I want to make food weekly food donations to families in a very poor neighborhood in Las Terrenas and need some advice... I know HOW and to WHOM to give the food and plan to spend approx $200/week; however, I don't know WHAT to buy... Bulk rice? beans? milk? chicken? Forgive my ignorance, however, I don't cook nor have children so I would appreciate some guidance on how to best spend the money... gracias!
- Thread starter susan77
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Need advice on food to buy and donate to a poor neighborhood
Nice gesture !
I would bring a Dominican friend with you , who could help you on where and what to get.
I would think Rice, tomate paste, sazon, beans, platanos, chicken, carne de res, spaghetti, even some detergent...
200 week sounds like an awful lot though. Make sure they don't open a colmado with it, I am only half kidding
Helping is not always easy.
Good luck !
I would bring a Dominican friend with you , who could help you on where and what to get.
I would think Rice, tomate paste, sazon, beans, platanos, chicken, carne de res, spaghetti, even some detergent...
200 week sounds like an awful lot though. Make sure they don't open a colmado with it, I am only half kidding
Helping is not always easy.
Good luck !
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What is the electricity situation where they live? Don't buy more than a day's worth of perishables unless they have a fridge AND inverter/generator. Also bear in mind storage space, rodents/insects etc. - buying bulk amounts might not be practical.
You could send a PM to Lindsey Kaufman. There is a group of families in the Sos?a area that Lindsey regulaoorly gives food packages to. I might suggest canned sardines. They don't need refrigeration and the cans keep pests away from the food.
just giving money???kinda lonely....of course their are many foundations just for that purpose...
Tried to edit, but missed the deadline.
Regularly, not the jumbled misspelling above. Keyboard is being touchy tonight.
Other ideas could be a small bottle of cooking oil and, especially in families with children, the occasional can of powdered whole milk.
Regularly, not the jumbled misspelling above. Keyboard is being touchy tonight.
Other ideas could be a small bottle of cooking oil and, especially in families with children, the occasional can of powdered whole milk.
You may use as a rough guide the food boxes that the government or politicians donated for a Christmas dinner, for example, this:
or
Except for the eggnog, the wine and the candies, most items would be appropriate for your purpose. It seems the list includes:
- cooking oil (possibly corn/peanut)
- rice
- red or black beans (possibly canned)
- canned Pigeon Peas
- Spaghetti/macaroni
- flour
- cornmeal
- canned sardines or similar (tuna, mackerel, etc)
- salami
- powdered milk (possibly canned evaporated "Carnation" milk)
- tomato paste (small, since it is perishable)
- white or brown sugar
- granulated salt
Our foundation, Strength for the Journey, no longer provides food packets, as we realized over time that we had created a dependency for our families we thought we were supporting. Instead, we now offer education as a means of emerging from poverty.
However, I understand there are times when people are desperate and giving food is appropriate
Our food packets provided meals for a family of 4 for one week.
5 pounds rice
2 pounds black beans
1 small bottle cooking oil
1 can tomato paste
3 tins sardines
1 package Nutra powdered soy milk
Over time, I learned the Haitians love the sardines, but many Dominicans would rather go hungry that eat them.
Sometimes, we would throw in sopitas, sazon completo, a chicken, or a salami for a special occasion.
The cost for a food packet such as this ran around 500 pesos. I imagine now it would be 600 pesos.
Good luck.
Lindsey
However, I understand there are times when people are desperate and giving food is appropriate
Our food packets provided meals for a family of 4 for one week.
5 pounds rice
2 pounds black beans
1 small bottle cooking oil
1 can tomato paste
3 tins sardines
1 package Nutra powdered soy milk
Over time, I learned the Haitians love the sardines, but many Dominicans would rather go hungry that eat them.
Sometimes, we would throw in sopitas, sazon completo, a chicken, or a salami for a special occasion.
The cost for a food packet such as this ran around 500 pesos. I imagine now it would be 600 pesos.
Good luck.
Lindsey
I would find the people to whom you wish to give and then a local Colmado and give the money to the colmado and each recipient is entitled to 200 pesos in food daily. That should feed a small family. The colmado owner could be instructed that nobody gets rum, smokes or chocolates or whatever. I did that for a short while for three orphans at 100 pesos per day.
Der Fish
do not give any meat. ever. it is difficult to transport and store as it goes off quickly and many poor people have no fridges or reliable power. get cheap salami that can last a while without refrigeration. with current prices 200 dollars will not give you many packages so try to focus on basics. rice, beans and salami can go a long way and just those three items make a full meal.
I agree with Chirimoya.. the food must be non perishable. In December, I actually give some vouchers from Jumbo for food and clthing only and let the receipients decide for themselves.. In your case, I would ask them .
If you have that much money to give away, then give it to an institution that will do some good.
There are orphanages and shelters that could use that kind of funding.
I can see this sort of thing after a hurricane when normal economic activities are all messed up, but not for everyday living.
Sorry to disagree with your goodwill. This might make you feel good but it is no way near a solution for their problems.
If they are living in Las Terrenas it is because they want to, not because they have to.
I totally agree with Lindsey, this sort of donation creates dependency and is not a way out of poverty. Education is.
HB
There are orphanages and shelters that could use that kind of funding.
I can see this sort of thing after a hurricane when normal economic activities are all messed up, but not for everyday living.
Sorry to disagree with your goodwill. This might make you feel good but it is no way near a solution for their problems.
If they are living in Las Terrenas it is because they want to, not because they have to.
I totally agree with Lindsey, this sort of donation creates dependency and is not a way out of poverty. Education is.
HB
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actually, chic, if she buys these supplies from a colmado, that would mean bringing business to a colmado. that is how it works on this planet.
Hillbilly, you know that i have a high degree of respect for your insights regarding the DR, but i must take issue with you here. if i plan to expend funds on anything charitable, i am doing it myself. i am not putting my money in the hands of some of these guys, and next week i am seeing Dona Amarilys driving a car paid for with my 200 dollars per week. some operations are scrupulously honest, but too many scam artists are lurking out there.
I think you should supply only powdered soy milk, rice, beans, and cooking oil. Don't make your deliveries EVERY WEEK as then they will become dependent on you.
Box milk is good along with rice and oil. I would get a bundle of bags to portion out the rice ahead of time. You can save quite a bit on rice by buying it in a 50kg bag and scooping it into the blue striped bolsitas. Same with beans in bulk. Corn meal porridge mix is popular but I forget the name. You can buy Corn Flakes in big bags and they will go fast. A pound of rice is about the minimum for a small family dinner.
Canned meats will not go far.
One thing I'm considering the is making Auyama(pumpkin) cuttings. It's native to the island and often grows wild. Give a man a fish.
I agree that doing this weekly will not end well. Once a month will allow you to donate to more families without letting them become dependent.
Sponsoring school supplies has a very good return..
Canned meats will not go far.
One thing I'm considering the is making Auyama(pumpkin) cuttings. It's native to the island and often grows wild. Give a man a fish.
I agree that doing this weekly will not end well. Once a month will allow you to donate to more families without letting them become dependent.
Sponsoring school supplies has a very good return..
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