Year-round volunteers make Operation Christmas Child possible. In all 50 states and Puerto Rico, more than 9,000 people ranging from youth to retirees serve on area teams that facilitate this Samaritan’s Purse project. Opportunities are available in leadership, church relations, logistics, community relations, media relations, prayer mobilization, administrative support, and student relations. With Operation Christmas Child, there’s a niche for you whatever your gift, life-stage, or location. … [Read more...]
Samaritan’s Purse Photo Blogs
Faces of the Faithful
Operation Christmas Child year-round volunteers serve in various roles to aid in the success of the project
January 20, 2016
Water Breathes New Life
Mountainous communities in Haiti are renewed through clean water sources
December 17, 2015
Water and life are harmonious. Water breathes new life—it enlivens and sustains. When we feel cracked and brittle, the sole thought of water allows hope to crescendo. Water replenishes what was once depleted. The mountain communities of Trouin, Haiti, are enveloped in thick, green farmlands. The villages of Lebo, Ka Joj, and Polit are vibrant and lush, but—high in the hills—clean, drinkable water is elusive. The Lord remembers the people who live in each pocket of the world. In … [Read more...]
Una Nueva Sonrisa
Samaritan's Purse brings a new smile to dozens in Bolivia through our Cleft Lip and Palate Program
December 11, 2015
The Samaritan's Purse cleft lip and palate project expanded from South Sudan into Bolivia in late October, performing 29 free-of-charge surgeries on patients from just a few months old to 45 years of age. … [Read more...]
What Happens to Your Shoebox?
The journey from your hands to little hands in need
November 23, 2015
Thank you so much for your generous giving during National Collection Week! Now that you have sent off your Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts with prayer, they are en route to boys and girls around the world. The first stop in that journey is at one of our eight processing centers located across the United States. Here shoeboxes are inspected and prepared for international shipping. Next they travel by plane, truck, or ship to more than 100 countries and territories where local … [Read more...]
Voyage to a Second Life
“I just want to live in peace.”
October 26, 2015
A small, nine-meter boat approached slowly from the Turkish coast. As it moved closer to Lesbos Island, it seemed to speed up a bit. Orange blobs turned into human forms. Babies could be heard wailing. Mothers too. Suddenly, men were also yelling for help. … [Read more...]
South Carolina Rising
God has used Samaritan's Purse volunteers to answer the prayers of devastated homeowners.
October 22, 2015
Historic rains—ominously described as a 1-in-1,000-years-storm—pummeled the Carolinas for five days in early October. Creeks overflowed and dams burst, sending raging torrents of muddy water cascading throughout cities, towns, and rural countrysides. South Carolina took the brunt of the epic downpour that killed 19 people and caused billions of dollars in damage. … [Read more...]
Beyond Beaches
In Fiji, Operation Christmas Child is shining light into spiritual darkness.
October 16, 2015
Stunning stretches of white sand and the turquoise-blue water of the Pacific mark the island nation of Fiji, but its true beauty goes far beyond what tourists see. God is using Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts and the follow-up discipleship program, The Greatest Journey, to plant churches in this ethnically and religiously diverse nation. … [Read more...]
Submerged
Photo blog about helping Myanmar flood victims find higher ground
October 8, 2015
“Is this the hardest thing you’ve been through?” I asked Sawsarwah, a father of six in the delta region of Myanmar. The country experienced its worst flooding on record this summer, and a photographer and I accompanied our organization’s church partners to distribute food in hard-to-reach areas. … [Read more...]
A Time and Place to Heal
Operation Heal Our Patriots provides Bible-based marriage enrichment training in Alaska to wounded military personnel and their spouses
June 30, 2015
Operation Heal Our Patriots Since 2012, Operation Heal Our Patriots, a project of Samaritan's Purse, has been providing Bible-based marriage enrichment training in Alaska to military couples dealing with post-9/11 combat injuries. One hundred and sixty couples—10 each week for 16 weeks—are scheduled to travel to our wilderness lodge between May 31 and September 18 this year. By the end of the summer season, the program will have served a total of well more than 500 couples in the past four … [Read more...]
Overcoming Darkness
A traveling Bible school shines light on the border of the Congolese jungle
June 16, 2015
UNDER THE MID-MORNING SUN, the people of Mapedi village gather. Forty-six students don their shirts and dresses, all made from the same fabric. They march into a tarp-covered shelter. A man in military fatigues leads them in song. The audience claps along. [full-width] [/full-width] [full-width] [/full-width] The northern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where Mapedi is located, is often referred to as "The Black Hole" of Africa because of the … [Read more...]
