By Beth Brelje | Originally Published in The Epoch Times May 02, 2024. Updated: May 06, 2024. Used with permission. BOONE, N.C.—A bird is thumping into the window of Rev. Franklin Graham’s office at Samaritan’s Purse international headquarters in Boone, North Carolina. He says it happens every spring, and he doesn’t know why, but this…
Military Couples Start Fresh During Alaska Adventure
Mike Woodard’s muscular frame stands six-foot-four. During his time as a soldier in the U.S. Army, there’s no doubt the enemy should and would have feared him in close quarters. He served bravely in a 2011-12 combat tour to Afghanistan, though it came at great cost. He got blown up three times—once each by a…
Newsletter July 2023
Military Couples Celebrate New Life in Christ, Stronger Marriages
During their first morning at Samaritan Lodge Alaska, seven patriot couples headed down to the bay to receive kayak training together. Tandem kayaking is a great exercise in communication and teamwork—with the goal, as in marriage, of both partners being on the same page, headed in the same direction. “You want to be one movement,…
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…
Thanking God for Military Couples Saved in Alaska
On the eve of the 17th anniversary of 9/11, ten U.S. military couples gathered by the glacial waters of Lake Clark to spend a restorative week (Sept. 2-8) in the Alaskan bush for the penultimate session of Operation Heal Our Patriots 2018. And much like the nearly 140 couples that had already come to Samaritan…
Newsletter October 2023
Military Couple Finds a New Beginning in Christ
The first time Wayne Wilson learned how to drive, it was behind the wheel of a Humvee in Iraq. The 17-year-old had joined the Army to escape from an abusive home, going straight from high school into basic training. He graduated from Airborne School and was immediately deployed on his first combat tour in 2002.…
Military Couples Begin New Chapter in Alaska
Terror, violence, and death weren’t supposed to follow him home. Army Staff Sergeant Josh Abbatoye thought he’d left war on the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan. Throughout multiple deployments in a 17-year military career he’d survived eight traumatic brain injuries, five improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and a rocket-propelled grenade that left shrapnel stuck in his…
Embracing God’s Strength in Weakness
For many years, the Carbullidos’ combat experiences remained a mystery roiling under the surface of their marriage. Air Force Master Sergeant David Carbullido considered it his duty to lock away those moments into a dark corner of his mind. He thought it was an absolute necessity in order to stay engaged in the work at…