Feed the Children

Feed The Children, established in 1979 and headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and exists to end child hunger. It is a non-profit relief organization whose stated mission is "providing hope and resources for those without life's essentials". It is one of the largest U.S.-based charities and serves those in need in the U.S. and in 10 other countries around the world. It provides food education essentials and disaster relief. Domestically, it operates 5 distribution centers (located in Oklahoma, Indiana, California, Tennessee and Pennsylvania). In FY 2015, Feed the Children distributed 107 million pounds of food and essentials valued at $302 million to people in the U.S., and internationally, it sponsored approximately 24,500 children, addressing the root causes of poverty through sponsorship of children, communities and schools. It is accredited by guide star exchange and the BBB Wise Giving Alliance and is rated by Charity Navigator. ^[1]

Through its partnership with NAEHCY (National Association of Educators for Homeless Children and Youth), Feed The Children has distributed more than 500,000 backpacks filled with school supplies, food and personal care items to homeless children enrolled in U.S. public schools. In Africa, Asia, Central and South America, Feed The Children provides more than 350,000 meals daily through school feeding programs.

Disaster relief

When Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast in 2005, Feed The Children self-reported sending over 650 semi tractor-trailers totaling more than 20,000 tons of donated food and relief supplies. Between the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and the South Asian tsunami in December 2004, Feed The Children self-reported sending more than 15,500 tons of food and relief supplies to the affected regions.

U.S. programs

In the 1980s, the Feed the Children campaign was aired in the United States. Featuring impoverished children in need of food and essential supplies, television coverage provided an outlet for visibility. David Dunn Productions filmed the plight of children in need while on location in Africa, bringing home the need for donations. Feed The Children domestic programs are focused on distributing essential items to needy families. Corporate partners donate surplus food and other supplies. Feed The Children's wholly owned for-profit subsidiary, FTC Transportation, Inc., picks up in-kind contributions from corporate warehouses and brings them to one of five Feed The Children regional distribution centers. The supplies and boxes are then delivered to pre-approved, independent partner agencies that, in turn, distribute the supplies through over 50,000 feeding centers, homeless shelters, churches and various other organizations located in communities across the U.S.^[2]

International programs

Feed The Children's international programs focus on providing food, medical assistance, emergency relief and sustainable development. Recent international efforts include the Abandoned Baby Center (ABC) in Nairobi, Kenya, which provides medical treatment and safe haven for children who have been orphaned or abandoned by poverty and the AIDS epidemic. Other examples of international projects funded by Feed The Children include medical mission trips and the "Casa del Niño" (House of the child) in Barrio Ingles, La Ceiba, Honduras. In 2009 FTC has greatly expanded its program in Malawi. Using in-kind donations from Nuskin, Inc, 50,000 orphans and pre-school children, mostly in rural areas, receive a fortified porridge, VitaMeal.^[3] Feed The Children has received an $8.5 million grant from the USAID as part of a 5-year, $20 million project for orphans and vulnerable children. This will improve food security and access to nutrition, education, clean water, sanitation and sustainable agricultural development for 40,000 households and over 70,000 children impacted by HIV/AIDS in Malawi. The Tiwalere OVC Project, in full operation in 2011, will make Malawi the largest international program.^[4]

Finances

Feed The Children is currently the 25th largest charity in the United States, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy.^[5]

As of 2014, Feed The Children meets all 20 standards of the BBB Wise Giving Alliance and holds the BBB Wise Giving Alliance Charity Seal ^[6] Feed The Children is rated by Charity Navigator, the most experienced charity evaluator in the United States. Feed the Children is also a member of InterAction. ^[7]

According to FTC, in 2015, 91% of its budget went to program services (childcare, food, medical, disaster relief, education and community development).^[8] 5 percent went to fund raising and 4 percent went to management and supporting services.

However, FTC's finances have not always been viewed positively. Based on the rating criteria of the American Institute of Philanthropy, Feed The Children receives an "F" rating for financial efficiency for spending only 21-23 percent of its cash budget on charitable programs.^[9] Feed The Children disputes this rating, since the American Institute of Philanthropy does not include "gifts in kind" in its ratings, while other established charity rating organizations do include these gifts in their ratings.^[10] as have Feed the Children's own auditors.^[11] The most recent information on Charity Navigator shows Feed the Children has 4-stars out of 4, and has a score of 60.67 out of 70 overall.^[12]

Leadership dispute

After a lengthy leadership dispute between founder Larry Jones and the board and top executives of the charity, Jones agreed to give up operational control in August 2009. On November 6, 2009, the board voted to fire Jones from his position as president. On January 28, 2011, Jones and Feed The Children announced a resolution of the legal dispute. Jones is no longer associated in any way with Feed The Children ^[13] On June 4, 2012, Kevin Hagan, formerly with Good360, became the president and CEO of Feed The Children.

In 2013, Feed The Children disclosed that it paid $800,000 to Jones, after he was fired in 2009. The severance payment, made during fiscal year 2012, was disclosed in a 204-page return filed with the Internal Revenue Service. Feed the Children made the payment to settle a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by Jones. The charity paid an additional amount in legal fees to Jones' attorney, Mark Hammons.^[14]

For most of 2016, former congressman J.C. Watts, Jr. served as the organization's President and CEO. The Board of Directors announced his appointment on January 21, 2016.^[15] On November 15, the organization and Mr. Watts announced that he was no longer serving in those roles.^[16] In the same publicity release, the organization's Board of Directors announced that Travis Arnold would be serving as interim CEO.

See also

• Hunger relief portal

References

External links

• Feed The Children