U.S. Army Staff Sergeant Brandon Price was performing a routine training session with the Afghan Army when his students suddenly turned on him and ambushed him and his squadron with gunfire. Brandon took two bullets to the chest plate and one to his leg, and as he was being treated by a medic, a remote-powered…
Caring for Couples Suffering the Wounds of War
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…
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…
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…
A Long But Blessed Road Home
Sadhia, Wilson, and Doreen—the three ‘miracle’ children of Tanzania—experienced an emotional rollercoaster ride this past weekend as they returned home after months of medical care in the United States. These three survivors of a deadly May bus crash were transported back to Africa in the same way they left the continent—via the Samaritan’s Purse DC-8…
Helping to Save Infants in Liberia
Samaritan’s Purse medical teams have performed hundreds of life-changing cleft lip and palate surgeries in Liberia. Sadly, though, some Liberian children born with this condition never have the opportunity to receive such medical treatment. Sometimes their lives are snuffed out at birth or shortly thereafter by family members or midwives just because of the severe…
Emergency Relief Arrives to Help the Starving in Sudan
Samaritan’s Purse has recently trucked nearly 12,000 metric tons of food for starving people in Kordofan, Sudan. The baskets of food, part of an emergency relief initiative, are going to families in overflowing displacement camps scattered across the remote region. We have provided food and other relief to assist more than 180,000 men, women, and…
Refugee Mom Tailors New Life in South Sudan
Mary focuses deeply as she makes another attempt at stitching a straight line across a long strip of fabric. This is her third week in a Samaritan’s Purse tailoring class at a local church in the town of Mankien, South Sudan. Each week for five weeks she kisses her children and leaves early in the…