Mid-Year Report
Thank You!
We want to take a moment to thank you for your faithful support and prayers. Every day, we see how the Lord is using your partnership with Samaritan’s Purse to further the Gospel and bring healing to people in the farthest corners of the earth.
Jesus said to His disciples, You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth
(Acts 1:8, ESV). They were called to take the Gospel to their own neighbors, community, and nation—and even around the world. This year, Samaritan’s Purse continued following in these footsteps by bringing relief and eternal hope to those suffering in the mountains of North Carolina, in Israel, in destroyed communities in Myanmar, and beyond.
Thank you for coming alongside us as we labor to be witnesses wherever God leads. We pray this report will be a blessing and serve as a snapshot of all the Lord is enabling us to do for His Kingdom.
“I feel you guys have brought me closer to God. Everyone that I’ve spoken to—each hand I’ve touched, each prayer that you all have prayed for me, I just can feel God working on me.”
Hurricane Helene
You are helping families rebuild after Hurricane Helene.
Many communities in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee were utterly devastated by Hurricane Helene last fall. Since then, Samaritan’s Purse has continually worked to help our neighbors in need.
Earlier this year, we met the individual needs of vulnerable families by replacing destroyed appliances and vehicles, providing campers for those displaced from their homes, and distributing grocery store gift cards to those struggling to put food on the table.
Lashanda was one of 220 people who received a new vehicle after losing hers in the storm. “I’m speechless. This is amazing, it’s the biggest blessing I’ve ever received in my life,” she said. “I feel you guys have brought me closer to God. Everyone that I’ve spoken to—each hand I’ve touched, each prayer that you all have prayed for me, I just can feel God working on me.”
Our North American Ministries team has been extraordinarily busy across multiple counties in North Carolina and into Tennessee. We’re rebuilding and repairing hundreds of homes, repairing bridges and culverts, and providing furniture assistance.
The September 2024 storm flooded Kim Mitchum’s home in Mountain City, Tennessee, damaging her belongings and leaving her with a black mold infestation that made the home uninhabitable.
Samaritan’s Purse came to her aid with the offer of a brand-new house, which is expected to be completed this month. The homes we are constructing are designed to be very strong, “like a bunker.”
“Thank you doesn’t seem to be enough,” Mitchum said. “I’m just so grateful for God sending them to me when we really needed them. Yes, I’m very grateful for Samaritan’s Purse.”
We thank God for the incredible generosity of donors like you who have supported us with prayer and funding, so that we can extend a helping hand to families still suffering after Hurricane Helene. To date, we have delivered 2 manufactured homes, started new construction on 21 others, and facilitated repairs of more than 665 homes by providing materials or directly renovating houses through volunteers and contractors.
Please pray for our long-term rebuild programs around the U.S.—that each project provides opportunities to cultivate hope for the future and share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
U.S. Disaster Relief
You are allowing us to bring comfort to those devastated by the storms of life.
In the first half of the new year, North American Ministries continued to respond in the wake of natural disasters, working tirelessly alongside thousands of volunteers to provide physical and spiritual aid to families struggling to rebuild their lives.
Our teams responded to disasters across five states—recovering belongings after wildfires in California and Oklahoma, clearing debris and trees torn down by tornadoes in Missouri and Tennessee, and clearing out waterlogged items from homes in Kentucky. With the support of volunteers, this year our orange-clad teams have helped over 2,800 families clean up their homes and properties, allowing them to begin the road to recovery.
With the increase of simultaneous responses, North American Ministries is bolstering our fleet to more quickly and efficiently provide assistance. We are in the process of purchasing a new Disaster Relief Unit (DRU)—a specially-equipped tractor-trailer stocked with tools and relief supplies that serves as the base of operations for a disaster response. This new DRU will be the ninth in our fleet and will be positioned at our ministry center in Coppell, Texas.
Please continue to pray for our teams as we work across multiple states—that our staff and volunteers will be faithful witnesses of the Gospel and that the hearts of homeowners will be encouraged. Please also pray for our staff to have discernment as we build up our resources, and that we remain sensitive to the Lord's hand in leading us where we can serve effectively.
Operation Heal Our Patriots
You are helping struggling marriages find wholeness in Christ.
In this 13th season of Operation Heal Our Patriots, wounded veteran couples are finding hope for their struggling marriages in the wilderness of Alaska. Retired military chaplains are ministering to spiritual wounds while equipping couples with practical tools and skills to improve their relationship. After this season—spanning Memorial Day Weekend through September—more than 2,000 couples will have experienced the life-changing benefits of this unique program, and over 1,000 will have renewed their marriage vows since the program began in 2012.
Once they return home, couples receive ongoing support by connecting with chaplains and other Operation Heal Our Patriots alumni couples. They also have opportunities to attend weekend retreats and other events to reinforce marriage resiliency.
Earlier this year we facilitated the first Fortify Your Marriage weekend retreat for the handful of alumni couples in Puerto Rico. Husbands and wives were overjoyed to have an Operation Heal Our Patriots retreat in their area! One of the couples from the very first season co-taught the curriculum so that attendees could receive the content in their native language.
Please pray with us that couples attending this season of Operation Heal Our Patriots will find peace and lasting hope in Jesus Christ, that hardened hearts will be softened by the Good Shepherd, and that those who attended the retreat during prior seasons will be encouraged and equipped through our continued care.
Community Medical Outreaches
You are bringing hope and healing to vulnerable communities.
Our emergency medical programs have served as beacons of hope worldwide for decades. Now, Samaritan’s Purse is leveraging our expertise to bring this life-saving aid to our own communities in the United States.
Many vulnerable people face the decision of whether to feed their families or go to the doctor. To help, our new Community Medical Outreaches initiative is providing medical, dental, and vision services, all free of charge. Through each of these weekend clinics—set up outside local churches—about 300 patients can find relief and receive the treatment they need.
The heart of the program is to empower the local church to do missions here at home. Samaritan’s Purse provides the technical capacity so the church can reach neglected people in their community with help and the hope of the Gospel.
“I feel the love of God manifested in these people,” said Luna, a beneficiary in North Carolina. “Every person helping here is proof that God still loves humanity.”
Please pray for our Community Medical Outreaches initiative that practical needs will be met for those in need and that these clinics will open up opportunities to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Israel
You are helping restore lives and communities in the Holy Land.
Samaritan’s Purse continues to work with local partners in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank to provide relief to the most vulnerable and rebuild devastated communities. Even in the midst of this complex crisis, we stand amazed at the opportunities the Lord has given us to meet needs in His Name.
In Gaza, our partners have provided thousands of family tents, hygiene kits, solar lights, and blankets, while trucking in more than eight million liters of clean water for suffering families. We’ve been able to provide wheelchairs and other mobility aids to people living with disabilities and fund 23 surgeries for children who otherwise had no chance for treatment.
In the West Bank, your support has helped our partners treat more than 12,500 patients through primary care clinic outreaches. We’re also funding a tuition program for 1,200 Christian Arab students to continue their Christian education.
Many communities are suffering from trauma and reduced medical services as a result of the initial attack and ongoing conflict. To help address these long-term needs, Samaritan’s Purse has construction and renovation projects underway across multiple areas. From emergency medical stations in underserved areas to therapy centers, community and youth centers, and a Bedouin women’s health center, we pray these facilities will have a lasting impact on families and communities for generations to come.
We also recently gave a new ambulance to Magen David Adom, Israel's national emergency service. It's the 20th ambulance Samaritan's Purse has donated. Another 22 armored ambulances will be provided by the ministry before the end of the year.
Through all of these opportunities, we thank God for opening doors and providing a way for us to minister in the very land where our Savior once walked.
Please pray for God’s peace throughout Israel and Gaza, as we continue to meet needs in Jesus’ Name.
Myanmar
Your prayers opened doors that were once shut.
Samaritan’s Purse quicky responded after a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck Myanmar in March, killing over 3,500 and injuring thousands. We deployed a Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) and an Emergency Field Hospital to the capital of Naypyidaw, near the epicenter of the quake. The multi-tent medical facility housed an emergency room, 60 patient beds, a pharmacy, laboratory, and two operating rooms. Our doctors and nurses treated over 5,800 patients and performed over 300 surgeries.
Our DC-8 aircraft and 747 cargo plane delivered over 100 tons of relief supplies, including emergency shelter material and six water filtration units that produced more than 59,000 gallons of fresh water for earthquake victims.
Please continue to pray for those still suffering from the devastation. To learn more about our response and how God opened doors in answer to prayer, listen to a special On the Ground with Samaritan’s Purse podcast.
Operation Christmas Child
You are helping take the hope of the Gospel to the ends of the earth.
We praise God that this past November and December, over 11.9 million Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes were collected across the United States and seven other countries! Each prayerfully packed box was prepared for the journey to one of more than a hundred countries throughout the world.
Right now, over 80,000 ministry partners and volunteers are working alongside local churches, holding outreach events where children receive a gift-filled shoebox and hear the Good News of the Gospel. After each event, children are invited to participate in The Greatest Journey to learn more about developing their relationship with Jesus Christ.
We are also continuing Operation Christmas Child’s mission to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. In recent years, Samaritan’s Purse has engaged more than 800 hard-to-reach groups in which most of the population has never before heard the Name of Jesus!
“We saw a lot of joy and happiness as the children were receiving the gift of the love of God,” said pastor Ramon Hernandez. “We are determined to take the Good News to the hearts of the people so they might know Christ and be saved.”
Thousands of gift-filled shoeboxes are shared each day. With every child who receives a gift, another seed for the Gospel is planted. We ask that you join us in prayer that our ministry partners will be presented with more outreach opportunities, that we will successfully and safely deliver shoeboxes and discipleship materials into over a hundred countries, and that children and their families will be receptive to the Gospel, which will result in a bountiful harvest for God’s Kingdom.
“Go and do likewise.”
