Rebuilding After Hurricane Erick: Hope for Families in Oaxaca

Rebuilding After Hurricane Erick: Hope for Families in Oaxaca

“I See Everything Scattered and I Start to Cry”

MEXICO- When Hurricane Erick tore through the coastal town of Pinotepa Nacional in Oaxaca, Mexico, it left behind a trail of shattered homes and broken hearts. Rosa, a local resident, remembers returning to her family’s house and being overwhelmed by the sight of devastation. Rebuilding after Hurricane Erick remains essential to help victims restore their lives.

“I see the house, I see everything scattered and I start to cry,” she shared. “I can’t do it in front of my parents because, well, they’re feeling the same way. My dad cries all the time because he says he’s too old to do anything to rebuild his house.”

Their story is not unique. Many families in this area are now living under tarps or open skies, their roofs ripped away by the winds of the Category 3 storm.

A Community in Crisis

Though international headlines downplayed the damage, the reality for those affected is stark. As Operation Blessing’s Daniel Castro explained, “Many houses are without roofs. Many families are struggling because they don’t have a safe space to live.”

In Pinotepa Nacional alone, Operation Blessing identified more than 130 homes in urgent need of repair.

Answering the Call with Roofing Materials and Compassion

Thanks to friends like you, Operation Blessing is responding. We’re providing essential roofing materials to the hardest-hit families—giving them more than shelter; we’re offering dignity, protection, and peace of mind.

For families like Rosa’s, your support is a lifeline. With each sheet of metal and bundle of supplies delivered, hope rises again over Oaxaca.

How You Can Help

Together, we can reach more homes, more hearts, and more lives. Please continue to pray for our team as they work tirelessly in difficult conditions. And please pray for the families still recovering from Hurricane Erick’s impact. Rebuilding after Hurricane Erick is not easy, but your kindness is making a difference.

Your gift today can help rebuild not just rooftops—but restore hope for a brighter tomorrow.

[Give Now to Help Disaster Victims]

One Woman’s Story of Survival and Hope After the Flood

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TEXAS – For Collene Lucas of Kerrville, Texas, it started like any other day. She went to work with no idea her life would soon be turned upside down. But a day mired in danger would eventually lead to hope after the flood.

“Ten minutes till five, I left my house,” she recalled. Just over an hour later, a vendor walked into her workplace and shared devastating news—floodwaters were overtaking parts of town. “At that time, I knew my house was flooding.”

As fear crept in, Collene’s mind went straight to her husband, who was home and unreachable. Desperate, she drove toward their house, only to have her truck stall in rising waters. “I opened the driver’s door, I put my left leg out, and the water was almost up to my hip,” she remembered. With floodwaters surging, she realized she couldn’t get to her husband—and all she could do was pray. “I really believe I was walking on water,” she said, as she made her way to the firehouse for help.

A Miracle of Hope After the Flood

Collene’s story is not one of loss, but of grace. Rescuers reached her husband in time. “We lost a lot of things, but we didn’t lose a life,” she said, overwhelmed with gratitude. “Everybody needs to understand that lives are irreplaceable. Materialistic things can be replaced, but not a life.”

Returning home to the aftermath was painful. Memories soaked and scattered—but not destroyed. “You’ll hold them in your heart and in your mind forever,” she said.

Help Arrived Through Friends Like You

Amid the chaos, Collene saw God’s provision through Operation Blessing. “I am so blessed today to be at my home with some Christian organizations. They’re all volunteers, and they have been a true blessing,” she shared. Teams helped her pack what remained, creating a temporary storage area in her garage. With that weight lifted from them, Collene and her husband could move into a studio apartment. “Now we’re able to not have to worry about this part of it… It’s a blessing.”

Blessings That Keep Moving Forward

Floods devastated Collene’s home, but they didn’t destroy her spirit. She spoke through tears, not of sorrow, but of praise. “I just—I don’t know what I would have done without the help from y’all… It’s like a miracle.”

Because of compassionate friends like you, Operation Blessing is able to bring that kind of miracle to disaster victims around the world—providing emergency meals, clean water and hygiene kits. Most importantly, though, YOU helped bring hope after the flood.

“I have nothing but blessings. I am truly blessed.” – Collene Lucas

You can continue to be the answer to someone’s prayer.

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Portraits of Promise for the Vulnerable in Croatia

CROATIA — Just a few years ago, Goran and Valerija had no way of knowing that the rocky path life would take them on would eventually lead them to one another, thanks to friends like you. Both Goran and Valerija experienced more adversity than any child should face in a lifetime. Like so many who are vulnerable in Croatia, Goran endured both the trauma of being separated from his parents when they could no longer care for him and then mistreatment from his new parents.

“They attacked me for every little thing, like breathing too loud,” said Goran of his adoptive family. “I had to wash everything in the house and clean the floors.” The emotional and physical abuse he suffered at home and from his peers left him scarred and void of hope in humanity and life itself.

Although Valerija was born into a loving family, she has cerebral palsy, which led to insufferable torment when she reached grade school. To cope with the pain, Valerija resorted to self-harm. “By the age of 17, I had reached the edge,” said Valerija. “I cut myself, overdosed on pills, and attempted to hang myself on more than one occasion.”

Finding Hope for the Vulnerable in Croatia

After years of suffering, heartache, and pain, Goran and Valerija had each given up on life—and God. But then God brought them both to our Orphan’s Promise House of Opportunities. There, thanks to support from friends like you, they were given ample love and encouragement—something so desperately needed by those who are vulnerable in Croatia.

“I have never seen in my life, in all my youth, that kind of love towards me,” said Goran. “I received that love and I saw that I was really accepted from the people who didn’t know me, who saw me that day.” Because of the kindness of our generous partners, Goran and Valerija are living meaningful and fulfilling lives today.

“God gave me a good job where people are not rude, where people are like brothers,” said Goran. Despite the challenges of Valerija’s condition and her history in school, she recently graduated with her bachelor’s degree, which wouldn’t have been possible without supporters like you.

Through our Orphan’s Promise program, Goran and Valerija learned important life skills such as managing finances and being independent. They also found community and friends, renewed their love for the Lord, found love with each other as well—and got married! “We joke sometimes that we are two lame people,” said Valerija. “He says he’s lame in the head, and I’m lame in the legs. He is my legs; I am his brain.”

Our House of Opportunities director said, “No matter how many times I have listened to their testimony, I am still fascinated by what God did— out of something that was broken, without hope, without meaning, without purpose.”

The young couple is thankful that the program brought them together, and now their desire is to glorify God through their marriage and future children. Thank you for helping provide a beacon of hope to them when they needed it most. You are helping at-risk children and the vulnerable in Croatia to grow into thriving young adults.

Restoring Dignity Through Surgery: The Gift of Sight in South Africa

SOUTH AFRICA – In the rural communities of South Africa, blindness isn’t just a medical condition—it steals dignity, connection, and purpose. Cataracts, left untreated, plunge individuals into isolation, stripping them of their independence and self-worth. But by restoring dignity through surgery, Operation Blessing is helping to rewrite these stories—one life, one miracle surgery at a time.

Many of those affected describe blindness as “living in complete darkness,” both physically and emotionally. They can no longer work, walk safely, or see the faces of their loved ones. For many, it’s a slow and painful decline into despair. “I just sit all day. It’s painful. I am stressed,” shared one elderly patient, before undergoing cataract surgery made possible by Operation Blessing.

But everything changes with the miracle of sight.

By restoring dignity through our program in Zutulele, we help give people their lives back. This process involves providing eye surgery by removing cataracts and implanting artificial lenses. The result is immediate and profound. Patients once confined to their homes now walk confidently through their villages. “No more do I need to be led by the arm,” one joyful recipient said. “I am free in my soul.”

For these men and women, this isn’t just a medical intervention—it’s spiritual and emotional restoration. It’s the power of restoring dignity through surgery in its purest form.

These life-changing procedures would not be possible without the compassion of our donors. Through your generosity, you’re not just helping people see again, you’re helping them reclaim their lives, their freedom, and their joy.

One man said it best: “Thanks a lot to Operation Blessing for helping me with my sight. Now there’s so much ahead of me. If only you knew what it’s like to see again.” Restoring dignity through surgery means offering more than sight—it means offering hope. It means living again.

Help Operation Blessing continue restoring lives.
Support miracle surgery for those in need by visiting: ob.org/dignityrestored

Blessed Relief after Dangerous Flooding in Texas

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TEXAS – “I Thought I’d Lost Everything… Until Help Arrived.” That’s what Jeanie in Texas told us after the dangerous flooding in Texas tore through her home.

At 4:00 a.m., she woke to a clash of thunder—only to discover water already rising inside her Texas home. Her 10-month-old granddaughter slept in a playpen just inches off the floor, and the baby’s blankets were already soaked. Jeanie was horrified to realize how much danger the precious child had been in, but so thankful the thunder had woken her up.

“It was really rough,” Jeanie remembers. “We’ve never seen that type of flooding before.”

But in the middle of crisis, something remarkable happened.

Kindness after Dangerous Flooding in Texas Destroys Homes

Within hours, members of Life Church rallied to help neighbors gut their flood-ravaged homes. Then, thanks to friends like you, Operation Blessing arrived with critical relief—boxes of food, clean water, cleaning supplies, and buckets to help families begin the long road to recovery.

“It’s been rough,” Jeanie said. “But with the people that have come in and helped—Life Church, Operation Blessing—I feel like 10,000 pounds has been lifted off my shoulders.”

“I feel like 10,000 pounds has been lifted off my shoulders.”
-Jeanie Branch

This is what it looks like when faith becomes action.

Volunteers worked tirelessly, not for recognition, but out of love. You could see the hope return as people received help they didn’t know was coming. What began as devastation from dangerous flooding in Texas turned into a powerful testimony of compassion, unity, and resilience.

Jeanie’s story is just one example of how your kindness brings relief in the hardest moments.

Ready to help more families like Jeanie’s?
Give today!

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When Rescuers Need Rescuing: Floods Hit Texas Firefighters

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TEXAS – What do you do when rescuers need rescuing? As fireworks were set to light up the sky for Independence Day, an entirely different emergency was unfolding in Center Point, Texas. Torrential rains brought flash floods that tore through the community in the early hours of July 4, forcing families from their homes and turning quiet streets into rivers. Among those hit hardest were the very people risking their lives to help—volunteer firefighters who suddenly found themselves in need of rescue too.

When First Responders Become Victims

As the floods swept in, Razor Dobbs, Public Information Officer and firefighter, quickly headed out to conduct swift water rescues. “All of our trucks were out with us, thank God,” Razor said. “But our station? Seven, eight feet of water destroyed everything inside.”

The department had been gearing up for their annual fundraising BBQ the following week—a crucial event to fund their life-saving work. But the flood took everything. Their gear was ruined. Their fundraiser was canceled. Yet, Razor and his team never stopped serving.

When Rescuers Needed Rescuing…YOU Were There to Help

In this overwhelming time of need, Operation Blessing arrived to support the first responders who had spent the night saving others. With your help, OB delivered requested supplies to the fire department, which had quickly become a central hub for ongoing search and rescue efforts.

According to Bob Burke, OB’s U.S. Disaster Relief Director, “They cycled over a thousand people through this fire department yesterday alone.” These brave men and women continued to serve their neighbors, bolstered by support from compassionate friends like you.

suppliers for first responders when rescuers need rescuing

“You know, it’s a tragedy… but there’s a lot of beauty in it,” Razor reflected. “Thousands of people showed up wanting to help.”

A Mission Fueled by Faith—and by Friends Like You

For Razor and his wife, the last few nights have been filled with prayer. “It’s a calling,” he said. “Because it’s not easy.” And yet, the strength of community and the love of Christ have carried them through.

With each supply delivered and each prayer whispered, Operation Blessing is providing not only practical aid, but also a powerful reminder: You are not alone. And through your continued support, OB stands ready to respond again and again.

The Work Continues

Center Point still has a long road to recovery. But your love is already rebuilding what floodwaters tried to destroy. Thanks to friends like you, OB is helping families and first responders alike—one hot meal, one emergency kit, and one answered prayer at a time. Thank you for being a lifeline when the rescuers need rescuing!

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Together, we are bringing hope to Texas. Thank you.

Helping Texas Flood Victims: Delivering Hope, One Meal at a Time

Helping Texas flood victims after tragedy

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TEXAS – Over the 4th of July weekend, flash floods devastated communities across Texas, leaving overwhelming death and destruction in it’s wake. This left families—including those in the town of Kerrville—without homes, food, or basic necessities. Among them was Adial Carrizales, a local resident whose trailer was severely damaged. Like many others, Adial lost everything. In the aftermath, even a single meal became a symbol of hope. That’s where YOU stepped in.

Helping Flood Victims in Texas

Helping Texas flood victims isn’t just about emergency aid. It’s about restoring dignity, providing comfort, and showing survivors they are not alone. Partnering with the Assembly of God Church in Kerrville, Operation Blessing began distributing emergency food boxes and essential supplies to flood-stricken neighborhoods. Adial shared how meaningful that support has been. “A meal, a sandwich, even just a piece of bread—it takes us a long way. It shows that there are people out there who care.”

“A meal, a sandwich, even just a piece of bread—it takes us a long way. It shows that there are people out there who care.”
-Adial Carrizales

Through these efforts, Operation Blessing is not only providing support for flood survivors but also providing hope and showing victims how much you care. From volunteers handing out supplies, to donors making it all possible, every gesture helps lift the burden that Texas flood survivors are carrying.

The destruction in Kerrville may have stolen lives, homes, and memories, but it hasn’t taken away the spirit of compassion. In the face of devastation, we’re committed to helping Texas flood victims find the strength to move forward. Your kindness is part of a greater mission. A mission to show the love of Christ, even in the face of sorrow.

And that mission is far from over. As waters recede and rebuilding begins, Operation Blessing remains steadfast—walking alongside families like Adial’s, one box, one meal, and one life at a time.

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Together we are bringing hope to families in crisis. Thank you for your being the hands and feet of Jesus!

Tragic Flooding in Texas

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TEXAS – Tragic flooding in Texas has shaken our nation. Just over 36 hours ago, flash floods tore through Hunt, Texas—catching families completely off guard and sweeping away homes, lives, and the unthinkable: children!

Operation Blessing’s Bob Burke said, “We’re here in Hunt, Texas. This is the area where those terrible flood occurred just 36 hours ago. We passed through Kerrville and Ingram on our way here. And this is the general area where those camps were, where so many young girls were lost. This is an incredible situation. These people were in an area where there was only a small chance of rain and they heard the sound of rain beginning. They heard thunder and lightning and before very long there was the rush of water and the area was completely inundated with water.”

“As we drove down this area, there were literally hundreds of search and rescue personnel on the bank of the river,” he told us. “It’s a very narrow area but destruction is almost absolute. You’ve got destroyed trailers. You’ve got the house behind me that’s been completely destroyed and then trees are down everywhere. With no warning this happened to them and it’s just crushes my heart to think of what they’re going through right now. I would just say please keep them in your prayers.”

Operation Blessing is already on the ground in Texas assessing needs, ready to bring emergency supplies and support.

You can bring hope to families in crisis. Will you please reach out to help today?

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Our hearts break after this horrific flooding in Texas. Please pray for the grieving and missing—and thank you for being a light in this darkness.

Your Love Helped Provide Medical Care for a Child in Need

NIGERIA – When little Mohammed was born with a cleft lip and cleft palate, his first cries were greeted with love by his parents, but also with a quiet fear. From the beginning, he struggled to feed properly, and Mohammed became malnourished and vulnerable to constant respiratory infections. By the time he was barely 5 months old, his tiny body had already endured far too many hospital visits. Along with the emotional toll their baby’s suffering had on Mohammed’s parents, the hospital visits dwindled the family’s already scarce resources.

Abdulahi and his wife have always done everything possible to provide for their struggling family but only manage to scrape by. Abdulahi sold vegetables in the local market while his wife worked as a tailor. Together, they earned the equivalent of less than $25 a month. This was barely enough to cover their children’s basic needs, let alone afford the surgery Mohammed needed.

“I’ve had to explain my son’s condition over and over,” Abdulahi said. “I didn’t even understand it myself. But I prayed that someone would help us.”

Thanks to the generosity of friends like you, that help finally arrived. You helped provide medical care through life-changing surgery, and at no expense to the family. With his cleft lip and palate corrected, you helped give this little boy a new chance at life. Now Mohammed can eat, his weight is improving, he can smile beautifully, and the constant respiratory infections have nearly disappeared.

For parents who were living in constant fear for their son’s survival, your support helped provide the medical care they desperately needed—and demonstrated the love of Christ.

“I am happy for the show of love,” Abdulahi said. “It is because of your love that my son is alive today.” And Mohammed is just one of many stories of healing taking place across the globe. Operation Blessing partners are helping provide medical care and funding surgeries that change lives and often save them.

When Dangerous Floodwaters Rose, So Did Your Compassion

PHILIPPINES — For Nena, life in the Philippines had always been marked by the trial of rainy seasons. She’d weathered many, each one bringing its own share of dangerous floodwaters. But nothing prepared her for the onslaught of Typhoon Kristine. Intense rains slammed into the Philippines, resulting in widespread and dangerous flooding and landslides. The typhoon brought several days of rain, affecting over 2 million families, sending 250,000 people fleeing to evacuation centers and taking more than 140 lives.

In her 63 years, Nena had never seen anything like it. “The water was only up to here at first,” she said, gesturing to her knees. “But then by ten o’clock, it had risen to chest level.” She and her family rushed to safety, escaping through the roof of their home as the water level slowly rose. But after the storm, more challenges were on the horizon: sunken houses, mold, mildew, and debris.

Destruction from Dangerous Floodwaters

As the dangerous floodwaters receded, new threats emerged—injury, illness, infection, and a lack of medical care. On top of that, much of the town’s medicine supply was soaked in the dangerous flooding. Nena suffered from a bad cough, but between the effects of the storm and her very meager income, medical treatment was out of reach.

Thanks to your compassionate giving, Operation Blessing’s mobile medical clinic arrived, offering free medical checkups, medicines, EKG services, blood tests, and even reading glasses to hundreds of people—including Nena. She said gratefully, “Thank you so much, Operation Blessing!”

With your support, Nena received the aid she needed at just the right time. But even more, your love reminded her that she’s not alone—that someone somewhere cared. The help you gave wasn’t just medicine or supplies—it was hope in the midst of tragedy.