Feeding Children Everywhere (FCE), a Longwood-based charity dedicated to providing free healthy meals to children in need, conducted a drive to prepare 4.4 million meals for children in Puerto Rico affected by Hurricane Maria. This event brought the organization to a total of 5.5 million meals, 1.2 million meals for Hurricane Irma victims, and another 4.4 million for Hurricane Maria victims distributed within the past few months. This event has brought the charity international recognition and assistance, with volunteers arriving to help at the event from Lake Nona, across the United States and beyond.

Hurricane Maria has created a devastating situation in Puerto Rico, leaving millions without electricity, water or food. The damages might not be fully repaired for up to six months and even a year on certain parts of the island. This is when FCE knew they needed to step in and find a way to support the victims in a time of crisis and dire need.

FCE was founded in August 2010 in response to the earthquake in Haiti and has worked in situations and with those in need ever since it was formed. Since 2010, the organization has grown on a rapid domestic and international scale, having provided meals to more than 20 million people since October 2014. Though FCE calls the Orlando metropolitan area home, their hard work and efforts have touched people from Dallas to Haiti and all the way to international locations such as Somalia, Turkey and India.

“A large and vibrant Puerto Rican community exists in Central Florida, so many of us know someone who has a family member who lives on the island and is in dire need,” said CEO of FCE, David Green, prior to the event. “Because of the connection between Puerto Rico and Central Florida, we feel especially compelled to reach out and help. Because of that same connection, we’re confident enough people will volunteer to make it happen.”

The meals were assembled in the Orange County Convention Center, North Concourse, North Hall – A2 located at 9400 Universal Blvd., Orlando 32819. The space was 200,000 square feet, chock full of people working together to plan, prepare and pack meals to be brought to Puerto Rico. At one point, there were more than 1,700 people in the space at once, the largest collection of people the FCE has ever had volunteering and working at one time.

More than 50,000 volunteers in total showed up to help pack meals, coming from all over the state of Florida and even internationally to assist with the packing and preparing of the food for the people of Puerto Rico. A total of 4.4 million meals were packed in just 17 days time, which was half the amount of time that FCE estimated it would take for them to collect the number of meals they needed.

The event was a huge success and received major press coverage from local stations and on social media, with the FCE Facebook page receiving 350,000 hits in just one night after word of the event had gotten out. Not only was FCE able to provide the people of Puerto Rico with meals, but it also helped express the solidarity and the strength of the organization and the state of Florida, as well as internationally, to band together to help those in need.

To learn more about FCE and find opportunities to get involved with the organization, visit their website at www.feedingchildreneverywhere.com.