Thick, black smoke was moving in rapidly. Pastor Erik Naylor of Maui, Hawaii, could hardly see more than a few feet in front of him, and he felt the heat as homes around him started to catch on fire. But when he and a neighbor looked across the street, they saw that the Lahaina Baptist…
Operation Christmas Child
200 Millionth Shoebox Gift Celebrated in Charlotte
Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham encouraged volunteers and staff at the Charlotte Processing Center in North Carolina during a community celebration event on Dec. 3. He expressed thanks to volunteers in Charlotte as well as the thousands of volunteers working in seven other processing center locations across the country to prepare shoebox gifts for international…
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Biography: Ruth Bell Graham
Ruth Bell Graham Born June 10, 1920 Qingjiang, Kiangsu, China Died June 14, 2007, age 87 Montreat, North Carolina Parents L. Nelson Bell (died 1973) Virginia Leftwich Bell (died 1974) Married William F. "Billy" Graham Jr. 1943 Children Virginia "Gigi" Graham, 1945 Anne Graham Lotz, 1948 Ruth Graham, 1950 William "Franklin" Graham III, 1952 Nelson…
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Biography: Billy Graham
Billy Graham William F. "Billy" Graham Jr. Born Nov. 7, 1918 Charlotte, North Carolina Died Feb. 21, 2018 Montreat, North Carolina Parents William Franklin Graham Sr. (died 1962) Morrow Coffey Graham (died 1981) Married Ruth McCue Bell in 1943 (died June 14, 2007, age 87) Education 1943 B.A., Wheaton College—Wheaton, Illinois 1940 Graduated, Florida Bible Institute (now…
Health & Medical Ministries
Franklin and Edward Graham Celebrate God’s Work at Tenwek
Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham and his youngest son, Samaritan’s Purse COO Edward Graham, gathered March 4 with faculty and staff of Tenwek Hospital in Bomet, Kenya, north of Nairobi. The group toured Tenwek’s new state-of-the-art cardiothoracic surgical center, which, in partnership with Samaritan’s Purse, was completed Oct. 24 of last year. The need for…
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Press Release: Samaritan’s Purse DC-8 Makes Final Flight from Greensboro, Delivering Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes to Hurricane-Ravaged Jamaica
Samaritan’s Purse DC-8 Makes Final Flight from Greensboro, Delivering Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes to Hurricane-Ravaged Jamaica BOONE, N.C., Dec. 4, 2025 —This Friday, December 5th, the last U.S.-registered DC-8 will embark on its final mission—carrying 9,200 shoebox gifts to Jamaica. These Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes are packed with toys, school supplies, and personal care items…
Samaritan’s Purse Dedicates First Home in Hurricane Helene Rebuild
In the same front yard where Hurricane Helene’s floodwaters tore through their quiet western North Carolina neighborhood, Benny and Keeva Messer stood on June 2 praising God for a brand-new home built in Jesus’ Name, from the foundation below to the shingles above. “Today we are going to celebrate and rejoice,” said Luther Harrison, vice…
Crisis & Disaster Response
First Mobile Homes Given to Hurting Families After Helene
Lidia Gomez escaped with her family as floodwaters, mud, and debris filled their Buncombe County, North Carolina, community last September. When they returned in the wake of Helene’s destruction, their mobile home was unrecognizable—filled with water and pierced by a tree that had crashed through the roof. In the following days, the home became filled…
Edward Graham Encourages New Yorkers After Flooding
Not in 40 years had Dexter Bunte seen such devastation in his community of Highland Falls, New York. Until July 9 the stream that ran by his house was merely a harmless feature adding to the area’s quaint beauty. “It was a babbling brook. My kids used to get excited when it would rise a…
Edward Graham Speaks at Ukraine’s National Prayer Breakfast
Edward Graham addressed Ukraine National Prayer Breakfast attendees August 25, reminding the gathering of God’s love and care “for the people of Ukraine.” The event was modeled after the U.S. National Prayer Breakfast that his grandfather, Billy Graham, helped to establish. Drawing from the account in Luke 23 of the thief crucified near Jesus Christ,…
