Doing Good: Hal Donaldson Leads a Convoy of Hope

REVOLUTIONARY KINDNESS

Hal Donaldson and Convoy of Hope

by Laura Neutzling

LIFE TOOK A TRAGIC TURN in Hal Donaldson’s childhood the night his father was killed by a drunk driver. His mother was seriously injured in the accident. There was no insurance policy to cushion the loss. A police offi cer relayed the news to twelve-year-old Hal, his three younger siblings, and a crowd of friends and neighbors gathered on the Donaldsons’ front lawn. The offi cer asked if anyone would take in the siblings for a few days. After what seemed like a lifetime to Hal, a couple of longtime family friends raised their hands and opened the door of their single-wide trailer so the children could stay with their family of six. A few days turned into a full year. “And during that year,” Hal remembers, “they wrapped their arms around me and my brothers and my sister, and they reminded us that Jesus loves us and He has a plan for our lives.” That incredible act of kindness made a deep impression on Hal and would quietly lay dormant as he pursued other areas of work as an adult. Majoring in journalism in college, Hal went on to be an editor at a magazine, teach at the universtiy level, and work on several book projects. One of those book projects took him to Calcutta, India, where he

had the honor of meeting Mother Teresa for an interview. During their time together, Mother Teresa asked a pivotal question that would change the course of Hal’s life: “What are you doing to help the poor and the suff ering?” Embarrassed he didn’t have an impressive answer, Hal simply off ered the most honest response he could give: “I’m not really doing much of anything.” Looking back at him intently, she said, “Everyone can do something. Do the next kind thing that Jesus puts in front of you.”

What started in the back of a pickup truck is now reaching millions around the world.

As soon as he got back to the States, Hal felt compelled to act quickly on Mother’s Teresa’s directive. He’d always been pulled toward the notion of radical kindness—the same kindness that was extended to him in the wake of his father’s death. He rallied some friends to load pickup trucks and U-Haul trailers, and they began to take groceries into needy areas and pass them out to poor working families. And that was the start of Convoy of Hope. “We never intended to start a charity or a nonprofi t, “ Hal says. “We were just trying to do the next kind thing Jesus put in front of us. We saw a need, we saw an opportunity, but God began to bless it in a very signifi cant way. What started in the back of a pickup truck is now reaching millions of people around the world.” Convoy of Hope has since grown to serve 100 million people. They have distributed more than $1 billion to people in need and donated food and supplies across the world. They feed 200,000 children every single day in fourteen countries, and train thousands of single mothers to start their own businesses and help farmers to increase their yields. They also bring together churches, businesses, civic organizations, and government agencies so that those organizations can work together to positively impact their own communities. Hal refl ects back to how those words from Mother Teresa sparked a kindness revolution that God’s been able to spread exponentially to so many. “When you’re obedient to God and you do the things that are important to God, He takes that step of faith and He grows it. He makes it something larger than we ever dreamed. I know that’s been the case with Convoy of Hope. If we’re obedient to the little things, God can take those little things, and He can show us the next steps until it becomes something much larger than what we ever dreamed.”

Adapted for print from the Jesus Calling Podcast. Put your phone in Camera mode and hover over this code to hear more of Hal’s story! Hal Donaldson serving in Haiti

You can fi nd Hal’s book, Disruptive Compassion, at your favorite book retailer today.