Military couples have been coming to Samaritan Lodge Alaska now for more than a decade with Operation Heal Our Patriots, and each of the 17 weeks of the program provides once-in-a-lifetime wilderness experiences. Our Samaritan’s Purse guides play a vital role in giving these couples memorable excursions together. Longtime outdoorsman and guide Ralph Meloon says…
Newsletter June 2025
God Works Through Our Ongoing Care to Military Couples
Denise Blanchett said the water was so cold she couldn’t speak. Or perhaps she was speechless for other reasons, such as the overpowering emotions she experienced during such an important moment. For nearly four years she had thought about the opportunity she’d missed to be baptized with her husband, Army Sergeant Scott Blanchett, in the…
Military Couples Celebrate New Life in Christ, Stronger Marriages
During their first morning at Samaritan Lodge Alaska, seven patriot couples headed down to the bay to receive kayak training together. Tandem kayaking is a great exercise in communication and teamwork—with the goal, as in marriage, of both partners being on the same page, headed in the same direction. “You want to be one movement,…
Las parejas militares son motivadas y fortalecidas en Alaska
Day after day, Army Sergeant Russell Gaskins scrambled to take cover from incoming mortar rounds fired into the camp. They’d come at all hours, and, eventually, he’d had enough. “There were times the mortar rounds came in at night and you got knocked out of bed. I just crawled back into bed,” he said. “I…
Vicepresidente Mike Pence motiva a parejas militares en Alaska
Vice President Mike Pence and his wife, Karen, joined staff and volunteers at Samaritan Lodge Alaska in ministering to wounded military veterans and their spouses from July 20-23. Invited to Alaska by Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham and his wife, Jane, the Pences were a great encouragement to military couples during Week Seven of the…
Operation Heal Our Patritos fortalece a las parejas a largo plazo
Aimmie Jenkins was surprised in Louisiana to see her war-injured husband, former Army Staff Sergeant Andrew Jenkins, mudding out homes; cutting up and carrying trees; and tarping damaged roofs. After more than a decade of watching him painfully and slowly recover from injuries he sustained in Iraq and Afghanistan, she was suddenly watching the man…
Operation Heal Our Patriots 2020 Begins: Couples Arrive in Alaska
Update (July 15): This is the story of the arrival of Week One patriot couples. For a full story on the first week’s activities, go to the wrap-up article here. — This year’s first group of patriot couples took off from Anchorage around 4 p.m. on Sunday, July 5, and arrived at Port Alsworth about…













