We are having a lot of problems convincing the Department of Agriculture to take our concerns about the commodity program
seriously. We have been trying to convince them for the past three years that there are many unfair issues with the
T.E.F.A.P. commodity contracts. All we asked the Department of Agriculture is to look at all our documentation (which
is their documents) and give our issues the respect they deserve. Each time we bring our concerns to the Department
of Agriculture, they try to change things around by saying the contracts are not perfect, bitter grapes or the contracts are
fiscally responsible, rather then addressing each of our concerns. Some times I think they pre–write these letters
and just change the names of the organizations that have issues with the Department of Agriculture.
The Faith-Based
and Community Charities have been helping less fortunate people long before there was a Department of Agriculture and we will
be serving people a long time after their gone. It’s just so hard for me to understand why they would want to
change something that has been working for so many years. The most troubling is that they are not changing it for the
better but are hurting the back bone of the charity community, the small neighborhood faith-based and community charities.
These new contracts are benefiting all the larger charities, which probably make up only a small part of charities where the
rubber hits the road and they see a live person asking for help.
On the brighter side, we know we are in the
right and if we could convince our representatives and the newspapers that things need to change and why they need to change,
I think we will do great things for the less fortunate of Florida. These agencies will never police themselves and make
changes. Remember, the faith-based and community charities serve 100’s of thousands of voters and tax payers in
Florida. We need to use that to our advantage. In the very near future we will be sending every partnering charity
a list of their representatives and the heads of the different government agencies with all their contact information.
I still think most people are basically good, but some people need to be reminded from time to time. Remember, keep
praying, prayer works.
Lester Cypher
