South Florida Private Country Clubs Partner with Food For The Poor to Build New School in Petit Goave, Haiti

BOCA RATON, Fla., April 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Florida Chapter of the Club Managers Association of America (CMAA) today announced the "We Care Haiti Relief Aid" Program continues to benefit citizens of Haiti through generous contributions to the CMAA Club Foundation by committing to build a new school in Petit Goave, Haiti located 25 miles south of Port Au Prince in conjunction with Food For The Poor, which is currently ranked as the largest international relief organization based in the U.S. and ranked as the fourth largest overall charity in the U.S.

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The new school will educate approximately 125 children ranging in age from 6 to 14 and will consist of six classrooms, two offices and restroom facilities. According to Food For The Poor President/CEO Robin Mahfood, "The children of Petit Goave have limited access to school, and prior to the earthquake, the schoolhouse was in dire need of extreme improvements and expansions to serve the entire community. We are grateful to J.J. Sehlke, Managing Partner, Coral Ridge Country Club in Fort Lauderdale for bringing Food For The Poor and the Club Managers Association of America together on this project."

Jay DiPietro, CMAA Club Foundation Chairman and President, Boca West Country Club added, "The CMAA Club Foundation is honored to have the opportunity through the generosity of members and staff from over forty private clubs who contributed to make this new school become a reality through the We Care Haiti Relief Aid Program."

The Club Foundation received $55,000 in donations; $50,000 will be allocated to the construction costs of the new school and the remaining $5,000 is reserved for underwriting the school's operational expenses for the first year.

"We all agree that most importantly, the school will give the children and community of Petit Goave hope for a better, brighter future," commented Craig D. Martin, Chief Operating Officer and General Manager of St. Andrews Country Club of Boca Raton and Founder of the We Care Haiti Relief Aid Program. "All of us are grateful to the outpouring of donations from our members and employees who were instrumental in providing relief to so many earthquake victims in Haiti."  

As part of relief efforts, most Florida CMAA private clubs provided two options to consider for their members and staff to donate to the "We Care Haiti Relief Aid" Program. Over 85% of the almost $500,000 collected provided direct money to those employees with family in the affected areas who were in need of aid and support. The second option was a tax deductible contribution to the CMAA Club Foundation.

About the Club Managers Association of America
The Club Managers Association of America is the professional Association for managers of membership clubs. CMAA has close to 7,000 members across all classifications. Manager members run more than 3,000 country, golf, city, athletic, faculty, yacht, town and military clubs. The objectives of the Association are to promote and advance friendly relations among persons connected with the management of clubs and other associations of similar character; to encourage the education and advancement of members; and to assist club officers and members, through their managers, to secure the utmost in efficient and successful operations.

About Food For The Poor

Food For The Poor, the largest international relief and development organization in the United States, does much more than feed millions of hungry poor in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian agency provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicines, educational materials, homes, support for orphans and the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance, with more than 96 percent of all donations going directly to programs that help the poor. For more information, please visit www.foodforthepoor.org.

About St. Andrews Country Club

St. Andrews Country Club is a resident-only club, ranked 15^th by the Platinum Clubs of America and is internationally recognized for magnificent estate residences. The Club features superior amenities, two 18-hole championship golf courses, including an Arnold Palmer Signature Design®, 15 lighted Har-Tru® tennis courts, a state-of-art spa and fitness center and a 125,000 square foot Clubhouse in the center of it all. The Clubhouse provides unequalled culinary delights, a year-round social calendar and offers spectacular views of the lakes, fountains, fairways and manicured greens. St. Andrews has played host to numerous PGA golf exhibitions led by touring pros such as Phil Mickelson, Arnold Palmer, John Daly and Rocco Mediate, and is the home course to LPGA Touring Professional, Morgan Pressel. www.standrewscc.com.

SOURCE St. Andrews Country Club