2023 January Blessings Magazine

Stories of how YOU help the hurting around the world.

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HAPPENINGS

FLORIDA: You surrounded Florida homeowners with love, aid, and muchneeded support in the overwhelming days following Hurricane Ian.

UKRAINE: As the war raged on in Ukraine, people like Levhen needed lifechanging surgeries more than ever. You came through for him, and now he can see!

PHILIPPINES:

Following a devastating typhoon in the Philippines, friends like you reached out to restore joy to victims in need.

MICHIGAN: Because you care, shelves stay well stocked at a Michiganbased community assistance center that makes sure neighbors get the food they need.

KENYA: Thank you for sending free medications to help hurting people through medical brigades in Kenya and around the world.

PERU: Villagers in Osocco and throughout Latin America celebrate the gift of clean water from generous friends like you!

Hurricane Ian

HELP ON THE HORIZON AFTER

Hurricane Ian slammed into Florida as a catastrophic , wreaking havoc across the southwestern coast and taking more than 100 precious lives. If you hadn’t been there with compassionate aid, so many would have been left alone and hopeless. But we thank God that your love arrived swiftly to bless struggling survivors.

Storm surge higher than 10 feet flattened buildings and washed away houses, leaving more than 2 million people without power and closing airports, railroads, and shipping ports. Life in Florida turned upside down overnight.

As the storm changed course, not everyone evacuated in time. For people like Aerielle, this nearly cost them their lives. Gale-force

winds and torrential rains put Aerielle’s young family—her husband, three little girls, and two dogs—in terrible danger as their house began to flood with them trapped inside.

Aerielle recalled the experience, “We were regretting staying here because … we all thought we were going to die,” she said. “Water was coming in—sewage water at first and then surge water. ... It was really traumatic.”

When the storm finally passed, the family emerged to a world that was dark, wet, and broken. They peeked out from their ruined home to see a town torn apart. And after all of that trauma, it still wasn’t time for rest, though they needed it dearly. It was time to recover their lives—and what a challenging time that would be! The task seemed far too big for them to conquer alone.

Aerielle’s daughters survey the aftermath as their family receives help from Operation Blessing.

They desperately needed your help. Severe water damage and mold had devastated their house, rendering it uninhabitable for this homeschooling family. They were gripped by shock. “I definitely needed some spiritual intervention. I just kept praying. And lo and behold, a beautiful community did come around me,” said Aerielle.

In the aftermath of the storm, you swept in with help and hope. Because of your compassion, Operation Blessing teams visited Aerielle’s home to remove soiled furniture, clean up water damage, and help the family get their house

and their lives back on track.

After she’d experienced God’s love through your generosity, Aerielle was incredibly grateful. “I would say that for my family, this has brought us even closer to the Lord and really made us realize what’s important in our life,” she said. “We absolutely would love to thank all of you who have donated and for being able to help myself and my family at this really challenging time. And we appreciate you all so much.”

Thanks to your kindhearted intervention, Aerielle’s family and many others can begin to take their first steps toward recovery.

I just kept praying. And lo and behold, a beautiful community did come around me. – Aerielle

A gift of 63 cents per day puts you in a community of Blessing Builders who together are providing clean water, medical aid, disaster relief, and food to the hungry.

STRUGGLING TO THRIVE

manda worked hard to support her three growing boys, Jonathan, Milton, and Arnold in Honduras. Because of her threatening husband, their family situation became unsafe for her and the

How you helped a determined mother support her family

boys. So Amanda took action. She gathered her children and fled.

For the next several months, she used what little she could earn to put food on the table for her family. But as a single mother, she was barely able to keep up with their most basic expenses. She didn’t know how she would manage.

Your love and generosity reached out to Amanda not just once but twice during her time of need. Amanda had long dreamed of becoming a professional stylist. Because of her situation, she could not afford the cost of training. But you paved the way for her to attend Canela y Miel, our free cosmetology academy for women like Amanda who were at risk for various reasons. At the academy, she learned how to give manicures and pedicures, cut and dye hair,

and apply makeup professionally.

Amanda was determined enough to make it! Even in the midst of difficulties at home, she graduated as a professional stylist.

Amanda began setting up her new business—but she still needed proper tools and more supplies to support her family properly.

That’s when you came alongside Amanda for the second time and showed her how much you cared! When Operation Blessing learned about her struggles, you provided professional beauty equipment— along with all the supplies she needed to give manicures and pedicures, as well as to cut hair.

Thanks to you, Amanda now has the opportunity to build a hairstyling business that can support her lovely family for a long time to come!

FRIENDS LIKE YOU GAVE

OPPORTUNITIES TO A FAMILY IN NEED

Fresh

Asmall, one-room mud hut—that’s all Dorcas could provide for her children. They cooked over an open fire, then slept on a blanket on the floor beside it. Smoke often burned their eyes. Dorcas’ back and ribs ached from sleeping on the hard, uneven ground. “We could not afford a good house, because we had no money,” said Dorcas. “I am all by myself, and no one is helping me.”

Then the walls of the mud

hut began to crumble. Rain seeped through leaks in the roof, and the cold wind blew through cracks in the walls. Covering the cracks with cloth or patching them with more mud proved only temporary solutions. Dorcas felt helpless, but what else could she do?

“It makes me sad when I see my children coughing because of the cold,” she said. “Because I cannot afford to take them to the hospital for treatment.”

Dorcas wanted to give so

Dorcas and her kids in Kenya have a brighter future because of friends like you

much more to her three children still living at home—William, 16, Beatrice, 8, and Kitonga, 6. But as a single mother, there was no way. She often walked for hours, searching for work, and she used what little she earned to buy food.

She laughs

Proverbs 31:25

without fear of the future.

because of drinking dirty water.”

Then we heard about Dorcas’ struggles—and friends like you responded and began building her a new home. But that generosity didn’t stop there. Operation Blessing partners gave her a new kitchen, a bathroom, and beds.

“The house is warm, and there’s no dust either,” said Dorcas. “It feels great to sleep on a mattress in a bed. I no longer have backaches. No part of my body is aching.”

Supported by our caring partners, we also installed a rainwater harvesting system with a large tank and a filter so that Dorcas would no longer have to walk such a long distance to fetch dirty water. She and her children now have access to safe, clean water at home to drink without getting sick.

Dorcas is grateful for everything that the love and generosity of friends like you provided. “I prayed to God, and indeed, God hears and answers prayers. He answered my prayers, and I love Him so much!” she said. “May God bless you! Thank you for your help. It’s God who made this happen through you!”

“May God bless you! Thank you for your help. It’s God who made this happen through you!” -Dorcas

A Full Table Made Possible by You

It’s getting harder to keep food on the table. Around the world, people are feeling the weight of inflation and food supply issues. In many developing nations, famine is even taking lives.

Thankfully, YOU are tackling this problem head on every day. Whether it’s providing a garden for a family in Mexico, offering a goat-raising project in Kenya, empowering a small business in Peru, or placing food directly into the hands

You’re rescuing the hungry every day worldwide

of the hurting right here in the U.S., we are fighting hunger together. You’re entering some of the worst situations in the world and changing lives—lives like Gulmato’s. She and her fellow Kenyans in remote Tubcha village were starving due to a severe drought. They’d lost their livestock and their crops. Parents watched in anguish as their children went to bed hungry. Gulmato said, “All our food was gone, and I don’t know what would have happened to us!” But YOU changed all that, sending enough provisions to feed her family and entire village over several months!

GIVING DAILY BREAD IN UKRAINE

Your love has also found its way to Ukraine, where civilians—everyday citizens like you—are bearing the brunt of Russia’s brutal assault. Millions have fled to neighboring nations for safety. In Poland, you are caring for these refugees as this terrible war drags on. “It’s really depressing being separated from loved ones and leaving my house and livelihood in Ukraine,” said Sergei, one of 3,000 refugees staying at a large refugee center in Poland. Facing such great need, the center reached out to us for help. Because of your faithful support, Operation Blessing quickly responded with truckloads of

food, hygiene kits, and cleaning materials. Some Ukrainians, however, did not flee their homeland. The ongoing battle conditions are leaving many of them hungry as they lose access to basic staples due to constant shelling and danger. With Operation Blessing’s help, a woman named Zhenya and her husband are braving the hazards to run a bakery offering free bread to hurting residents who can hardly find food anywhere. Faithful friends like you provided the necessary support, supplies, and equipment to make this outreach possible.

“Every morning, we visit the cities and villages to find out who needs our help, mostly the elderly,” Zhenya shared.

“We deliver bread to people who have nothing—their eyes fill with

A HELPING HAND FOR FELLOW AMERICANS

Americans are also struggling to bear up under the tremendous weight of soaring prices and postpandemic conditions. For many who were already living paycheck to paycheck, they’re no longer treading water—they’re drowning.

Jen from Michigan understands this all too well. She was a chef before the pandemic, but her career skidded to a halt when restaurants closed their doors. Her husband’s income as a Costco retail worker couldn’t carry the load

alone—especially since they were providing for their two granddaughters at the time. So they went to our distribution partner, Buist Community Assistance Center, for help.

And your compassion met them there. Operation Blessing’s partnership with the center provided Jen’s family with all the free food they needed to stay afloat. She said, “It’s pretty amazing to be able fill your car with good food. If you’ve got food, you feel like you still have something. You’ve got comfort.”

Thank you for blessing the hungry with food today and every day!

A CHANCE to SEE THE WORLD

Jevon can now see more clearly because you care

The joys of having a healthy baby are beyond compare. But what happens when the child has a health problem?

Rachel knows. Just days after her son’s birth in 2020, Rachel was feeding Jevon when she noticed something odd. His eyes appeared to have white spots on them. She said, “He didn’t respond when we waved our hands in front of his eyes.” But there was no way to do anything about it during the pandemic.

Eventually, when the Philippines eased travel restrictions, the family had Jevon’s eyes checked. The ophthalmologist knew right away that their precious boy had cataracts in both eyes. “I was worried when I found out about his condition— we did not know if there was a cure or if his eyes could still have a chance to see,” Rachel said. “I felt fear for my son.

Jevon’s father lost his job around the same time they got the news, and though he found some work in construction, it barely covered their daily needs. Then they were told how much the surgery to help Jevon was going to cost—around five years of wages. What could they do?

Then YOU saved them from their painful situation. You sent your love across the world, and your generosity paid for Jevon’s cataract surgery. Only a week after the successful operation, Rachel sent a video clip of Jevon trying to walk!

Now, when Jevon’s parents hold out their hands to their

baby, he reaches back for them— all because you cared! Can you imagine how their hearts soared the first time that happened? Rachel said, “I appreciate your great help to my child, Jevon. He was given the chance to see the world, to see us and have a chance to live a normal life. It’s OK if he needs to wear glasses.”

She is grateful. “Thank you to everyone who helped us. If not for them, my son would not be able to see. I pray that God

Jevon was given the chance to see the world, to see us and have a chance to live a normal life. -Jevon

How could he live a normal life without seeing?”

No longer

ON A DANGEROUS

How

access to clean water gave one community a brighter future

Nine-year-old Brenda once became so sick, she couldn’t even walk. When her mother took her to a clinic to get help, the doctor told them the cause was the water they’d been drinking. Brenda needed someone like you to come along and make a difference in her life.

“It’s hard to be told that’s what’s harming her—and that’s what I’ll continue giving her,” said her

mother, Maria. “For me, it was very difficult to have my kids drink that water, but we didn’t have any other.”

When she was a child herself, Maria had to walk down a dangerous path every day to fetch water from a nearby river. Then she watched as her own children, including Brenda, had to do the same thing. As a widowed mother with few resources, Maria had no other choice.

The water was dirty and often made Brenda and her siblings sick. They missed school, and sometimes even got hurt along the path. But they had no other access to water, and neither did the other 13 families that lived in the remote community of San José el Paraíso, Mexico.

“It had many insects, and it was very dirty because the cows stepped in it,” said Brenda’s 11-year-old sister Elena of their water source. “I had to drink it fast.”

The family and surrounding village were in dire need of help. Brenda and her siblings prayed for a miracle. “We asked God for

They also received training and technical support.

Families and children like Brenda in the community no longer have to walk down the dangerous road to collect dirty water that can make them sick. They can now drink safe, clean water right at home. Brenda and her family have a new life—thanks to the compassion and care of faithful Operation Blessing supporters.

“I’m happy because now all my family has clean water,” said Elena. “We don’t get sick anymore.” And we have more blessings on the horizon for them,