Thousands of people, including up to 15,000 Americans, are desperately trying to escape from Afghanistan after the country’s fall to the Taliban. With the Taliban blocking access to the airport and all exit routes, this is a life-or-death situation for Christians and other religious minorities, and all those who worked with or for America over…
Warmly Welcoming Those Who’ve Fled Afghanistan
“Seeing our children play with toys is the first happy day we’ve had in a long time,” said the Afghan father, his eyes wistful as he watched his little ones. This weary family was just one of countless others who experienced firsthand what most of the world only saw in shocking photos and broadcasts back…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Southeast Church Among First to Welcome an Afghan Family
The children run to greet them with a slew of hugs and smiles before they even get the door open all the way. They’re so excited to welcome the team and to see what surprises the day will bring. They might share a meal together, go to the grocery store, visit the park, or shop…
Growing Toward Hope in Alaska
Marine Captain Ray Penny and his wife, Maggie, carried their own fly fishing gear to Alaska. Using their rods again reminded them of the “old days”—before kids, before the military, before so many difficulties. You could tell from his casting in the Tanalian River that Ray knew what he was doing. Maggie, his wife, was…
Discipleship, Education & Training
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,…
Old Burdens Go Up in Flames Giving Marine Couple Fresh Start
Marine Corporal Tim Read had just knocked out a couple miles of hiking and a steep descent to the falls of the Tanalian River—on one leg. “That was the fastest I’ve hiked in a long time,” he said. Then, he knelt on the banks, his left prosthetic leg digging into the sand, as he scraped…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Caring for Afghan Evacuees in Transition
The invigorating feel of a fresh haircut or a new dress. The fun of kicking around a soccer ball or flying a kite. The confidence of being seen by a medical professional. A Samaritan’s Purse Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) is providing all of these experiences and more to Afghanistan evacuees at a transit center…
Operation Heal Our Patriots Strengthens Couples Over the Long Term
Aimmie Jenkins was surprised in Louisiana to see her war-injured husband, former Army Staff Sergeant Andrew Jenkins, mudding out homes; cutting up and carrying trees; and tarping damaged roofs. After more than a decade of watching him painfully and slowly recover from injuries he sustained in Iraq and Afghanistan, she was suddenly watching the man…
A Fresh Start
Army Specialist Jason Tyson was stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, when he met Jodina, a school teacher. The first time Jodina came to visit him on base she brought homemade cookies and “it was love at first bite,” Jason said. “I knew we were meant for each other.” Jodina also knew after that first…
Discipleship, Education & Training
Thanking God for Lives Transformed in Alaska
All he knew was darkness. The horrors of war had followed him home, and Marine Staff Sergeant Tre Tremillo was suffocating beneath layers of despair and anger. Images of death haunted him. His heart ached for fellow Marines still hospitalized with battle-related injuries. He mourned friends who had committed suicide. “I found myself sitting at…
