Food For The Poor Monitoring Tropical Storm Melissa and Ready to Respond
COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (Oct. 24, 2025) – Food For The Poor (FFTP) is closely monitoring Tropical Storm Melissa, which is forecast to bring torrential rains and flash flooding to Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic this weekend and into early next week. The organization is prepared to respond swiftly with essential relief items to help families recover and is working with trusted partners on the ground to assess needs.
The storm, which could linger over the region for several days and strengthen into a major hurricane, threatens to cause widespread flooding, landslides and infrastructure damage in communities that are already vulnerable.
“We’re praying especially for Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and all the islands that may be at risk from Tropical Storm Melissa,” said FFTP President/CEO Ed Raine. “The potential damage could be devastating. Responding to moments like this is what we do. We’re prepared to provide relief and help families recover in the aftermath.”
Existing resources in the charity’s Coconut Creek warehouse are ready for deployment, including blankets, generators and thousands of hygiene kits. Volunteers likely will be mobilized at the charity’s headquarters next week to pack additional supplies.
Beginning Monday, Oct. 27, the charity will collect four specific relief items and sizes, including wash cloths, soap – 3 ounces, unscented deodorant – 2 ounces, and shampoo or body wash – 8 ounces. Those items can be dropped off at FFTP’s Coconut Creek warehouse, 6401 Lyons Road, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays.
Raine said the charity’s preparedness and longstanding relationships across the Caribbean region enable it to mobilize help quickly.
“We have partners who are already assessing conditions and identifying priority needs,” Raine said. “Because of those relationships and our strong disaster response network, we’re able to move efficiently, pre-position supplies and ensure that aid reaches families as soon as it’s safe to do so.”
Here’s how FFTP is responding:
• FFTP has pre-positioned disaster preparedness kits in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, St. Lucia, Grenada and Trinidad & Tobago to empower local response, with each kit containing supplies for at least 250 families.
•Each kit includes 250 tarps, 250 disaster blankets, 280 children’s activity kits from Midwest Mission Distribution Center, 540 disaster hygiene kits with items from MAP International, 250 women’s care kits, 7,000 packets of Liquid I.V. Hydration Multiplier, an oral rehydration solution, 250 hand-crank emergency radio flashlights, and 250 diaper packs. FFTP also provides heavy-duty bags that in-country partners use to package individual relief kits for each family.
• As part of its disaster response plans, FFTP also maintains two international air freight-ready disaster response kits in its Coconut Creek warehouse. Each kit contains 200 tarps, 96 disaster blankets, 3,240 cans of Vienna sausages, 540 disaster hygiene kits, and 60 two-burner propane stoves. In extreme cases, the kits can be sent within days to hard-to-reach areas or in countries where we help that do not have a supply of pre-positioned relief kits.
• In addition, FFTP has 480 cleaning kits, consisting of buckets, and cleaning supplies, stocked at its Coconut Creek warehouse, ready for distribution in the wake of extreme flooding after a major storm.
Cash donations are encouraged to expedite aid delivery and make in-country purchases. You can support FFTP’s response to Melissa at foodforthepoor.org/melissa .
About Food For The Poor
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]
