Update for Sept. 23: Samaritan’s Purse is responding in Puerto Rico where Hurricane Fiona hit Sept. 17-18 as a Category 1 storm, tearing through the southern and western parts of the island. We airlifted over 16 tons of emergency relief supplies to Puerto Rico on Thursday, Sept. 22. Materials included 2,200 shelter tarps; two community…
Crisis & Disaster Response
DC-8 Brings More Relief to Puerto Rico
The Samaritan’s Purse DC-8 flew to Puerto Rico from Greensboro, North Carolina, on Monday delivering more than 26 tons of emergency supplies to the island devastated by Hurricane Fiona. Hundreds of thousands of people are still without normal access to power and water more than a week after the storm made landfall. The cargo plane…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Providing Clean Water for Puerto Rico
Samaritan’s Purse has established four community water filtration systems in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Fiona, meeting the urgent needs of thousands in Naranjito, Maunabo, Guanica, and Yauco. As much as 20 percent of the island remains without regular water access. [Check out the video at top.] Our Disaster Assistance Response Team has also partnered with…
Operation Christmas Child
Gifts-In-Kind Opportunities
Spread Joy and Hope Through Gifts-In-Kind “We might just look at it as a little stuffed animal or toy, but that is the tool that God is going to use to plant that seed.” —Randy Clark, President, Beverly Hills Teddy Bear Company Operation Christmas Child counts on new in-kind donations to ensure each shoebox gift is full and of the…
Our Ministry
Samaritan’s Purse Provides Aid to 351,000 Hurricane Maria Victims in Puerto Rico (Press Release)
"Disaster Response Specialists Preparing to Aid Victims of Carr Fire"—Franklin Graham SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Sept. 5, 2018 — In the year since Hurricane Maria devastated the island of Puerto Rico, international Christian relief organization Samaritan’s Purse has helped some 351,000 hurricane victims—more than 10% of the island’s population. “Our team has been on the…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Helping Restore Puerto Rico One Year After Maria
As Hurricane Maria roared ashore at 6:15 a.m. last September 20, pummeling the municipality of Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, Raul Diaz huddled inside his parent’s house. He watched in horror as Maria’s powerful winds ripped the roof off of his own nearby home. The storm then also took with it his balcony and half of the…
Operation Christmas Child
Volunteer at a Drop-off Location
Volunteer at a Drop-off Location National Collection Week Nov. 18–25, 2024 At nearly 5,000 locations across the nation, volunteers will welcome and pray with people who drop off Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. Other volunteers will fill cartons and load trucks with the millions of shoeboxes we prayerfully anticipate receiving. Approximately 80,000 people will serve in these…
50 Years of Ministry
Samaritan’s Purse Rushes Relief After Hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria
As southeast Texas communities braced or evacuated in advance of Hurricane Harvey’s lashing winds, devastating rain, and storm surge, Samaritan’s Purse positioned for a massive response in August 2017. The Category 4 storm killed more than 100 residents of Texas, battered coastal communities, and flooded Houston and its surrounding communities with more than 50 inches…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Rebuilding the Caribbean After the Hurricanes
As Pastor Nolan Nanton prepared to lead a prayer meeting in January at the New Testament Baptist Church on the island of St. Martin, he stopped and gazed upward. It was a scene he knew all too well—the church sanctuary without a roof. It had been shredded four months earlier when Hurricane Irma pummeled the…
Operation Christmas Child
Enrico and a Baseball
Enrico and a Baseball Enrico received a shoebox in Argentina at age 8. Enrico Pellini was born in Argentina, to parents who were passionate about sharing the love of Jesus to their own people. As they followed their passion to share Christ with many, Enrico’s family moved around often, willing to go wherever the Lord…
