The story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37) gives a clear picture of God's desire for us to help those in desperate need wherever we find them. After describing how the Samaritan rescued a hurting man whom others had passed by, Jesus told His hearers, “Go and do likewise. " For over 40 years, Samaritan's Purse has done our utmost to follow Christ's command by going to the aid of the world's poor, sick, and suffering. We are an effective means of reaching hurting people in countries around the world with food, medicine, and other assistance in the Name of Jesus Christ. This, in turn, earns us a hearing for the Gospel, the Good News of eternal life through Jesus Christ. As our teams work in crisis areas of the world, people often ask, “Why did you come?" The answer is always the same: “We have come to help you in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. " Our ministry is all about Jesus—first, last, and always. As the Apostle Paul said, “For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus' sake" (2 Corinthians 4:5, NASB).

Preparedness for international crisis relief is of vital importance. Based on the certainty of more disasters and the likelihood that they will have even wider impact, Samaritan's Purse is prepared to provide efficient and effective emergency relief for people and communities living amidst the ensuing destruction. A central motto of Samaritan's Purse is “the quality of our work is the platform of our witness. " To ensure consistently excellent work, our disaster relief program includes several components which are essential when responding to humanitarian crises occurring globally and, at times, simultaneously:—structured response with clear goals and defined outcomes—clearly identified roles and responsibilities before a disaster strikes—qualified and highly trained staff—complete organizational involvement across all departments

VOLUNTEERS: Our worldwide projects would not be possible without our hard-working and loyal volunteers. Since 1998, more than 117,000 volunteers have worked with U. S. Disaster Relief to repair roofs, remove downed trees and debris, sift through ash, and prepare affected homes for repair. More than 100,000 domestic volunteers and 6,000 international volunteers serve annually through Operation Christmas Child—enabling Samaritan's Purse to reach over 11 million children with the Gospel. More than 530,000 teachers have been trained to take children through The Greatest Journey discipleship program, through which over five million children have come to faith in Jesus Christ. Hundreds of medical professionals serve with World Medical Mission each year, meeting medical needs for thousands of people in dozens of developing countries. CHURCH PARTNERS: By partnering with local churches around the world, we have increased access, knowledge, and support to bring physical and spiritual aid in the Name of Jesus. In the United States alone, we partner with more than 90,000 churches through U. S. Disaster Relief. Internationally, our church partnerships help facilitate Operation Christmas Child and disaster responses—providing us an expanded capacity to reach the nations. PRE-POSITIONED SUPPLIES: By pre-positioning non-perishable relief supplies and emergency equipment in strategically located warehouses around the world, we are able to bring aid to victims of natural disasters, war, and other crises within 48 hours. INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM (IMT) AND DISASTER ASSISTANCE RESPONSE TEAM (DART): The Samaritan's Purse IMT monitors global situations, communicates with our partners around the world, coordinates emergency relief responses, and supports DARTs to provide relief and assistance in the wake of natural and man-made disasters. Currently we have more than 800 people trained to serve on these teams, which demonstrate an exemplary standard of excellence in assessment, information exchange, and managerial skills. EMERGENCY FIELD HOSPITAL: Ready to deploy at a moment's notice, the emergency field hospital provides medical relief in disaster-stricken areas where the medical infrastructure is damaged, overwhelmed, or non-existent. Each unit is customizable and can include an emergency room, two operating theatres, a critical care unit, and more than 50 inpatient beds. This asset has enabled Samaritan's Purse medical staff to provide relief to earthquake survivors in Ecuador and life-saving care to more than 4,000 victims of war in Iraq. AVIATION: Samaritan's Purse brings relief to disaster areas and facilitates development projects through the use of aircraft based in Africa, Alaska, and North Carolina. In a single flight, our DC-8 aircraft can transport 40 tons of relief supplies and 30 emergency personnel into a disaster zone. With a 7,000 mile range, the aircraft can fly directly from its North Carolina hangar to nearly anywhere on the globe.

When disasters occur, we want to be on the ground within hours of the event to meet the most urgent needs. We measure progress by documenting how quickly our teams arrive, how soon after a disaster we are able to begin distributions of food, clean water supplies, shelter materials, or other essential aid, and how many affected households we are able to reach in the days and weeks immediately following a disaster. Further, we evaluate how effectively we are able to transition long-term rebuilding efforts to local partners, knowing that our specialty is helping with immediate needs after a disaster. After every response, we schedule an extensive after-action review to document lessons learned in order to enact them more efficiently and effectively in future responses. Many years of following this practice has enhanced our capacity to reach more people more quickly during subsequent disasters.

More than 146 million children have found love and the hope of the Gospel in shoebox gifts distributed through Operation Christmas Child. To date, over 11 million children have participated in The Greatest Journey discipleship program that accompanies shoebox distributions. Since 1998, U. S. Disaster Relief has helped more than 34,000 families through disaster responses in 35 states. Globally, Samaritan's Purse has responded to crises in dozens of countries by bringing emergency relief in Jesus' Name. In 2017, we intervened in South Sudan's famine and refugee crisis by providing food rations to hundreds of thousands of starving people each month; we provided emergency aid to tens of thousands of Iraqis fleeing the fighting in Mosul and deployed an emergency field hospital that treated more than 4,000 trauma patients; and we immediately responded to the aftermath of hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria—using our aircraft to ferry much-needed aid to devastated Caribbean islands. Across the world, Samaritan's Purse has impacted impoverished communities and vulnerable people groups through a variety of development projects including: Animals, Agriculture, and Livelihoods; Children's Ministries; Construction Projects; Discipleship, Education, and Training; Feeding Programs; Health and Medical Ministries; Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Projects; and Women's Programs. Samaritan's Purse will continue to bring physical and spiritual aid to hurting people around the world in Jesus' Name—as we've done since our inception in 1970. With dependable capabilities like the DC-8 and innovative strategies such as the emergency field hospital, we will expand our positioning on the frontlines of humanitarian disasters.