Happy Hearts Fund

The Happy Hearts Fund is a non-profit organization with a mission to improve children's lives through educational and sustainable programs in natural disaster areas.

Happy Hearts Fund Vision

The vision of the Happy Hearts Fund (HHF) is to rebuild children’s lives after natural disasters.

When HHF Helps

HHF initiatives are focused on bridging the gap between emergency post-disaster relief and fully restored infrastructure. While disaster relief meets immediate needs for food, shelter, water and disease control, it can be some time before governments start the process of rebuilding infrastructure and that creates a gap in the recovery process. It is during this gap that HHF steps in to help rebuild.

Program Structure

HHF programs have three key components: education, technology and sustainability.

1. Education
HHF identifies schools in areas adversely affected by natural disasters and builds or rebuilds them allowing children to start the healing and recovery process.
2. Technology
Within each school, HHF establishes a computer lab with the needed IT software, hardware and :training in order to create more opportunities for children to have better education and :employment options.
3. Sustainability
HHF aims to create independence through its sustainability initiatives. HHF incubates and :fosters a community-oriented business as a programmatic companion to the new schools, thereby :ensuring a long-term funding stream for the maintenance and development of the school, and, by extension, the community.

Program Results

HHF has directly helped children in several post-disaster areas, including Haiti,India,Indonesia,Mexico,Peru,Thailand,Sri Lanka,Hurricane Katrina-affected areas of the United States. Globally, HHF is active in eight countries and has built/rebuilt 46 schools and kindergartens. Its programs benefit more than 12,000 children and 230,000 community members annually.1

HHF Admin Expenses

All HHF administrative expenses are underwritten by its board allowing 100% of all public donations to go directly towards programs.

HHF History

HHF was founded by Petra Nemcova in 2005 to restore hope and opportunities to children affected by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsnami; it received its 501(c)3 status in 2006. Nemcova was in Thailand when the Indian Ocean tsunamistruck on December 26, 2004. When she returned a few months later, Nemcova witnessed families without homes, children without parents and entire communities swept away. She was most affected by the children and sought to figure out a way to help them rebuild their lives and bring back hope and opportunity. Unsatisfied with the response of organizations that were unable to specify which children, or even which country, would benefit, Nemcova set out to create her own entity and structured it so that all administrative costs would be underwritten, thereby ensuring that 100% of all donations received would be directed to children's programming.

Over time, HHF has broadened its geographic reach and now directly supports children in Haiti, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru, Thailand, Sri Lanka and Hurricane Katrina-affected areas of the United States.

Recent Developments

On December 15, 2009, HHF Founder and Chair, Petra Nemcova, and Executive Director, Phillip Caputo, launched the “Bring Happiness Back!” campaign at the United Nations to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the Indian Ocean tsunami, which struck on December 26, 2004. That same day, Nemcova and Caputo also participated in the closing bell ceremonies at NASDAQ where the “Bring Happiness Back!” Campaign was also highlighted.2

The “Bring Happiness Back!” Campaign's goal is to raise awareness about the plight of children in natural disasters, especially those children who are forgotten and caught in the the "gap period," between first response and full recovery.

The initial objective of the “Bring Happiness Back!” Campaign was to directly assist children affected by the September 2009 earthquake in West Java, Indonesia. After the Haitian earthquake struck in January 2010, HHF expanded the focus of the Bring Happiness Back! Campaign to support the children of Haiti as well.

HHF’s work was highlighted as part of an ABC World News and Good Morning America feature story in December 2009 with ABC correspondent, David Muir.3

HHF Founder, Petra Nemcova, and HHF Executive Director, Phil Caputo, with children at rebuilt school in Thailand