At a Glance
Free From Fear
Charie found hope after the storm, thanks to you!
Setting the Table for Freedom
Your love is meeting hunger with fresh food and a path forward
Where Joy Overflows
You brought health, hope, and freedom to children in Peru
Free to Dance
Because you cared, a woman’s sight and independence were restored!
Portraits of Promise
A summer camp and your kindness helped a teen in Lithuania choose a better path
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CELEBRATING 250 YEARS OF
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. –Galatians 5:1
Free FROM FEAR
ICharie found hope after the storm, thanks to you!
t was the middle of the night when the water came. As Typhoon Penha raged outside Iligan in the Philippines, Charie watched the creek behind their home rise. The community had built a flood barrier along the creek less than a year ago. But would it hold?
Charie didn’t want to take that chance. Fear gripped her as she gathered her two small children and fled to her mother’s house on higher ground.
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At 3 a.m., the alarm sounded. Rushing floodwaters pushed through an unfinished section of the barriers. The water rose to neck-level and raced into Charie’s home, swallowing everything in its path. In just a few hours, their home, their security, and everything she had worked so hard to build was gone.
“I went home, but home was no more ... it was destroyed,” Charie told us. “I was devastated. I cried for days.”
And yet, even in that moment, you were already part of their story.
You gave Charie and her family the strength she needed to rebuild after Typhoon Penha.
Because of your compassion, help was already on the way. You rushed emergency food, safe water, blankets, and critical hygiene supplies to families like Charie’s who had lost so much. And in each bag was a hand-drawn, colorful note of encouragement from children at one of our partner schools.
For Charie, your kindness meant she didn’t have to carry the weight of those days alone. Because of you, there was food to eat, clean water to drink and— most importantly—there was hope when everything felt lost. You did more than meet Charie’s physical needs—you gave her family strength to
When the storm had taken much, your love surrounded her and reminded her that she was not forgotten.
“Thank God for the generous hearts who blessed us,” said Charie with a bright smile. “We won’t give up!”
Today, Charie is no longer just surviving what happened that night. She is moving forward—free of fear and free to hope again.
“THANK GOD FOR THE generous hearts WHO BLESSED US. WE WON'T GIVE UP!”
–Charie
Thank you for being there for families like Charie’s that are waiting—hoping for help to come in their darkest moment. Just as it came for her.
SETTING THE TABLE For Freedom
Your love is meeting hunger with fresh food and a path forward
Garrett, otherwise known as “Cowboy,” used to be homeless. But thanks to Eden Village and friends like you, this wandering cowboy has found a home—a place where he can belong.
Since 2018, Eden Village has provided a home community for disabled individuals, like Garrett, who once lived on the streets of Springfield, Missouri.
And thanks to the generosity of our compassionate partners, they are getting even more support—fresh food!
“The food’s more than just food. It can do a lot for your soul, too.”
–Garrett
Your love delivers weekly food boxes filled with fresh eggs, meat, bread, and produce to those often
overlooked by society. That is the heart of GATHER, a new program with a mission to meet today’s need for nutritious food while helping communities grow lasting freedom from hunger.
“We’re growing fresh food right in the heart of the community in need,” said David Edson, our director of U.S. Hunger Relief Programs. “We grow this food hydroponically indoors, so we’re not limited by seasonality or pests or anything like that. We’re able to harvest and deliver this food to families in the same day, which means that it retains its maximum freshness and nutrition.”
“It’s a blessing,” Garrett said. “It's a reminder of home and brought comfort that reached deeper than hunger. ... The food’s more than just food,” he shared. “It can do a lot for your soul, too.”
Your love is doing more than feeding people. It’s helping build a stronger local system of care and connection. In a place where many residents once faced chronic homelessness, you are helping restore stability, trust, and hope.
GATHER is set to expand to hubs in other areas this year. David said, “We want to empower them to succeed because their success means that people are eating and growing outside of poverty.”
Through caring relationships and trusted partners like you, hope shows up one box, meal, and neighbor at a time.
“We never thought God would help us in this way.”
–Irene, Nuri's Mother
Where Joy Overflows
You brought health, hope, and freedom to children in Peru
For the first time, laughter echoed through the jungle community of San Pablo de Cuyana in Peru at the sound of clean water flowing through faucets outside each home. Little Ali (5) stuck his hands in the cool liquid and smiled. It felt clean. Nuri (9) sat under the faucet and let the stream of water splash over her face. She giggled with pure joy!
“We never thought God would help us in this way,” said Nuri’s mother, Irene. Your kindness helped answer her prayers— not just for her, but for her children’s future!
But life wasn’t always this way for the children of San Pablo de Cuyana. A half-hour boat ride from the nearest city of Iquitos, the jungle village was surrounded by rivers. Nonetheless, clean water was a dream far out of reach. Every day, children helped their parents collect this precious resource from hand-dug wells. The water was yellow and cloudy—something no child should have to drink.
Ali’s grandfather, Brito, explained. “Although the water is not clear, it helps us since the river is far away”
During the dry season, their situation only got worse. The wells dried up, forcing them to walk an hour round-trip to collect water from the river—often infested with larvae and insects.
“Many people in our community have gotten sick because of the water, especially our children,” Irene told us.
“That’s why we have to filter and boil the water before drinking it.”
Even after boiling it, the children frequently got sick.. For more than 50 years, the people in the community pleaded with the government for help with little response. Then God heard their cries, and your heart couldn’t turn them away.
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Because of your compassion, families in San Pablo de Cuyana now have a new clean water system that pumps, stores, and distributes water directly to each home. A chlorine dispenser makes sure that every drop is safe to drink. You helped move them from lifelong struggle to daily blessing.
“This beautiful water project has come to help many families with access to clean water,” said Irene with a heart full of gratitude. “Now we have water all the time and close to our homes.”
You didn’t stop there. Your kindness also provided sanitary bathrooms with showers, sinks, toilets, and even cleaning supplies along with training to help the children and their parents better understand and practice safe hygiene to prevent illness.
“The water workshops are a reminder of how we should use water and how we should care for our new drinking water resource,” said Brito. “We sincerely didn’t believe something like this could become a reality.”
God used you to answer prayers that had spanned generations. Your care didn’t just give the families of San Pablo de Cuyana back the gift of health and time—it also brought dignity, hope, and joy that will last for years to come.
Thank You for the freedom of clean water!
A Tax-Smart Way to Support the Mission You Love
If you’re 70½ or older, there’s a simple, tax-wise way to give— directly from your IRA through a Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD).
Why donors are choosing QCDs:
• Tax-smart giving – A QCD is not included in taxable income and may provide greater tax benefits than a regular IRA withdrawal followed by a cash gift
• Fulfill your RMD at age 73 – A QCD can count toward your required minimum distribution while supporting humanitarian work
• Protect more of your income – Lower taxable income may help reduce the taxation of Social Security benefits and Medicare premium impacts
• Simple & direct – From your IRA straight to worldwide relief
More impact. Less tax burden.
With today’s tax changes, traditional deductions may not offer the same benefits—but a QCD still can.
Take the next step
If you have an IRA, discover how your giving can go further.
Free to Dance
Because you cared, a woman’s sight and independence were restored!
“I
dance because I can see. I dance and I sing because I am free.”
Esther sang this chant with joy in her heart after regaining her eyesight and independence. Once again, she was able to enjoy a way of life cataracts tried to steal—because friends like you cared.
By age 60, Esther realized her world had begun to fade. Cataracts clouded both her eyes. She could no longer manage her small business or even walk without the risk of tripping or hurting herself. Simple tasks like counting money were impossible. Her freedom, independence, and dignity were quickly slipping away.
“I hardly move around even when I need to. I just sit in one place for a long time,” Esther told us before her operation. Her meager income barely covered her daily needs, leaving the cost of cataract surgery far out of reach. She relied on her neighbors and children to assist her. But her faith remained strong. “I still believe and keep praying that God will send help.” And He answered, as she believed He would!
Friends like you stepped in and made a difference.
Joining hands with our on-the-ground partners, these generous donors brought healing to Esther
and to 12 other people in Nigeria suffering from cataracts.
“I can see now, and I know God has done it for me,” Esther said cheerfully. “I have legs to walk, eyes to see, and my joy is full.”
Today, Esther is living in the freedom she once only prayed for. She has returned to running her small business, now able to count money, handle goods, and welcome customers again.
Thanks to you, Esther’s story did not end in despair. Now, every step she takes and every song she sings is a living reminder that your compassion is changing lives— bringing light where there was once only darkness.
PROMISE PORTRAITS OF
A summer camp and your kindness helped a teen in Lithuania choose a better path
When a child has neither a loving home nor a good role model to look up to, life can quickly turn grim and hard. For Mindaugas (16) in Kaunas, Lithuania, that was all too true. Mindaugas grew up in a state-run children’s home. With his parents almost completely out of the picture, he gravitated toward older, streetwise kids and became increasingly guarded and tough. But there was a steady light shining on his life—True Friend Matters, a local Christian youth center you support through our Orphan’s Promise. This afterschool outreach provides wholesome hot meals, homework assistance, and the chance for kids to take part in fun, educational activities. It also offers them a safe place to build healthy friendships and connect with mentors who can help them solve their problems.
To at-risk teens like Mindaugas, this was a lifesaver. For over a decade, one mentor walked beside Mindaugas, encouraging him every step of the way.
way—toward Jesus, toward truth, and toward the people who will lift you up.”
Then, at a summer camp run by the center, Mindaugas realized he had the power of choice— to turn his back on a path of emptiness and choose the way to joy, freedom, and a Christ-centered life.
“You get to choose your direction,” his adviser told him. “You have to turn and walk that
Today, Mindaugas wants to become a mechanic—to work in a garage and start his own business, so he can build something meaningful, both with his hands and with his heart. Thanks to your kindness, he has that opportunity. You are helping kids like Mindaugas choose a future that holds so much promise.
