Full Stomachs Grateful Hearts – Blessings Magazine – November 2019

blessings OPERATION BLESSING

NOVEMBER 2019

Stories of how YOU help the hurting around the world.

FULL STOMACHS GRATEFUL HEARTS

SEEDS OF A DREAM BLOOM AND GROW PA G E 6

THANKFUL FOR A HOUSE OF HOPE PA G E 1 0

LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS HELP YOU REACH THE GREATEST NEEDS PA G E 1 7

Happenings

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Catch up with the goings-on at Operation Blessing!

Seeds of a Dream Bloom and Grow

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You gave a garden and local store to a single mother in need

Thankful for a House of Hope

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You’re providing scholarships that protect children from prostitution

Inside this this issue issue

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Full Stomachs, Grateful Hearts

When Susan’s mother lost her job, you stepped in to make sure she didn’t go hungry

Congratulations!

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A village in Guatemala is thankful for much-needed clean water and you

Local Partnerships Help You Reach the Greatest Needs Learn about two of our partners in Africa

Serving in the Wake of Dorian

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Thanks to you, OB teams and volunteers provided desperately needed relief

operationblessing.org | 977 Centerville Turnpike, Virginia Beach, VA 23463 | (800) 730-2537 3

OPERATION BLESSING

HAPPENINGS PERU: Thanks to your generosity, Guillermo’s pottery business is thriving.

You sent new supplies and materials to improve his production.

MEXICO: With your support, 6-year-old Paquito now has access to safe water through the water chlorination system at his school.

KENTUCKY:

Operation Blessing volunteers stock and pack groceries for families to receive monthly food supplies at the Sonshine Children’s Center.

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MOZAMBIQUE: Because of you, victims of Cyclone Idai receive boxes of MannaPack rice as they rebuild their communities.

HAITI: Village students

who once had little hope now celebrate their many accomplishments at our school in Haiti.

COSTA RICA:

A young girl receives dental treatment at an Operation Blessing medical brigade in her community thanks to you.

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Seeds of a Dream BLOOM AND GROW

You gave a garden and local store to a single mother in need

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ris is a devoted mother to Daniel (5) and Ashley (2).

However, without the support of a husband, she was forced to earn a living wage on her own while also taking care of her children.

Traveling from house to house with her children in tow, Iris would sell goods. She tried anything to earn money from peddling fruit and French fries to performing housework. This routine exhausted her and her kids, and only earned them about $7 on a good day. Iris spent all this money on food for her precious children. She dreamed of opening a little corner store, but her dream seemed impossible.

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EL SALVADOR

Anytime someone became ill, matters got even worse. “I feel like I am in between a rock and a hard place, choosing between food or medicine for my children,� Iris said.

Then, thanks to Operation Blessing partners, Iris was blessed with the resources to help the seeds of her business flourish into full bloom!

Your generosity provided for the necessary tools to turn her dream of a small store into a reality, including a fryer, pots, and utensils. Iris also needed affordable goods to sell in her store. Your kindness planted the seeds of her new vegetable garden, from which she now harvests, fries, and sells an abundance of goods.

Iris and her kids absolutely love their new store!

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Daniel and Ashley now have plenty of nutritious food to eat.

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“Words fall short when I think of thanking you for what you have done,” Iris explains. “I am grateful to you for the rest of my life.”

Iris no longer has to roam the streets looking for business. She and her children are thriving in a safe and stable environment—

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with much room to grow for the future. Thank you for your generosity!

I feel like I am in between a rock and a hard place, choosing between food or medicine for my children.

-Iris

BEFORE YOU SIT DOWN TO EAT

Remember those in need Let’s show our thanks this year by passing on our many blessings! You can help end hunger today at OB.ORG/HUNGER

NICARAGUA

THANKFUL FOR A House of Hope

T

o look at adorable little Itzel, you would never guess what a vulnerable situation she’s been rescued from. She loves kindergarten and said, “It makes me so happy.” But without your help, she could have ended up on a slippery slope to a much different sort of life.

In Itzel’s poor area of Nicaragua, many women turn to prostitution out of desperation to feed, clothe, and educate their children.

It’s not unusual for this pattern to continue through several generations.

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And at one point, Itzel’s mother Veronica fell prey to this vicious cycle.

But thanks to our partner, House of Hope, Veronica and Itzel have been rescued from that heartbreaking lifestyle. House of Hope was established with a vision to aid women trapped in a life of sex trafficking.

They help them learn skills to earn a living, and they encourage them to find a personal relationship with God. Through classes, support, and regular Bible study,

You are providing scholarships that help protect mothers and children from prostitution

House of Hope has made a huge difference in their community for many years.

And Operation Blessing friends like you have come alongside them to provide school scholarships for the participant’s children, like Itzel!

Thanks to you, Itzel won’t have to worry whether or not she can go to school.

Her world is now full of

opportunities. And her mother won’t have to face the choice of returning to prostitution or watching her daughter go without a vital education.

Veronica said, “Thank You, God, because You have helped me leave behind the lifestyle of prostitution that I led before. He not only has blessed me, He has blessed my daughter.”

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Stumbling on the Buist Community Assistance Center was a miracle for Katie and her family.

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UNITED STATES

FULL STOMACHS GRATEFUL HEARTS

When Susan and Matthew's mother lost her job, you stepped in to make sure they didn't go hungry.

L

ife often takes bitter turns when they’re most inconvenient. Five-year-old Susan and her family in Michigan know this all too well. But thankfully, you sent them help when they needed it most.

Susan's parents, Katie and Matthew, have stayed financially stable throughout their marriage by both working full-time jobs. Matthew earns a living at a wood preserving plant, while Katie had been working as a production inventory clerk.

That is, until last December.

Just as winter in Michigan was reaching peak levels of cold and snowfall, Katie was laid off. Devastation began to set in for Katie. As a devoted mother to Lillian, 15, Violet, 6, Susan, 5, and Matthew, 3, she struggled with feelings of hopelessness.

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Continued from page 13

As she had always done, Katie diligently picked herself up to look for a new job, a search that still continued when we met her. Through her search, however, she found the Buist Community Assistance Center. This ministry, located in Michigan, partners with Operation Blessing. They receive a truckload of food every month from OB and are devoted to serving struggling and hungry members of their community.

And you make that possible!

Stumbling on the Buist Community Assistance Center was a miracle for Katie and her family. “It’s been a blessing, big time!”

Katie said.

Every month, Katie visits the center with her children to fill her shopping cart with food and hygiene items that last for weeks. It’s been a family affair, as Susan and Matthew love to participate 14

in bringing their favorite foods home.

Susan is particularly fond of pickles, while Matthew favors peanut butter and oatmeal. Katie has always loved cooking from scratch and your generosity means she can provide meals for her loving family while she continues her search for a job.

Your support means fewer worries for Katie and her husband, as well as a carefree life for four children who should never have to worry about where their next meal will come from. Susan and her family are all so grateful for your help.

And together with them, we say, “Thank you!”

You are putting an end to hunger AROUND THE WORLD IN SO MANY WAYS!

Famine Relief

When famine and drought strike vulnerable areas, thanks to you, OB rushes to provide immediate relief.

Agriculture and Farming Programs

OB supporters supply communities with agricultural training, irrigation systems, greenhouses, and farm animals.

Nutrition Programs

Many children around the world lack the nutrients they need to thrive, but you give them extra nutritional support.

Disaster Relief

When crisis and natural disasters strike, basic needs like food often go unmet.

You send support to victims in dire need.

Microenterprise and Skills Training

Through skills training and small business support, you change lives and provide hunger relief long into the future.

U.S. Hunger Strike Force

Many people in America have a difficult time making ends meet, but your help allows us to distribute semi-trucks full of food.

Congratulations!

Congratulations to the community of Machaquitas Chiclero, Puerto Barrios, on their brand-new clean water system! And congratulations to amazing friends like you who make these projects possible in Guatemala and around the world. People in this community will now be healthier and better able to learn and work. For more information on how you can help, visit

ob.org/water.

AFRICA

LOCAL PARTNERSHIPS HELP YOU REACH THE

GREATEST NEEDS

Our strategic partnerships with organizations in Africa bless the poorest of the poor

One of Operation Blessing’s greatest tools in helping you reach out to those in need is our relationships with strategic local partners.

Local food pantries all around the U.S. are changing lives for desperate families by distributing the groceries and

Happy children at the Embracing Hope daycare in Ethiopia.

supplies you send.

Organizations in Latin America are thwarting human trafficking thanks to you. And in Africa, with your help, local groups touch the lives of the poorest of the poor with nourishment, medical care and other vital aid.

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THANK YOU

for partnering with us as we partner with staff, volunteers, and organizations around the globe to make an incredible impact in the lives of the poor and hurting!

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Through our partnerships with those who best understand the conditions and culture of their individual communities, you’re able to meet the greatest needs in the most effective ways available.

Jackson–Abide Family Center in Uganda

Abide Family Center works in Uganda to help poor mothers keep their children by providing temporary housing, nutritional support, 18

medical care, and classes to enrich their lives and help these women earn a living.

Jackson is just one of many children who’ve been blessed by this program. His mother came to Abide for business and parenting classes.

One day when they arrived, Jackson seemed weak and feverish. His mother had tried giving him some medicine, but it wasn’t working.

Thanks to your support, a nurse on staff checked him immediately. She provided emergency care and arranged for him to be seen at a local hospital where they discovered he suffered from malaria! Through Abide, you provided Jackson with all the medications he needed to fully recover.

His mother said, “If it had not been for Abide, my son would have died.

I greatly appreciate Abide for their humble heart towards humanity."

Lidya–Embracing Hope Ethiopia

Embracing Hope Ethiopia supports vulnerable mothers and children to preserve families and restore their dignity. Children have their basic needs met, grow up

in a safe, clean environment and get an education. And you’ve made this possible!

Lidya has received so much support from you and EHE. Years ago, her mother struggled to support her in the slums. Then the unthinkable happened.

While she tried to work, a bulldozer backed into Lidya’s mother, breaking her back and leg and leaving her disabled and in the hospital.

Lidya’s aunt traveled to their area to care for her.

Your compassion made it possible for Lidya and her aunt to stay close by her mother. Through EHE, you provided them with food, household items, medical care, childcare, and even funds for the aunt to start a small business.

Thank you for partnering with us as we partner with staff, volunteers, and organizations around the globe to make an incredible impact in the lives of the poor and hurting!

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Wake of Dorian SERVING IN THE

THANKS TO YOU, OB TEAMS AND VOLUNTEERS OFFERED DESPERATELY NEEDED RELIEF

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ecently Hurricane Dorian, a monster category 5 storm, wreaked havoc in the Caribbean and up the Atlantic Coast. Thanks to your faithful support, Operation Blessing was able to respond immediately to needs both in the U.S. and the Bahamas.

ABACO ISLANDS, BAHAMAS

Operation Blessing’s international team quickly secured boats and loaded them with supplies in Nassau.

After a 12-hour trip on the open sea, they reached the decimated area of Marsh Harbor in the Abaco Islands.

U.S. & BAHAMAS

The hurricane had stalled in this area, battering them relentlessly for two days.

The entire island looked like a bomb had been dropped on it. Most of the buildings and all of the infrastructure, such as water systems, communications, and electricity, were decimated.

At the time, officials could only guess at how high the death toll might soar. OB’s Director of International Disaster Relief, Diego Traverso, said, “There’s trash all over the place, dead animals, even dead

bodies all over the place.”

Many hurricane victims evacuated the Abaco Islands quickly, but not everyone could get out.

Traverso called those remaining the "poorest of the poor." One victim said, “Everything is gone, but we have the life. And we say thanks to God for the life.”

Operation Blessing staff worked tirelessly providing medical care and clean water for the crowds of precious victims. We handed out hundreds of solar lights to give a glimpse of hope during Continued on page 22

ALABAMA

A young hurricane victim in the Bahamas feels safer with the solar lamp you provided.

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this dark time. Young children actually danced and played with their lights, finding simple joy in the fact that some relief had made it to them. Traverso said, “We are the hands of the mercy of Christ in this situation, thanks to you.” And we plan to continue working in the Bahamas as long as they need our help.

BACK HOME IN THE STATES

The night the storm hit, Trudy of Ocracoke Island, 22

NC, was in her house with her sister. As the hurricane approached, the eye wall went directly over them with little damage. Then disaster struck.

When the back side of the hurricane’s eye hit, they were smashed by winds and the water began rushing into their house. The water rose so high and so fast that by the time they decided to evacuate, the back door had jammed shut. “It was seeping through the floor as fast as it was rushing through the door,” Trudy said.

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WE ARE THE HANDS OF THE MERCY OF CHRIST IN THIS SITUATION. – DIEGO TRAVERSO

As they looked for a way to escape, they found the windows stuck too. The front door was their only option. Unable to open it with so much water pushing against it, Trudy finally smashed the glass window and stepped onto the porch which looked like a river.

She and her sister swam to a higher structure for safety.

“I had just been looking the night before on TV about the Abacos,” Trudy said. “And thinking how horrible that they lost everything. And how they had to swim out of the

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house. And 9 hours later I was doing the same thing.”

The whole island has a long road of recovery ahead of them. Thankfully Operation Blessing is on Ocracoke to assist Trudy and her neighbors in their recovery efforts. Operation Blessing volunteers hauled ruined items to the road and helped Trudy clean out her home.

Afterwards, they prayed with her and lifted her spirits. In both the Bahamas and here in the U.S., your love has blessed the lives of those devastated by this terrible storm.

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She’s counting on YOU to share your blessings this holiday season!

Give a special holiday gift to people in need at ob.org/Christmas

operationblessing.org

977 Centerville Turnpike Virginia Beach, VA 23463 Copyright Š 2019 by Operation Blessing

(800) 730-2537