Edward Graham traveled this week to southwest Louisiana to encourage Samaritan’s Purse teams as they come alongside hurting homeowners. Many communities in the Bayou State are still struggling to recover after powerful hurricanes pummeled the area in recent months. Hurricane Delta slammed ashore as a Category 2 storm in early October and hit just a…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Louisiana Homeowner Grateful for God’s Grace
Cary Castile wasn’t expecting to be displaced for weeks when he evacuated from Louisiana to Texas ahead of Hurricane Laura in August 2020. And, when he did return to his Lake Charles home, he said the widespread devastation broke his heart. “Almost the entire city was damaged. The power lines were down. It was a…
Construction Projects
‘The Happiest Day of My Life’
Leticia Jaimes wiped away tears as she walked through her new home for the first time. She paused in the living room, overwhelmed, and fell into the embrace of her mother, Elena. Mother and daughter hugged and cried together, knowing that this day would mark the beginning of many new family memories. “For years, we…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Team Patriot Volunteers Help a Fellow Veteran in Louisiana
Residents of Lake Charles, Louisiana, a working-class town of nearly 78,000 people, are weather weary. They have seen their city ravaged by two hurricanes, crippled by an ice storm, and inundated by floodwaters—all within the past nine months. First, Hurricane Laura, a Category 4 storm, roared into Lake Charles in late August. It was the…
Franklin Graham in Florida to Encourage Homeowners and Volunteers
Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham traveled to Lee County, Florida, on Thursday, Oct. 6, where Hurricane Ian took dead aim last week and pummeled the Fort Myers area as a Category 4 storm. More than 100 people were killed, and at least hundreds of homes were either ripped apart or flooded. One resident described it…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Mike Lindell Hands Out Pillows in Hurricane-Hit Florida
Mike Lindell, founder and CEO of My Pillow, Inc., encouraged hurricane survivors and relief volunteers in Florida today. He handed out pillows in a very hard-hit community where Samaritan’s Purse is working. He said, “People are asking ‘Is there any hope?’ Samaritan’s Purse is always there when disasters come, and they bring hope—such a wonderful…
Crisis & Disaster Response
College Students Volunteer, Help Florida Widow
When Thelma Reynolds, 87, returned to her home after Hurricane Ian ripped through her North Port, Florida, neighborhood, she was shocked by what she discovered—her house was in shambles. “We were on what they call the ‘dirty side’ of the storm, which rotated counterclockwise, and it just sat here for several hours,” she said. “It…
Samaritan’s Purse Continues to Help Hurricane Survivors in Florida
Samaritan’s Purse deployed staff, equipment, and an army of volunteers to heavily damaged areas of southwest Florida immediately after Hurricane Ian slammed ashore as a Category 4 storm in late September. Thousands of homes were damaged or destroyed by powerful wind, storm surge, and rain. It was among the most powerful storms ever to strike…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Florida Man Rescued Just in Time
As Hurricane Idalia barreled toward Florida’s Gulf Coast, Samaritan’s Purse U.S. Disaster Relief specialists prepositioned two Disaster Relief Units full of supplies in Georgia. The Category 3 hurricane soon made landfall on Wednesday morning, Aug. 30, near Keaton Beach in Florida’s Big Bend region with 125-mph winds and a record storm surge. The team prayed…
Water, Sanitation & Hygiene
Offering Clean Water in Mexico After Hurricane Otis
Years ago, when Milton Heredia was a cartel member, he might have seen the devastation of Acapulco as a “business” opportunity. Hurricane Otis left people vulnerable, and gangs prey on the desperate. But now, a decade into his new life—“10 years walking together with God”—Pastor Milton sees the hurting people of Acapulco with compassion and…
