes in Terre Cassée and two new three-classroom school blocks in Laotchikit, transforming lives in both communities. Families moved from fragile shelters made of wood, straw, and rusted metal into permanent homes with clean water, sanitation, and the dignity every family deserves. Children now have space to learn and dream, while parents can focus on building a more secure future.
Unfortunately, due to the impact of two hurricanes that severely affected the island community along Florida’s Southwest Gulf Coast in 2024, the committee made the difficult decision to postpone its 2025 fundraising campaign. That campaign will now move forward in 2026, ensuring the local community had time to recover while maintaining a strong commitment to Haiti.
“The Terre Cassée Community Development Project set out to transform lives, and because of the generosity and prayers of this community, that transformation is well underway,” said Co-chair Ben Scott alongside his wife, Louise Scott, longtime FFTP donors who are natives of Piqua, Ohio, and wintertime residents of Boca Grande. “We are deeply grateful to everyone who made that impact possible.”
2026 Project Focus: IDADEE Housing Development in Northern Haiti
This year’s event will support a new housing initiative in Cap-Haïtien, a region not controlled by gangs and offering a critical opportunity for safe development.
Funds raised will support IDADEE, a long-established Haitian organization that operates a children’s home caring for more than 60 children, a school serving nearly 300 students, and a 16-bed hospital that treats an average of 70 emergency patients each day. The organization also has land designated for a 67-home village, which Boca Grande Hope For Haitians will help bring to life.
The first phase of the project will fund the construction of 33 homes, while partner organization Hope For Haitians of Rockford, Ill., will raise funds in mid-2026 to fund the construction of 34 homes in the second phase. Each 400-square-foot home will include a solid roof, indoor sanitation, clean water access, and secure doors, all life-changing features for families currently living in fragile shelters made of mud, tin, or tarps.
Standing With Haiti Amid Ongoing Crisis
The event also comes at a critical moment for Haiti. Ongoing political instability, widespread gang violence in parts of the country, food insecurity, and limited access to basic services have left millions of Haitians in urgent need. While northern Haiti has remained comparatively stable, the humanitarian crisis nationwide underscores the importance of sustained, strategic investment in communities where progress is possible.
“Even in the most difficult circumstances, we have seen what long-term partnership can accomplish,” said Ben Scott. “This event is about reaffirming our commitment to the people of Haiti and continuing the work we began together more than a decade ago.”
For more information about the event, please visit foodforthepoor.org/bocagrande.
Boca Grande Hope For Haitians Committee Members include: Co-chairs Ben and Louise Scott and Wayne and Janice Hursen; Patrick and Debra Gallagher, Rev. Jerome Carosella, George Castrucci, Jim and Lynda Grant, Stephen and Susan Jansen, Lou and Corie Fusz, and Patricia Chapman, Honorary Member.
Food For The Poor, one of the largest international relief and development organizations in the United States, is committed to facilitating paths out of poverty and transforming lives. As an interdenominational Christian ministry, we help families across Latin America and the Caribbean. Our efforts span urgent humanitarian relief and long-term development – from emergency aid and hunger alleviation to education, housing, and economic empowerment. We follow a distinctive approach that integrates faith, multi-sector strategies, and trusted partnerships. Whenever possible, we strive to work at the community level, partnering with local leaders and residents to co-create sustainable solutions that address the multi-dimensional nature of poverty. For more information, please visit foodforthepoor.org.
Michael Turnbell
Communications
954-471-0928
[email protected]
