I am blessed to serve alongside you to share God’s love with our neighbors! Throughout 2025, we celebrated Lutheran World Relief’s 80th anniversary while navigating a rapidly changing world. I spent the year reflecting on what it means to follow God faithfully — through the wilderness, beside still waters, in war zones and in the face of poverty — for over eight decades.
I appreciated anew that YOU are the answer to our prayers. Your generosity is God’s provision, your deep compassion our strength. And no matter where the need takes us or how challenging the path, your love finds a way because it is rooted in the steadfast love of Christ.
This report is a snapshot of the many ways your light shone in the world this year. At times you brought urgent relief from suffering, and at others you inspired genuine hope for the future, grounded in sustainable solutions. And always, I thank God for you.
In grateful partnership,
Ambassador Daniel Speckhard President and CEO
Where your light shines
P.S. The online version of this report has videos and other bonus material to help you dig deeper into your impact. Visit lwr.org/2025 to get started.
You are the light of the world ... let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.
MATTHEW 5:14, 16 NRSVue
The Maros-Pangkep Karst in South Sulawesi, Indonesia, was designated as a UNESCO Global Geopark in 2023 because of its unique rock formations. Turn the page to learn how you’ve helped farmers in this region feed their families and protect God’s beautiful handiwork.
INDONESIA: Turning pollution into fuel
Methane gas emissions are extremely harmful for our planet and for all God’s creatures. Livestock, especially cattle, contribute up to 19.6% of the methane in our atmosphere. Meanwhile, poorly managed manure pollutes water and soil.
In South Sulawesi, Indonesia, your generosity helps farmers capture the methane from their cows’ manure to keep it out of
HOW IT WORKS:
the atmosphere — and turn both manure and methane into useful products for home and farm.
Biogas systems turn methane from manure into a cooking fuel that, when burned, releases less harmful gases. Biogas systems also break down manure to produce organic fertilizer that nourishes the crops that nourish our neighbors.
TRANSFORMATIONAL, SUSTAINABLE IMPACT
In 2023, we launched a six-month project:
6 biogas systems installed, each producing enough fertilizer to share with a whole community
Farming cooperatives established.
968 people trained in farming techniques, organic fertilizer use and marketing crops to new buyers.
Each icon represents 10 people
Two years later in 2025:
Cooperatives are still active and thriving.
A variety of crops are diversifying incomes and diets.
Fertilizer costs are way down.
Families using biogas spend up to two thirds less on cooking gas.
I
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: Weathering outbreaks of violence and disease
n January 2025, the M23 militia captured the city of Goma in eastern Congo. Thousands of families were living in crowded displacement camps, where you were providing essentials for their survival. This invasion forced them to flee again.
The violence also made the ongoing mpox virus outbreak — which affects children the most — more difficult to contain.
Thanks to your faithful care, we have served in the Congo for 25 years — from battling malnutrition and supporting household gardens to containing Ebola and ensuring safe births.
Even in challenging circumstances, your love found a way to care for the most vulnerable this year.
HIGHLIGHTS OF YOUR IMPACT:
500+ health workers trained in monitoring, contact tracing, treatment and prevention
1,526 meals provided to patients in isolation
1,488 LWR Mission Quilts and Personal Care Kits distributed
56% of people in the affected province were vaccinated against mpox
Established a 40-bed Mpox Treatment Center with isolation tents
543 cases treated onsite
10,783 cases seen and treated at additional facilities
And you didn’t stop there. Your love also reached vulnerable communities in Sierra Leone and Liberia with radio broadcasts, billboards and more to prevent the spread of mpox.
HUNDREDS
of health workers and volunteers trained to support nutrition and gardening activities
236 families equipped to grow gardens and improve nutrition
460 nutrition support groups established in villages
“I am now very optimistic about the future, because my family has food.”
Nzavake Matumaini is a mother of five children — one of whom became dangerously malnourished. Your love made it possible for her to attend nutrition classes, where she learned how to garden and make nutritious meals from local ingredients.
“I now know how to compost and use other natural ways of improving soil quality and controlling pests,” she said. “As a housewife and mother, I am now very optimistic about the future, because my family has food available thanks to the garden, which above all protects my children from illness.”
Dayana Fuentes was among the 25% of young adults in Honduras who are in limbo without a job or a marketable education. At 19, she could neither afford college nor land a decent position.
HONDURAS: Building firm foundations for at-risk youth
Although leaving Honduras has never appealed to Dayana, many people — including her mother — leave home in search of opportunity elsewhere.
This year, you opened a path for Dayana to start a career.
Dayana received job skills training, mental health support and an internship that led to a full-time position. Today she works as an accounting assistant at a construction supply store, and she is taking online courses toward a degree in finance — an endeavor her mother started but was unable to finish.
HR manager Alicia Vargas has hired more than 30 of our students, including Dayana, because they stand out.
“It’s because of my mother that I stay focused on my studies. [Earning my degree] would truly be a dream come true for both of us.”
“They may not have had work experience, but their life skills were much more developed,” she says. “We also saw young people with analytical skills, conflict resolution abilities and much greater adaptability to the environment.”
Why does mental health support matter?
Vargas says it helps youth become better people and employees: “When young people work on … their mental health, we consider this directly proportional to the quality of their performance.”
YOUR IMPACT:
55 internships were created, with 82% of interns transitioning to full-time employment.
1,800 students received business training.
EmpleandoMentes (Employing Minds), an online training platform, launched and continues to support youth career readiness.
“These youngsters who thought of emigrating …They’re now in country contributing to their families’ economies.”
– Gerson Ábrego, program coordinator
SIERRA LEONE: Keeping girls in school and out of poverty
In a country where one-third of girls drop out of school by age 12, education is their best chance for a brighter future.
Last year, you helped girls like Abibatu Bangura continue their studies. Abibatu started missing long stretches of school two years ago after her mother Zainab got very sick and could no longer maintain a stable income.
For Abibatu, your love looks like a monthly cash transfer (about $10 USD) to meet her basic needs, plus other program support. To receive the cash, she must attend regularly — which is no longer a problem. Abibatu says, “This year, I come to school every day because of the cash grant.”
A woman of great faith, Zainab has hope for her daughter’s future. “She is brilliant. God will see her through,” she says. “We want to thank you very much.
May God bless you.”
England takes control of Freetown Civil war
Pregnant girls are legally banned from attending school
LWR launches our attendance software with the Ministry of Education Government makes public education free
Independence from British rule
Ebola outbreak kills about 4,000 people and collapses the health system England establishes Freetown as the first settlement for freed African slaves
WHY SIERRA LEONE?
In 1961, Sierra Leone gained independence after generations of colonialism and exploitation. Although life has improved in recent years, development is a long process. As of 2025, 60% of residents live in poverty and 82% are food insecure. As development continues, it is essential that the next generation is educated and prepared to lead the country into a brighter future.
Abibatu a lawyer one day so that she can “help those that are being taken advantage of.”
“They see me as a sister, someone they can confide in.”
MEET OUR SIERRA LEONE STAFF
Mary Kamara, a field officer for LWR, is a role model and champion for the girls you support. Having grown up in the same community, Mary knows what it’s like to go to school hungry and with holes in her shoes. She went on to earn a master’s degree and now spends her days encouraging the girls the way others encouraged her.
She says, “I know what it feels like coming from a humble background. I know what it feels like having someone who’s like a mentor to you ... who gives you confidence that you can become someone tomorrow.”
HIGHLIGHTS OF YOUR IMPACT
853 GIRLS
300+ GIRLS
received cash support to stay in primary school. graduated from primary school in June.
Most common uses of cash were food, transportation to school, menstrual products, school supplies and uniforms.
WHAT’S NEXT?
EXPANDING IN SIERRA LEONE: In 2026, you’re reaching girls in 60 schools across 5 districts — an increase from 28 schools across 4 districts in 2025.
60 SCHOOLS IN 5 DISTRICTS
TRY A TASTE OF WEST AFRICA
Binch (Beans and Rice)
Binch is a common delicacy in Sierra Leone and across West Africa, often eaten for lunch by schoolchildren like Abibatu and Posseh Kamara (right). We’ve adapted this flavorful local recipe for American cooks like you.
INGREDIENTS:
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 medium-sized yellow onion, chopped
• 2 habanero chilies, chopped
• 3 medium-sized fresh tomatoes, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
INSTRUCTIONS:
• 1 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 bouillon or Maggi cubes
• Two 14 oz. cans black eyed peas
• 2+ smoked mackerel fillets
• Water, as desired
In a large pan, fry chopped onions, chilies and fresh tomatoes in olive oil for 8 minutes over high heat.
Add chopped garlic, tomato paste and stock cubes and cook for 5 minutes.
Lower heat, thoroughly mix in drained beans and smoked fish, and simmer for 5 minutes. Add water as desired. Serve with rice and fried plantains.
Enjoy!
ON THE FRONTLINES: Support for families in conflict zones
UKRAINE
Since the war in Ukraine began in 2022, your outpouring of love has risen to meet the massive needs of this moment.
In fact, your support helped Lutheran World Relief to launch the largest emergency response program in our 81-year history.
As the war continues, urgent and long-term needs remain immense. With your support, we continue to build on our
HIGHLIGHTS OF YOUR IMPACT
RELIEF: 164,298 people received humanitarian services, including essential non-food items, woodstoves, LWR Quilts and hygiene supplies.
FOOD + LIVELIHOODS: 6,950 people were supported through food security and farm restoration activities.
HEALTH: 21,936 people received health and mental health services.
SHELTER: 4,030 individuals provided with long-term emergency shelter while displaced from their homes. Liubov, 42, survived months of enemy occupation. Then her hair fell out. A doctor at our mobile clinic diagnosed her with a rare, dangerous condition. Treatment not only saved her life — it renewed her strength to carry on.
GAZA
The war that began October 7, 2023, has been heartbreaking to witness and challenging to respond to. Early on, we were able to get one truckload of emergency supplies into Gaza. Since then, the route has been blocked.
Palestinian children who fled the war in Gaza receive group counseling and support at a community center in Cairo, Egypt.
Thankfully, your love found a way to help your most vulnerable neighbors affected by this war: children who have endured unspeakable trauma and terror. Their invisible wounds manifest as anxiety, withdrawal, sleep disturbances, aggression and difficulty concentrating.
2025 ACTIVITIES:
First aid and ice packs for physical injuries
School supplies and backpacks to support school attendance and home learning
Helping children and caregivers recognize emotional distress
Teaching emotional regulation
Identifying children who need additional support and counseling
Group therapy and art therapy
In Egypt, where many Gazan families have sought refuge, your compassion surrounded children to support their healing and help them prepare for a more hopeful future. At youth centers, your love provided trauma-informed psychological support and more to 200 children aged 8-14 who fled the war.
Courtesy of CARE Egypt
In September 2024, we announced an exciting expansion of the Quilt & Kit Ministry. Going forward, we would conduct distributions in the US as well as internationally.
UNITED STATES: Reaching yournearest neighbors
Within two weeks, Hurricanes Helene and Milton swept across the Southeast. Thanks to your divinely timed love, we were able to mount a response that went far beyond quilts and kits. Since then, our domestic disaster response work has spread from coast to coast.
Following Hurricane Helene, your quilts comforted residents of a men’s shelter recovering from addiction and homelessness as they endured weeks without power.
YOUR IMPACT DURING OUR FIRST YEAR:
114,038 Quilts and blankets
73,180 School Kits
108,511 Personal Care Kits
22,934 Baby Care Kits
7,800 Fabric Kits
Inspired by our 81-year history of global disaster response, we prioritize aid that helps the most vulnerable. We also work through local faith partners to truly be the Body of Christ, united in love to help our neighbors in need.
12 STATES REACHED
September-October 2024: Hurricanes Helene and Milton slam the Southeast
January 2025: Wildfires sweep through southern California
March-July 2025: Storms and tornadoes pummel the Midwest and South
July 2025: Flash flooding devastates the Texas Hill Country region
In eastern Oklahoma, where superstorms are frequent, 25% of children suffer from food insecurity. Food pantries bless families like Saharra Chelf’s. The pantry manager says, “This is God’s place. If he sends them here, we’ll help them in any way we can.”
EMERGENCY RESPONSE: Around the World
We can’t control when or where the next disaster may strike. But thanks to your support, we can act quickly and extend a caring hand to families who need it most.
MYANMAR
In March 2025, more than 17 million people were affected by the strongest earthquakes Myanmar has seen in more than a century. These neighbors were already living through the world’s longest civil war, which has created fragile living conditions for nearly 80 years.
The destruction of markets and livelihoods quickly caused a food crisis. And because sanitation systems were destroyed,
Daw Thida Win’s home was damaged, she was terribly injured and she and her husband lost their income after the earthquake. But your love was there for Daw and her family.
Your outpouring of support allowed for a rapid response for 5,500 people, including:
2,000 highly vulnerable people received emergency food.
1,996 children and 254 adults (primarily women) received trauma counseling.
95 families received cash assistance for food
51 people with disabilities received assistive devices and other services
12 sanitary latrines constructed for families
INDONESIA
In November, a tropical cyclone caused heavy flooding and landslides on the island of Sumatra. Nearly 600,000 people were displaced, and damage to crops was massive.
Your support already reaches families here through farming support, hygiene and waste management activities, so our highly capable local team was in place and ready to respond. In fact, one heroic staff member was managing their own flooded home while also supporting relief efforts.
Each icon represents 10 people
In the weeks following the storms, your compassion aided 600 people by providing hygiene supplies and medical care through mobile clinics.
