HAITI – Two years ago, a devastating earthquake ripped through the nation of Haiti—changing it forever. Since then, so many of you have made such a significant impact in these communities that we wanted to share just a few of the things your support has accomplished over the last two years.

• Clean Water – At the height of our relief efforts, 35 water purification units provided safe drinking water to more than 100,000 people…every day. We also drilled more than 30 wells and have been producing and distributing enough chlorine to hospitals and orphanages to disinfect millions of gallons of drinking water each day.

• Medical Care – When the quake hit, you helped us ship millions of dollars worth of medicine to Haiti. A few months later, we were among the first responders to the deadly cholera outbreak. We also distributed more than 3,000 wheelchairs to those in need and constructed a new surgical unit and emergency facility at St. Luke’s Family Hospital.

• Food Distribution – Immediately following the earthquake, we shipped cargo containers of emergency food supplies to feed hundreds of orphans, children, and families in need. Today, we are giving poverty-stricken families a source of income and high protein food source through fish farms.

• Orphan Care – We joined hands with Partners in Health to open Zanmi Beni Children’s Home for orphans and special needs children. Today we are continuing to improve the home through a new dormitory and even growing tilapia to provide a source of protein for the children.

In 2012, we are looking ahead to even more exciting initiatives for Haiti including being able to significantly increase the number of wells we can build each year thanks to the purchase of a new well drilling rig.

We humbly thank you for your compassion for the people of Haiti and the suffering around the world.

GUATEMALA – Orphaned at a young age, Juan and Joseline have been living with their grandparents in an impoverished area of Guatemala.

But when a tropical storm hit their community this year, floodwaters tore their home apart, destroying everything they owned—and leaving them with only the clothes on their back.

The family desperately needed a safe, sturdy home to live in, but the little income the grandfather earned was barely enough to provide food for the family.

All over the world there are children and families like Juan and Joseline’s in desperate need of food, shelter, medical care and more. But thanks to faithful friends like you, Juan, Joseline and their family now have the hope of a better life and a brighter future.

Operation Blessing teams built them a brand new, sturdy home in a better community—giving them a precious gift they could never have afforded on their own.

“Today we woke up in our new home, we are very happy!” said the children.

ERCIS, Turkey – Operation Blessing disaster relief teams are on the ground in Turkey working in partnership with Humedica, a German medical team, to bring relief to earthquake survivors.

Operation Blessing’s Japan Disaster Relief Manager, Don Thomson, shares his firsthand account of the relief efforts in Japan.

JAPAN – Media is a big part of modern Japanese culture, with just about every home subscribed to one of the national daily papers, owning a TV set, and having Internet access through fiber optic cable or by mobile phone.

NHK, the national public broadcasting corporation, is the largest media enterprise in Asia. Along with four other commercial media conglomerates, it dominates the flow of information to the nation. So, what have the Japanese media been saying about Operation Blessing’s relief activities?

OBI has been enjoying wonderful press, and our unique activities in providing free eye clinics to tsunami survivors on the Tohoku coast caught the media by surprise. It, along with our program to provide equipment to fishermen, has been reported in national dailies, TV news reports, and online news sites. Our programs have even been tweeted and blogged about by other organizations.

A Nikkei Financial Times article about our eye clinics was titled “Seeing Hope.” Another major paper said, “Tsunami survivors grateful to be able to see properly again.” A commercial network affiliate station news report showed a teary eyed fisherman who received an OB boat wiping his eyes, saying, “I am so grateful, I want to cry.”

Miyagi TV, the local affiliate for the largest commercial TV network in Japan, came to one of our recent eye clinics to tape a news report for their midday news broadcast.

Thank you, Operation Blessing partners, for making it possible not only to share compassion with survivors through our relief efforts but also to share joy to homes throughout Japan.

Ms. Masaki Kobayashi is one of our team members at the Tohoku Operations Center who is responsible for preparing press releases for the Japanese media and keeping our Japanese website up to date.

Operation Blessing’s Japan Disaster Relief Manager, Don Thomson, shares his firsthand account of the relief efforts in Japan.

MINAMI SANRIKU, Japan – Even though seven months have passed since the tsunami along the Tohoku Coast, Operation Blessing teams are still finding opportunities to help survivors in need of eye glasses. A recent request for eye exams came from the parents and coaches of the Utatsu Middle School Kendo Team.

Kendo is a traditional martial art of swordsmanship developed during Japan’s feudal days hundreds of years ago. Today it is a major sport offered in Japanese middle and high schools, using bamboo swords and protective gear. Team members like Nobuto Hatakeyama are survivors of the tsunami. In the disaster, Nobuto’s family lost their home and their seaweed cultivation business. And Nobuto lost the special glasses the he usually wore for Kendo. Without the glasses, Nobuto said that everything was a blur and it was difficult to compete.

Nobuto’s coach had heard of OB Japan’s eye clinic and asked if it would be possible for Operation Blessing to provide Nobuto and four others on the Kendo team with the special glasses, which are designed to stay secure during competition and absorb shock. So our team invited Nobuto and his teammates to attend our next clinic the following week.

Operation Blessing was able to deliver Nobuto’s brand new Kendo sports glasses just in time for a major competition to be held in the mountains of Yamagata Prefecture. To everyone’s surprise, Nobuto won each of his matches.

“The glasses have really worked well for Nobuto. The way he was competing, was national competition level,” said Nobuto’s coach.

Even though Nobuto still lives in temporary housing and his father, who lost his seaweed business, is now working part-time for a construction company helping in the cleanup effort, Operation Blessing was able to help provide this family with a glimmer of hope for the future.

Another “Kendo mom” we met was Utako Abe. Utako had also lost her home and her glasses and is now living in temporary housing with her son. Our Operation Blessing team was able to provide her with new glasses.

So far, Operation Blessing has conducted eye clinics at 21 locations along the Miyagi and Iwate coastlines and helped more than 2,500 people. Our recent clinics have reached as far north as Miyako where the highest wave of 120 feet was recorded.

Operation Blessing’s Japan Disaster Relief Manager, Don Thomson, shares his firsthand account of the relief efforts in Japan.

SABUSAWA ISLAND, Japan – The fishermen on Sabusawa Island who lost their nets to the March tsunami are doing well with the gill nets provided by Operation Blessing. Recently, they got together and sent our local OBI office in Japan a special surprise delivery.

Despite losing most of their nets to the tsunami, and having very little hope reviving their industry for some time, the Sabusawa gill net fishermen are doing a roaring business—catching lots of fish and selling them at the reopened Shiogama Fish Market.

Mr. Yagi, who is the leader of the fishermen on the island, could not keep back his smile as he told me that with the unusually big catch as of late and the major buyers from near and far coming to the reopened market, they are doing on average five times better than a typical season!

To show their appreciation to Operation Blessing for helping them in their time of need, the fishermen had two cases of freshly caught fish delivered to our OB Japan office. There was halibut, bream and a good sized mackerel. I think you can guess what’s on the menu for OB Japan’s staff families for the next few weeks!

By Jenn Wakefield

STUMPY POINT, N.C. – When most people think of the Outer Banks, they think of vacation. Some think of amazing seafood, and others think of their second home for the summer. When I think of out The Outer Banks, I think of two weeks that changed my life and a small fishing village called Stumpy Point.

After Hurricane Irene struck North Carolina, I was honored to work with Operation Blessing in their disaster relief efforts. Operation Blessing is an international nonprofit organization that is based out of Virginia Beach where I live.

On the drive down to Stumpy Point, I thought to myself, “What a beautiful place! I want to vacation here sometime.”

When we arrived, I learned that Stumpy Point was a small community with one main street. The homes there were mostly destroyed from water damage. Some homes received up to four feet of water—it broke my heart to see the devastation.

But it was Operation Blessing to the rescue! The residents were so excited to see us; one lady approached me and started crying. She said, “I know you haven’t done anything yet, but when you see Operation Blessing, you feel instant hope. Everything is going to be okay.” I couldn’t help but tear up myself.

I thought I was there to help fix homes, maybe do some administrative work, even help serve food; I was terribly mistaken. I was there to listen. I listened to their stories, gave hugs, and built relationships that I am sure will last.

A group of students from Rockford, Ill. came for five days to assist Operation Blessing. When I met these students, I had been there for a week already. I told them to get ready, they were about to be changed in ways they couldn’t imagine.

The day they left, I knew I was right. Brooke was a leader of the Focus One group out of Rockford, and she was so touched by a family she had been working with that week that she had to see them one last time to say goodbye. It was joyful and emotional—they hugged as if they had known each other their entries lives.

Being God’s hands and listening ears, and showing His love, is more powerful than one might think. In a time of disaster, sometimes that is all we need. Someone to help, listen and love.

These two weeks have changed me forever.

HATTERAS ISLAND – Today was a bit eerie as I awoke on the island after a long night of high winds and thunderstorms. I walked to the sliding glass doors that overlook the sound and, to my surprise, the water was gone!

The water in the sound had been blown out by the high winds. The part that is eerie is that this is the exact thing described by every local resident who rode out the storm here. Their first sight was the water being sucked out of the sound.

After I talked with a few locals, I found out that it’s normal for the water to go out of the sound during high Northeast winds. It usually doesn’t affect “normal life” too much, but now that everyone is depending on water transportation it is a really big deal!

After our morning meeting we learned that the ferry has been shut down and is not expected to be running for at least another three days, or until the water returns to the sound. That means no deliveries of food, fuel, mail, etc. The locals are now dependent on the ferry to get to doctors appointments, work, and other personal business on the mainland since the highway washed out.

A ferry captain who is part of the North Carolina Department of Transportation measured the water depth to make sure our privately chartered boat would have enough water to make the trip. Thankfully, our seasoned captain, Carson Forrester, was able to navigate the boat in to drop off volunteers (who had driven all night to get here from Michigan) and pick up key staff to take them back to the “mainland.”

Just a little snapshot of “Life on the Island” after the storm…

NAIROBI, Kenya – After the tragic pipeline fire and explosion in Sinai slum earlier this week, officials are confirming that more than 100 people died and many more are suffering from serious burns.

OB Kenya has been distributing relief supplies such as hygiene items, food, clothing, and school supplies to families whose homes were destroyed in the fire.

Operation Blessing staff visited with children affected by the tragedy, distributing books and coloring materials. “They were so excited and appreciated what Operation Blessing had done,” said Hellen, from OB Kenya. “No other organization had remembered them.”

Operation Blessing is also working with the Red Cross in Kenya to distribute donated items.

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NAIROBI, Kenya – In Nairobi, the Sinai slum sits on top of a pipeline that feeds a nearby fuel depot. Yesterday morning, spilled petroleum that had collected in the drainage system caught fire and a subsequent explosion killed nearly 100 people. Many caught in the melee tried to jump into the nearby storm drainage ditch to put out the flames, but the result was deadly. Hundreds of burn victims were admitted to a nearby hospital.

The rain that day only made matters worse as storm water mixed with petroleum drained into the nearby valley. Hundreds of structures were burned to the ground and more than 1,000 people have been left without shelter.

OB Kenya is already working on relief efforts in Sinai Slum. Teams will be providing displaced victims with clean water to drink and essential food staples. They will also be distributing basic necessities such as diapers, baby food and bedding to families who lost their homes.