Poverty alleviation in the Republic of Croatia through the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD) was investigated in this paper for the financial perspective for years 2014-2020. The indicators of poverty alleviation, according to the official available data, did not give a clear picture of who the recipients were, what kind of aid they received and in which area, only their total number was recorded. Based on the examples of the Croatians Red Cross societies, which were involved in the implementation of more than half of the contracted projects, and the analysis of the dynamics of the implementation, it was determined that the continuity of assistance was not achieved, nor was regional representation of all areas achieved. The managing and implementing body left the choice of beneficiaries and aid recipients to the organizations implementing the projects, therefore the aid was not available to all groups at risk of poverty, nor was there uniformity regarding what actually reached the end users. The volunteer contribution in the implementation of FEAD was very significant, especially in the Croatian Red Cross system, and the paper shows their value and measured economic contribution, which is completely marginalized in all official documents and reports on FEAD in Croatia. Through a case study based on the examples of Croatian Red Cross societies, the paper established that the societies achieved significant progress in strengthening their capacities in the implementation of projects, and above all in a significantly larger coverage of beneficiaries whom they helped over the years by distributing food, toiletries, school equipment and supplies and other types of assistance. The reputation of the Red Cross in Croatia has grown both among users and donors, and by implementing FEAD projects, they have strengthened their humanitarian mission.