We never forget that, however well intentioned charitable endeavors may be, many of them have unintended negative consequences, the most dangerous of which is to create a culture of entitlement and dependency. As a result, we are very careful about the projects we support and the manner in which we do it. For example, we are confident that our vocational school and our English language program wil
l provide significant future benefits in terms of the earning potential of the community. But to ensure that the students assume the primary responsibility for their success, we require them to contribute in some way to their education, both while they’re taking classes and afterward, when they have located employment. We also insist on a strict social contract: Every recipient of our help must first make a formal presentation of their needs and then provide us with regular feedback on the effect of our charity. And because we believe that the proper response to being given something is to say thank you, we ask that they write a personal thank you note. Some projects, however attractive at first glance, are rejected because of the potential damage it might do to the local culture. For example, we declined to build a day care center because we realized that, in doing so, we would be terminating a useful and productive tradition: having the parents or siblings of working women provide day care for them and, thus, have meaningful work in their own lives. We strive to ensure that our projects are both economically productive and sustainable. When we invest a dollar in the local community, we do so with the expectation that that dollar will continue to yield positive effects in the future. The Ford Family Foundation primarily operates out of our community development center, FunLimon, located in El Limón I, Rivas, Nicaragua. The center includes a professional-level sports complex, an English language school, a facility for recreational activities, and will soon include a vocational training center and an arts center. In addition to our sports and educational initiatives, our program extends micro-loans to stimulate local entrepreneurship and provides scholarships for outstanding students.