Feeding the Future – Seaside Rotary’s Feeding Program

One of the most important ongoing projects for the Rotary Club of Playa del Carmen Seaside is our feeding program, ‘Feeding the Future‘. The pilot feeding program was initiated in the remote village of Torres de la Paz, just outside the city of Playa del Carmen, Mexico. We have maintained this program uninterrupted since 2017.

While the student population fluctuates due to the transiency of the community, currently, we are providing 70 children with healthy, nutritious meals twice a day (breakfast and lunch), 3 days a week. For some of the children, these meals may be the only ones they receive.

Torres de la Paz is a settlement that has grown from a few desperate families living in tents, under the high-tension power lines, to a community of over 2,500 people. The majority of these families are desperately poor. The living conditions range from one-room cinder block homes to shelters pieced together out of scrap wood and old tarps. The situation is dire and most of the residents are just barely getting by, living hand to mouth.

There are no public schools in this area, but even if there were, the majority of the children would be unable to matriculate because they do not have the correct documentation nor the funds to purchase the required uniforms, books and supplies. In an attempt to address the needs of the children living in the settlement, a small community school was built.

Feeding the Children, Feeding the Future

It is in this school that Seaside Rotary has installed a solar-powered clean water filtration system and built a small kitchen. It is here where he club runs its ongoing program, Feeding the Future.

When Seaside Rotary began this program in 2017, the school also received support from various local organizations and businesses. Sadly, the economic devastation of the coronavirus pandemic ultimately caused these benefactors to pull out, leaving only Seaside Rotary to support the efforts of the school.

Currently, we are providing 70 children with healthy, nutritious meals twice a day, 3 days a week at a cost of $1,200 USD per month. While this may not seem like much, for a small Rotary Club in Mexico, with limited fundraising opportunities, it is a struggle to sustain. The club welcomes donations to help support this project. No amount is too small.

Donate Here

Seaside Rotary is currently looking for support from Rotary clubs worldwide who would like to partner with us and take on Feeding the Future as an ongoing International Project. Our goal is to find 12 sponsor clubs who can commit $1,200 USD, every year, to cover one month of expenses. If you are a member of a Rotary Club, please consider presenting this project to your club’s Board of Directors or Project Committee.

If this is a project your club would consider participating in, please contact us via email info@playaseasiderotary.org or by using the CONTACT form.