In 2014, Army Staff Sergeant Petey Beam and his wife, Kyra, arrived at Samaritan Lodge Alaska for Operation Heal Our Patriots with their marriage in shambles. Their week got off to a rough start the first morning during kayaking class. “We were the only couple sitting in our kayak screaming at each other,” Kyra said.…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Military Couples Encouraged to Cling to Christ, Serve Together
More than 500 military couples attended the 2019 Operation Heal Our Patriots Reunion in Dallas, March 29-31. This was the seventh annual reunion for the Samaritan’s Purse project, which has provided Biblically based marriage enrichment training and follow-up care for about 1,000 wounded veterans and their spouses since 2012. This year’s Reunion began with many…
Franklin and Edward Graham Lead High Country Warrior Ride
The eighth annual High Country Warrior Ride, held May 18, raised significant financial support for Operation Heal Our Patriots, the Samaritan’s Purse ministry to military couples with a spouse wounded in combat operations after 9/11. Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham and his son, Edward, a 16-year Army veteran serving with the 75th Ranger Battalion, led…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Hurting Military Marriages Find Healing in God’s Love
Chad and Ellen Peacock were childhood sweethearts—growing up with close families and annual beach vacations together. The summer that Chad was set to leave for Marine boot camp, he asked Ellen to wait for him, planning to marry her when he returned. The couple wrote 277 letters back and forth while Chad was away and…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Army Veteran and His Wife Now Follow Christ on Same Path
Note: The 2019 summer season of Operation Heal Our Patriots ended on Sept. 13, and we thank the Lord for all He did in the lives of so many couples, including the Paynes. For more on this spring/summer, see the update at the conclusion of this article. Army Specialist Tony Payne returned to his Evansville,…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Remember Me
Retired Army Sergeant First Class Ronnie Busbin and his wife Beth of Cunningham, Tennessee, participated in the first week of the Operation Heal Patriots summer season in Alaska this year. Ronnie deployed to Iraq in 2004 and Afghanistan in 2006 and 2011-12. He suffers from multiple traumatic brain injuries received while performing his duties as…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Waterside Conversion Leads to Lake Clark Baptism
As Trish Dawson felt Lake Clark’s frigid waters wash over her, she almost forgot the shocking cold in an adrenaline rush of happiness. “I was just so happy—overwhelmed,” Trish shared, eyes shining at the memory of her baptism. Just moments before, on the beach at Samaritan Lodge Alaska, Trish had prayed with her husband and…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Alaska Fridays Are a Celebration!
Each week at Samaritan Lodge Alaska, Fridays are a day of celebration. Operation Heal Our Patriots staff and volunteers thank God as they watch baptisms, hear military couples renew their vows, and listen to testimonies of saving grace during a fireside farewell. Of course, the rest of the week is pretty special too. There’s a…
God Is Transforming Lives and Healing Marriages through Operation Heal Our Patriots
Retired Army Staff Sergeant John Hosea and his wife Sara know that every day and every breath are gifts from God. On June 9, 2012, John’s armored vehicle ran over a roadside bomb in Afghanistan. The resulting blast blew the truck 27 feet in the air, killing the driver instantly. John was severely wounded. That…
Media
Fact Sheet: Operation Heal Our Patriot
Operation Heal Our Patriots What Operation Heal Our Patriots is a project of Samaritan's Purse designed to strengthen the marriages of wounded and injured members of the U.S. military. The project includes a weeklong wilderness retreat at Samaritan Lodge Alaska, which provides physical and spiritual renewal to wounded veterans, active-duty service members and their spouses. With…
