Here is USF’s press release announcing this great honor:

SAN FRANCISCO (May 16, 2013) – The University of San Francisco (USF) will present an honorary doctorate in humane letters to Margaret Trost, founder of the What If? Foundation, this Sat., May 18, at 6 p.m. The What If? Foundation teams with its Haitian partners to fund programs in the Ti Plas Kazo neighborhood of Port-au-Prince that provide 6,000 meals each week, more than 200 school scholarships each year, an after-school program for 240 youth, and a summer camp for 550 children. The What If? Foundation is the only funder of these community-based programs.

“Margaret Trost has been working with poor Haitians for more than a decade,” said USF President Stephen A. Privett, S.J., who will confer the honorary degree during the graduation ceremony for more than 300 graduate students of USF’s Masagung Graduate School of Management. “She certainly exemplifies the truism of the founder of the Jesuit order, Ignatius of Loyola, that love shows itself in deeds more than in words. What if everyone lived this maxim as well as Margaret?”

“I am deeply honored to receive this honorary doctorate from the University of San Francisco, which inspires me through its commitment to use academic excellence as a vehicle for creating a more humane and just world,” said Trost. “I am especially grateful for this opportunity to share my experiences with the next generation of leaders as they prepare to use their skills and knowledge in the pursuit of social justice.”

In 2000, Trost traveled to Haiti for the first time to volunteer at a hospice founded by Mother Teresa. She was inspired by the faith and dedication of the sisters who administered to the people, but was overwhelmed by the suffering she saw throughout Port-au-Prince, especially among children, many of whom experienced daily hunger and faced disease related to acute malnutrition and the absence of clean drinking water. During her visit, she met Fr. Gerard Jean-Juste, a Haitian priest, now deceased, and a 2006 USF honorary degree recipient, who told Trost of the hunger most children experienced there. Motivated to make a difference, Trost returned to California and founded the What If? Foundation to support food and education programs for impoverished children in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Trost credits the success of What If? to the collaboration with the foundation’s Haitian partners, who have worked tirelessly to ensure that the aide directly benefits children.

The graduation ceremony will take place at St. Ignatius Catholic Church on the USF campus—located at 650 Parker Ave. (at Fulton Street) in San Francisco.

About the University of San Francisco

The University of San Francisco is located in the heart of one of the world’s most innovative and diverse cities and is home to a vibrant academic community of students and faculty who achieve excellence in their fields. Its diverse student body enjoys direct access to faculty, small classes, and outstanding opportunities in the city itself. USF is San Francisco’s first university, and its Jesuit Catholic mission helps ignite a student’s passion for social justice and a desire to “Change the World from Here.”  For more information, please visit www.usfca.edu.

WGBO Journal: Episode: 2013-01-11. What If Foundation Helps Haiti Children

The host, Doug Doyle, discusses with Margaret her book, On That Day, Everybody Ate, the What If? Foundation, her experience in Haiti, and the value of taking small steps towards change.

As always, a big thank you to everyone who continues to stand beside us and our Haitian partners by supporting the What If? Foundation.

We are looking forward to hearing an update on the programs supported by your openhearted donations.

It is with a heart full of gratitude that I share with you our 2012 Annual Report.  In it you will read about the food and education programs you support in Haiti and you will find quotes, like these three, from children who describe the powerful difference you are making in their lives.

Translated from Kreyol
 
“I live in a tent city. I would like to go to school, but I have not been before. I like coming to the food program because they give me a big plate of food, so I am not hungry. And I get to play with other kids. I love that they teach me songs and other things. I feel safe at the food program. Really safe.” – Rolande, age 7

 “You know what? I cannot wait to wake up in the morning to go to school! School is very hard and it is difficult for me to study at home with no lights, but I could not think of a better way to spend my days. I hope everyone knows that my school scholarship has made me the happiest boy in the world. Thank you for helping me be a better and happier person.” – Fergusson, age 13

“My favorite part of being in the after-school program each week is the chance to be a part of such a great community. I think it is important to do well in school but also to learn how to respect other people, which is what we are learning at this program. I hope to make my community proud after I finish school.”  – Madeline, age 15

Rolande, Fergusson, and Madeline speak for many others who receive a nutritious meal every weekday, a school scholarship, or who attend the after-school program. The What If? Foundation is the only source of funding for these community-based programs, and without you and other What If donors, these badly needed services would not exist.

If you are in a position to send a donation, please click on the donate button you see to your right, or visit the donate page on our website soon.
65 cents pays for one meal at the food program.  An elementary school scholarship costs about $250 per year.  Your dollars go far, are used so carefully, and impact lives directly.

In two weeks, I will travel to Port-au-Prince to meet with our Haitian partners, Na Rive, who lovingly run the food and education programs day after day. This is a journey I look forward to because it re-connects me with the children we serve and the challenges they face in their daily struggle to survive.  It reminds me of the difference every meal and every school scholarship makes.  And it reinforces the importance of our 13-year partnership, which is a model of sustainable development through community-based, Haitian-led programs that are effectively serving the most vulnerable.

Thank you for your trust and support and for holding What If, Na Rive, and the children we serve in your heart.

Margaret Trost
Founder, What If? Foundation

• $25 provides 38 hot, nutritious meals to hungry children
• $50 supports two children for seven weeks of summer camp
• $75 feeds a brother and sister for more than one month
• $150 supports half of a scholarship for elementary school
• Determine your own level of your gift: your Mom will be proud

By supporting the What If? Foundation, you will empower our local partners to continue providing:

• 6,000 meals a week
• 187 elementary and high school scholarships per year
• 240 young people with after school enrichment programs, and
• 550 children with the opportunity to attend summer camp

Simply enter your gift amount in the Pay Pal box you see to your right.  Type “Mother’s Day” in the special instructions box, located just above where you click “Pay”.  Would you like her to receive a card?   Then also type in your Mother’s name, your Mom’s email or mailing address, and we’ll do the rest.    For US Mail, please contact us by Wednesday, May 5th.  Questions? Please contact us by phone or email.   Share this message with a friend!

Donated by you. Loved by Mom.

When you shop online —at the GAP, iTunes, Amazon, Best Buy, Ann Taylor, or hundreds of other sites— you can support the What If? Foundation with every purchase, by first visiting GoodShop. These participating merchants generously donate a portion of your purchase directly to What If at no extra expense to you.  Signing up with GoodShop is an easy way to support the Foundation’s work while doing something you may already do: shop online.

Sign up on the GoodShop web site, select the What If? Foundation to be the recipient, click the link of the business in Goodshop, and shop like normal.   The experience of shopping through GoodShop is exactly the same as going to the retailer’s websites directly.

Click here to get started, and help us spread the word!

“… I continue to be inspired by all that is being done on the ground in Haiti and by your dedicated staff in California. So much has been accomplished. I’m sure the education piece of your program will bring benefits to the whole country. Well-fed and well-educated students will certainly be part of tomorrow’s new leadership in Haiti.”

Thank you to all of you for continuing to motivate and inspire us with your messages. To read more inspiring notes from donors just like you about why they choose to support the What If? Foundation, please visit our “Why I Give” page.

Thirteen years ago this week, our Haitian partners served the first food program meal to 300 hungry children in the Ti Plas Kazo neighborhood of Port-au-Prince.  Word of this “miracle” spread quickly and more and more children started to come, some of them walking miles to eat.  This community meal program has been able to continue ever since thanks to your generous donations.

I want to share a powerful excerpt from the journal of a 17-year-old high school student from California who visited the food program earlier this month.  Through Alex’s eyes, you’ll see that the meals are just as important now as they were then. 

“At first I was comfortable.  We started passing out food at massive rates and it seemed as though we could feed thousands. But the need for food far outweighed the amount of food we had.  I felt the pull of children on my legs asking for more food.  Even if they had a plate they would still rub their bellies.  The level of desperation only heightened once the older kids came.  Everyone was hungry.

… I don’t think I can ever erase the image from my mind from that day.  The level of urgency to get ONE meal was unmatchable.  I had never experienced that amount of need in my life.  I couldn’t relate in the slightest.  But I knew it was a massive problem, and knowing that already makes me want to do more to help.” 

Each plate at the food program costs about 65 cents.  Whether you’re able to provide one meal or hundreds, your donation makes a difference.  Through your support, you are helping bring comfort, nourishment, and hope to the 1200 children (and some adults) who gather to eat each weekday under the tarp in Port-au-Prince.

As you know, our strong relationship with Na Rive (our Haitian partners) and their devoted cooking team is what gives us the opportunity to directly impact the lives of Haitian children day after day.  Here is another excerpt from Alex’s journal:

“The amazing thing about Haiti is the people.  Everyone I’m meeting is so beautiful and the sense of collective work and responsibility is admirable, a trait I hope to bring back to the U.S.  We met the head cook for the food program today, Rosalie, and it’s amazing how much she wants to do for her entire community.  She tirelessly works to do more.” 

To meet Rosalie and to see the food program in loving action, please watch this 3-minute video:

Lespwa Fe Viv – “Hope makes life”

Margaret Trost

Founder, What If? Foundation

“The people we’re sharing with – it’s helping them and helping others. You should hear the children and adults who participate in these programs. We have the feeling of great sharing. Share, share, share, that produces love, love, love. Love for everyone. We love each other and we love all of you who are helping us, help ourselves.”    – Fr. Gerard Jean-Juste