In 2012, the United States had only recently passed a tragic milestone in the War on Terror—more than 48,000 members of the U.S. Armed Forces had been wounded in defense of our freedom since the 9/11 attacks. Many of these brave men and women returned home with terrible physical and emotional scars. Samaritan’s Purse President…
Hope, Healing, and Restoration During Week One of Operation Heal Our Patriots
Tammy Unruh didn’t want to come to Alaska. She had no interest in attending Operation Heal Our Patriots to work on her crumbling nine-year marriage to Mike, a retired sergeant who served in the army for 20 years. She didn’t think their relationship could be fixed. Even the thought of going fishing, hiking, or bear…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Celebrating God at Work During Operation Heal Our Patriots Week One
The first week of the 2022 Operation Heal Our Patriots summer season (May 29-June 3) got off to a quick start and ended powerfully. On the very first night that military couples arrived at Samaritan Lodge, Marine Staff Sergeant Martin Lucero and his wife, Courtney, received Christ after 90 minutes of counsel with one of…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Operation Heal Our Patriots Starts 12th Summer Season in Alaska
Memorial Day weekend marked the start of the Operation Heal Our Patriots 2023 summer season. Eleven military couples, from eight states and Puerto Rico, arrived on Sunday, May 28, at Samaritan Lodge Alaska where they were greeted by a flag-waving, enthusiastic crowd that included staff, volunteers, and local town residents. The patriots and their spouses…
New Hearts in Mongolia
Odgerel is a healthy 3-year-old who likes to run and play on the monkey bars. It’s hard to imagine that two years ago she was fighting for her life. Her mother, Tsatsaa, first noticed something was wrong when she was 8 months old and her skin had a blue discoloration. Odgerel was almost 1 1/2…
Children's Ministries
God’s Provision Leads Mother to Christ
There’s no experience more heart-wrenching than seeing the health of your child decline, said Yudith, a Bolivian mother. Her daughter, Nihan, was diagnosed shortly after birth with a hole in her heart. But instead of closing on its own as sometimes happens, the hole got bigger, and she had a heart murmur. By the time…
Health & Medical Ministries
The Journey to Healing
Maria Nelly can’t remember a time when she didn’t have to summon all her energy just to take a breath. Each beat of the Bolivian girl’s heart was a struggle. With each passing year, the 7-year-old’s health grew worse as she labored to breathe, was constantly tired, and often felt ill. Her family didn’t know…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Restoring Lives from Violence in Tigray
Years of war devastated the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia from 2020-22. Families were shattered and their futures were left uncertain. Samrawit was one of the countless women struggling against the odds to keep themselves and their children alive. It wasn’t always like this. She can remember many years of peace. She and her husband…
Construction Projects
Warming in Koyuk
Warming in Koyuk Samaritan's Purse staff and volunteers built a church in the remote village of Koyuk over the summer of 2023. Explore village and church life in this special place up north in Alaska. God's Country Up north in Alaska, where the forests and the tundra can swallow two states the size of Texas,…
Bringing Medical Care to Sudan’s Displaced Women and Children
Wrapped head to toe in a loose, floral fabric, Amira takes the hospital bucket from beside her cot and steps outside the pediatric ward to do some washing. The ward is one of eight tents that make up the Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital, which has been operating since Christmas Day beside the government hospital…
