Samaritan"s Purse

Samaritan"s Purse
Every once in a while we would like to highlight an agency that WWLAB works alongside. Today we want to bring Samaritan's Purse before you. The 'Purse' (as it is lovingly known as), helps to spread God's love and mercy throughout the world.
 We have heard of the devastation in South Sudan on the news. Here is a tangible way that Samaritan's Purse is offering their help. As you pray for the continued work at WWLAB, would you consider praying for Samaritan's Purse?
(Article copied from http://www.samaritanspurse.org/)

A Different Kind of Camp
Aid provided by Samaritan’s Purse is making a difference in the lives of thousands of refugees in South Sudan
Melody Pineda reports from the Yida refugee camp in South Sudan.
The stories of refugees fleeing fighting in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan and flooding into South Sudan are disheartening. Images of homes destroyed, people displaced, and international calls for humanitarian aid are what the majority of the world knows about the situation.
 It is true. Hundreds of thousands have been forced from their homes by civil war and ethnic violence. A refugee camp is somewhere that no one wishes to be.
Samaritan’s Purse is helping to manage a camp located in Yida, South Sudan, close to the border with Sudan. The camp has become home to approximately 28,500 refugees. We assist in providing medical care, wells, sanitation, shelters, and food.
To most, this situation sounds of one of utter desperation and hopelessness.
I sat down with Dr. Paul Chiles, a technical advisor with a background in family medicine and public health. He went on his first mission for Samaritan's Purse in 1985 and is a frequent first-responder with our Disaster Assistance Response Teams.
Honestly, I was expecting for a story of sadness; a human-interest story that would break hearts and make people run for the tissues.
But rather than telling graphic tales of unsanitary, chaotic, desperate situations, Dr. Chiles began by telling of the cleanliness and order. He said the camp felt like a traditional African village. Samaritan's Purse and local leaders have worked well together to prevent the spread of disease by carefully managing sanitation and health.

The situation is far from ideal. The majority of refugees have lost family members and their homes. There is a critical food shortage, and many children are suffering from acute malnutrition. The need cannot be understated.
But for many, their spirits are happy and pleased. They are settling in and trying to make even this temporary space feel like home by decorating their houses, planting gardens, and building fences.
Samaritan’s Purse isn’t telling the refugees what to do, but instead working with them.
“They’ve maintained their dignity,” Dr. Chiles said.

Samaritan’s Purse has worked in the Nuba Mountains for many years. Many people in the camp knew and loved the ministry even before arriving in Yida.
“They have complete confidence in the SP team,” Dr. Chiles said.
The people themselves make partnering productive because they are thankful, hard working, hopeful, and organized. They have arranged themselves into communities with leaders. Many are concerned for the future of their children and send those of high school age to boarding schools. This alone gives evidence of their hope for the future.
Dr. Chiles said that as he wandered about the camp everyone greeted him, everyone shook his hand, and the children ran happily about crying, “How are you? How are you?” These people do not wallow in their sorrow, but instead focus on the future and their new start.

For many, the basis of their hope is rooted in their faith. There are generations of Christians among the Nuban people.
As our conversation progressed, I was at first disappointed that I wasn’t getting the human-interest story that I had been seeking. Then it occurred to me that I was hearing something better. I was hearing the story of success.
We talk and write so often of the crisis, but often forget that our efforts are working. The donations, the sweat, the hard work, the prayers have not been in vain. They must continue, because they are succeeding.