Gifts that Keep on Giving

Dora in Kenya received gifts that keep giving

KENYA – Like the bright morning sun’s rays at dawn, Dora’s smile is bright and warm, her handshake firm, her hug motherly and reassuring. It’s hard to tell all that Dora has been through in her life, but she’s also received many priceless gifts.

As a mother of seven, Dora has single-handedly done everything possible to provide for her family. She has no education, so finding a job has been a challenge. And without land to farm, her family’s fortune depended solely on her ability to find casual work, which was hard for an aging woman with few skills.

“I did not have the opportunity to go to school because during our times girls were not allowed to go to school. Girls stayed home to help their mothers and to learn to become wives. Because sooner than later, they would be married off,” Dora said.

Whenever she went out to search for work and found none, she dreaded the look of despair she would find on her children’s faces. “There is nothing more saddening than returning home to your hungry children empty handed. It broke my heart, but what could I do? I only prayed to God and waited,” Dora said.

Not only did Dora not have enough food or money to take care of her family, they had no water in her village. Whenever she wasn’t out looking for work, she trekked many miles through dangerous terrain full of wild animals for water. What she managed to carry back was hardly enough for her family and their few goats to drink.

“I do not wish my children to go through the problems I have been in life, so I am always praying to God to help me take all my children to school. It’s not easy, but I have faith, and now Operation Blessing is here!”

Because of your generous gifts, today Dora and her family have a lot to be thankful for. Her bright infectious smile tells of the miracles they’ve experienced.

Several years back, your faithfulness allowed Operation Blessing to build a school in her remote village of Sompet right next to her home. This made it possible for her younger children to attend preschool, where they learned for free, got a snack, and ate a healthy meal each day.

You also sent abundant clean water right to her village through a new well. “It’s incredible that just a few years ago, we would go for days without bathing. Our goats would go without water. But now, we can drink clean water, wash and bathe as many times as we want! God is great!” She laughed as she shared her story.

But you didn’t stop the gifts there. Operation Blessing provided Dora with a plot of land to farm as well as seeds and supplies, so she could grow crops to sustain her family. She’s also part of our poultry project, which generates both food and income. Now her family has plenty to eat and doesn’t have to worry about going hungry.

You’ve given Dora the best gifts of all, the gifts that keeps on giving—the opportunity to advance in life through hard work! Dora said, “I can’t thank God enough. I can’t thank Operation Blessing enough for everything you have done for my family. I don’t know what I would have done without your help and kindness. May God truly bless you!”

*Field Report by OB Kenya Media Manager, Tim Wainaina

Relief for Kenyan Landslide Victims

Landslide following Cyclone Idai in southern Africa.

KENYA – Although you might not have heard much about it in the news, the Pokot area of Kenya has faced severe devastation in recent days.

Floods and Landslides Strike Pokot

Floods and landslides have killed over 50 people, including children who were swept away from their families. Crops and livestock have been destroyed. And thousands have been displaced by the torrents of water and mud.

Many Kenyan landslide and flood victims have been forced into campgrounds to survive. Meanwhile, aid organizations have had a difficult time getting supplies to this hard to reach area.

You Sent Disaster Relief

Thankfully, because of your support, we moved quickly to the scene. Operation Blessing was able to work with contacts in the area and get the much-needed items to the victims. You sent blankets, mosquito nets, solar lamps, and clean water sources.

Our teams began by distributing disaster relief supplies to those who had lost their homes completely. Thanks to you, we then passed out more supplies to those unable to return to homes in vulnerable locations. You helped approximately 1,800 people.

Simon lost his home, his wife, and his three children, but he found the strength to smile when he received his gifts of aid. Naomi lost a child, a brother, home, crops, and livestock. Yet she still found time to help as a volunteer to distribute the supplies.

Please keep the Kenyan landslide and flood victims in your thoughts and prayers. And consider giving a special gift today.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

During times of crisis and disaster victims desperately need your help. Click here to make an online donation today. Your gift can make a huge difference. Thank you for your compassion to bless the hurting.

Responding to the Albania Earthquake

Destruction from the Albania earthquake.

ALBANIA – Recently a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the northwest region of Albania, killing at least 51 people and leaving hundreds of others injured.

People are sleeping outside, as even those with homes are afraid to go indoors due to aftershocks. In addition, the hundreds of aftershocks have complicated the rescue efforts. People in the area are in dire need of help.

Churches have moved into the area with food, blankets, and other supplies. One pastor said, “Everybody here has suffered some measure of material damage.”

And thanks to your support, Operation Blessing is responding with disaster relief to the Albania earthquake. We are currently planning and preparing our response to this devastating crisis. Check back for more details as they become available.

Please consider giving a special gift to disaster victims at this time at ob.org/give/disaster

Sending Help in their Darkest Hours

SYRIA – Thanks to you, Operation Blessing is able to rush relief to disaster and crisis situations. Whether the emergency results from natural causes, or man-made turmoil, you are sending help to victims in their darkest hours along with love and support.

When Turkish forces invaded Syria, Syrian families fled the conflict area with little beyond the clothes on their backs. Many poured over the border into the Kurdistan region of Iraq, while others remained trapped in Syria.

One aid worker said, “If you talk to people here…you will feel their sadness, their suffering. They’ve lost hope.”

Christians, Kurds, Yazidis and Muslims alike all left the area, looking for a safe place to take refuge from the turmoil. Immediately, you sent aid via our Kurdish partners, the Barzani Charity foundation. You provided food, water, blankets, shelter, hygiene kits and more to the weary refugees on both sides of the border. Together with Barzani, we shipped convoys full of supplies to those in need.

Operation Blessing’s Diego Travero explained, “Operation Blessing has been here since 2014. We originally came here because of ISIS attacking the minorities. We provided food, shelter, solar lamps and the most needed help thanks to you. And again they need our help. They need our prayers.”

Even after the official cease fire, the area remained dangerous and conflict-ridden. The Turks seemed intent on an ethnic cleansing. Before long hundreds of thousands were reported to have left the region in search of peace. And you have continued sending help their way.

Philippine Earthquake Relief

PHILIPPINES: The past days had been difficult for the people of the Philippines. Three consecutive earthquakes shook their nation destroying homes, business establishments, infrastructures and farms.

Damage and crumbled buildings from the earthquake in the Philippines.

Tremors Rock the Philippines

The Cotabato area was first hit by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake, followed by several aftershocks leaving 22 dead, 424 injured and 4,800 families traumatized and displaced.

Operation Blessing Friends Send Help

Operation Blessing Disaster Response team rushed in to help following the Philippine Earthquake. Thanks to your faithful support, we’ve distributing close to 1000 relief packs to affected families. They’ve received tents, blankets, food, hygiene kits, and medicines. In addition, you are supplying victims with clean water, medical care, trauma counseling, and vital encouragement.

The OB team has even been providing fun activities for the children, to keep them occupied and lift their spirits during this painful time.

Thank you for your ongoing support that enables us to respond quickly in disaster situations like the Philippine Earthquake. If you would like to give a special gift to disaster victims at this time, please visit ob.org/give/disaster-relief

Ready to Love and Serve in Any Disaster

Operation Blessing chef Lonnie Dushane ready to love and serve in disaster.

UNITED STATES – Thanks to you, Operation Blessing teams are ready to love and serve wherever and whenever we’re needed most. Today, we’d like to give you a behind the scenes peek at how that works.

Meet Lonnie Dushane, Operation Blessing’s new production chef. Lonnie is responsible for running our mobile kitchens during times of disaster. His work helps provide up to 3,000 meals a day at a disaster scene!

Lonnie has a background in both the restaurant business and military logistics. He’s also part of a close-knit family, including his wife Judy of 56 years and two sons. He owned and ran a restaurant with one son for seven years, which led to him supplying food to disaster zones. He also writes, speaks, and volunteers his time with drug addicts, the homeless, and abuse victims. Lonnie says, “I’m just an ordinary old man, but God opens the doors and I walk through them.”

Operation Blessing first ran into Lonnie following Hurricane Michael in Panama City Beach, Fla., when Lonnie had taken a food truck to the disaster site. Lonnie turned out to be a kindred spirit, and soon joined the OB team as a production chef. He manages our three mobile kitchens, which he keeps up to date with the most efficient equipment. And he stocks them full of supplies, including lots of spices to keep the meals tasty.

Today, Lonnie, the mobile kitchens and OB stay on the alert and ready to serve whenever needed. Lonnie says that while people often look for some huge monumental purpose in life, “My purpose is just to love everyone the best that I can.”

It’s why Lonnie, and so many like him—including compassionate partners like you—are a part of Operation Blessing.

You Give Water, And Water Means Life

Water means life for families in Honduras.

HONDURAS – Honduras is such a beautiful place. The heart of Central America. It has stunning beauty: green everywhere, lots of mountains, many rivers. But there are many issues too.

I find it striking when I learn there is no water in some of these places. Or there is water, but it’s not clean water. Or people don’t have access to water. Water is so important for us and for our bodies. It’s important for many aspects of life. But what happens to a family that doesn’t even have a faucet, or doesn’t have access to clean water?

When you see those beautiful children. When you meet the women here. You see how desperate they are, and how much they want help. And Operation Blessing is here to help them. Because water means life.

It makes me think of all the great support Operation Blessing receives from generous friends out there like you. And that allows us to come to these beautiful places, because there is beauty all around here. But also great need. We’re able to tell the people of Honduras, “Hey, we can assist you because we’re supported by people who have great hearts. They live far away, but they say, ‘I want to help families like yours.’”

So, I want to say to you, thank you for your generosity that makes this work possible and reaches out to give the hurting this precious liquid—clean water.

*A Field Report by Hilda Romero, OB Director of Honduras

Transforming Lives for Patients in Need

TANZANIA – Meet adorable young Sadiki. His life has significantly changed—for the better—thanks to Operation Blessing friends like you. He is just one of the many happy people around the world to benefit from our powerful and transforming Life-Changing Surgeries (LCS) Program.

Born into a low-income family in Tanzania, Sadiki is the youngest of four siblings. When this social and playful child was about one and a half, his mother started noticing a problem with his legs. At first they just seemed to curve slightly, but over time, the issue got worse. He walked with a limp and couldn’t run at all. When he attempted to walk far distances, he suffered pain in his bowed legs.

Sadiki desperately needed surgery to correct his legs, but between the vegetables his mother sold and his father’s small income as a garbage collector, his parents couldn’t begin to it afford it. That’s where YOU stepped in and changed everything!

Not only for Sadiki, but for so many in need of transforming surgeries. Children and other individuals like Sadiki all over the world who can’t afford the operations they need get fresh starts thanks to you. They receive critical treatments that allow them to live healthy, productive lives. And in some cases, even save their lives.

Orthopedic Conditions: Patients with birth defects, deformities from trauma, and other disorders desperately need surgeries to allow them mobility like walking and running. These surgeries often help them overcome social stigmas. And in virtually all cases, the procedures prepare them to better learn, work, and support their future families.

Heart Problems: Congenital heart defects and other heart issues can threaten a patient’s life. While some survive, they experience a poor quality of life, unable to run, play or work. Even a little excitement can endanger them. But with the correct treatment and surgery, they can go on to live long, full lives!

Cleft Lips and Palates: Although cleft lips and palates might seem like surface issues, they cause serious problems. Children often have a difficult time eating, drinking, and learning to speak. The condition can also stir up negative superstitions and cause seclusion. However, surgery gives them a better life.

Eye Issues: From cataracts, to crossed-eyes and more, eye issues keep people from experiencing so much of life. In areas of the world, these problems restrict learning and earning potential for the patients. That’s why we offer so many surgeries to restore the precious gift of sight.

Burns and Scarring: Burns and severe scarring can cause intense pain, limit mobility, and lead to social isolation. They can prevent children from growing strong and limit educational and job options. But thankfully, surgical solutions are available with a little help from friends like you.

And our Life-Changing Surgeries program isn’t limited! We’re ready to help with any treatable condition and change lives whenever possible. Today our young friend Sadiki is well on the mend. Soon he’ll be able to play and run just like all his other siblings. He and his parents truly appreciate this transforming gift. And your support of Operation Blessing put that adorable grin on his face.

If you’d like to help spread the word or make a special designated gift to the LCS program, please visit ob.org/surgery

Relief for Syrian and Kurdish Refugees

UPDATE 10/31 – The situation has continued to worsen. Entire people groups including Kurds, Yazidis, and Syrian Christians have been displaced from Northern Syria. Many Muslims have also fled the devastation in that area.

Both sides of the border with Iraq are overwhelmed by the tens of thousands of refugees. And thanks to you, Operation Blessing is still providing large quantities of relief kits and hot meals through the Barzani Charity Foundation. You’re sending entire conveys of supplies including blankets, water, food, and hygiene items to refugees in both Syria and Iraq.

One Barzani representative said, “If you talk to people here in Bardarash camp you will feel their sadness, their suffering. They’ve lost hope. This is the biggest problem for these people.” So thank you for sending a little bit of hope and a lot of help their way.

You can see updated photos of our outreach here. And please consider giving a special gift to help those in crisis.

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Distributing aid packages to Kurdish and Syrian refugees.

UPDATE 10/21 – As the crisis unfolds nearly 10,000 refugees have already reached Iraqi Kurdistan, where many received help from Operation Blessing friends through the Barzani Charity Foundation. However, since many refugees fled to shelters within other parts of Syria, thanks to your support, the foundation is now taking the dangerous trek into Syria to deliver vital relief supplies there as well.

They’ve already brought approximately 20,000 blankets, 5,000 boxes of food, bottled water and other essential aid to these shelters in Syria. And they plan to continue sending many more convoys to the area.

The refugees are extremely grateful, not only for the supplies, but also to know that someone cares!
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SYRIA – As Turkish forces advance into Northern Syria, a new humanitarian crisis is underway. Kurdistan’s largest NGO, the Barzani Charity Foundation, expects that tens of thousands of Syrian and Kurdish refugees will soon flood their area in Iraq.

The president of the organization, Musa Ahmed Agha said, “These displaced people will need food, hygiene kits, milk for the children, blankets and other supplies because most fled with little of their possessions in hand.”

Operation Blessing is preparing relief for the impending crisis even as it unfolds. We will be working closely with the Barzani Charity Foundation and providing essential aid kits. The kits will include food, hygiene items, milk, blankets and more to provide for the refugees immediate needs. One refugee said, “While the majority of NGOs have left, you came bringing your aid and that gives me hope that there are people who still care for us.”

The Kurdish relief agency greatly appreciates our support. Agha said, “This is an important partnership. We’ve worked together in the past to help protect the lives of the people in this region, so I am always happy when dear brothers who care for us want to help again.”

To support these Syrian and Kurdish refugees and many other victims worldwide in times of crisis, please visit https://www.ob.org/mc/obrefugees/. And for the latest news go to https://www.ob.org/tag/kurdish-refugees/

God’s Been Good

God was good to Debra and her grandson after Imelda flooded their home.

Field Report on Tropical Storm Imelda by Josh Blount:

TEXAS, USA – “It was devastating. I was in denial for two days,” said Texas native Debra as she faced a flooded home for the first time in her life, on top of many other challenges. But through it all, she also found that God is good.

A Storm Takes So Much

During Tropical Storm Imelda, a foot of water had rushed in and ruined her house. With no flood insurance, she’s had a hard time dealing with the damage left behind.

Debra began attempting to clean destroyed walls, floors, and household items on her own while caring for her grandson, Christian. He’s staying with her because her daughter has been in the hospital with Sickle Cell Disease. Beyond all that, just a few months ago, Debra herself was in the hospital with Atrial Fibrillation. She had still been regaining her strength when Imelda hit.

The hardest part of the disaster for Debra was facing all the damage with no assistance. “I felt so lonely when all my neighbors had people helping them. And I was like, really, I got to do all of this by myself?” While sorting through the damage, she came across some pictures of her deceased mother. She said, “I was looking at her, and it was just me, God, and her.”

With a full-time job, Debra also struggled to find time to clean the damage out of her home. She took some vacation, but she was running out of opportunities to remove all of the moldy drywall and furniture from her house. She only had three days left before she would have to go back to work.

Through all this hardship from Imelda, Debra needed to rely on her relationship with God. “It really did overwhelm me, and then I started praying. I was like, God, help me to have faith and not to worry about it. You know some things they say you just got to let go. So I let go and let God.”

Disaster Relief after the Flood

That’s when Operation Blessing showed up to help! “I just thank God that you all are here. I say my mamma is just sending angels to help me out.” Debra was so glad that we were able to come when we did. She said, “God is just right on time.”

Operation Blessing sent a team of volunteers to remove the molded drywall, sort through precious belongings, and provide spiritual support through prayer and community. Debra said, “I needed that prayer. That was confirmation that I will be okay and that you just have to wait for your blessings.”

Debra was such a joy to meet and she was so grateful for our help. When reflecting on the storm she told us, “I know it’s a blessing because God already knew it was going to happen. He’s taking care of everything, so I have to be patient and have faith that everything is going to be okay. I am so happy. God is good and that’s all I can say. He’s been good.”

HOW YOU CAN HELP