As the nation celebrates Veterans Day, Franklin Graham's daughter-in-law Kristy Graham discusses the ways in which Samaritan's Purse supports veterans who have undergone "Operation Heal Our Patriots" in finding new ways to serve others in their communities.
Wounded soldiers and their wives are invited to a week-long retreat in Alaska as part of "Operation Heal Our Patriots" (OHOP), according to the organization. This Alaskan marriage retreat is reportedly followed by continued support and care for the whole family.
Samaritan's Purse now has almost 100 veterans serving others.
Speaking on recent episode of the "On the Ground" podcast, Kristy Graham, wife of Edward Graham, talked with Greg Duvall, "the educational and discipleship manager" for OHOP, to get a sense of the program's scope and mission.
"It is a marriage retreat where we have the privilege of sending 10 combat-wounded veteran couples to enjoy the pristine beauty of the Alaskan wilderness," explained Duvall. "And so they have this shared experience of hiking and catching crazy amounts of fish, and they usually get to see bears and other things together. It's also an opportunity for them to focus on each other for a week with no distractions, no cell phones, no kids. "
Aside from fun activities, Duvall said that their chaplains walk these couples through a number of marriage enrichment classes in which they get to know each other in ways that they have never experienced before.
He further said that the ministry's main priority "is to remind them that the same God who worked in your lives and your hearts and your marriages in Alaska is the same God who's going to carry you through all of these struggles, all these issues that you're walking through now. It's the same power that brought healing to your marriage in Alaska that's going to continue that healing work in your marriage back home as well. "
Over 1300 couples are said to have gone through the program, and Duvall's team has found that many couples are still eager to be involved and to give back to the community.
After Duvall, Kristy met with the director of OHOP, John Pryor, to talk about "aftercare," which includes therapy, discipleship, and fellowship.
"When they get back from Alaska, life hits them hard and we don't want to abandon them," says Pryor. "We want to stay with them through those hard times. There is also happy times. We want to be there through the happy times too - through the childbirths and the graduations. We are there for them through all of it."
Corey Lynch, founder of Team Patriot, realized the need for veterans to keep giving back. Lynch tells Kristy about Team Patriot, which pairs OHOP veterans with Samaritan's Purse US Disaster Relief. When a natural catastrophe happens and Samaritan's Purse is dispatched, Team Patriot veterans will be there to help.
"Now it's a different war," says Lynch. "There are not bullets and rockets flying, but there are trees on houses, people that are devastated, and old ladies that have nowhere to turn because it's going to cost them thousands of dollars to clean up their yard or put back together their house."
"So, when I've been on those deployments, and I've seen the eyes and the hearts of our soldiers-who better to take care of the homeland? They went overseas to take care of their homeland but now they're on the home turf. They're not shooting guns anymore, but they can be in these communities, literally changing them for Christ's name-for Christ's sake."
Key leader Ben Hebert, on the other hand, expressed his love for the mission. They are now prominent leaders in the ministry, with Hebert on Team Patriot and the Disaster Assistance Response Team. He informed Kristy of his spiritual progress and the importance of keeping his eyes on Christ and serving Him as a soldier would.
OHOP's regional chaplains are reportedly stationed around the country to help couples cultivate healthy relationships.The chaplains would encourage participants of OHOP to join a local church and study the Bible in order to grow in their faith. OHOP has also just launched "a key leader program" that encourages couples to accompany new believers to church and support them in their involvement.
To conclude the show, Kristy asked her husband Edward to share his take on current events in Afghanistan as an Army veteran.
"Jesus Christ is the only answer to our problems," Edward asserted.
"He is the only answer for Afghanistan," he continued. "So, my hope and prayer for these veterans that are struggling is that I want them to know that Jesus Christ loves them more than I ever could. He died for them. I want them to know that, to trust and believe that. To know they still have purpose, God needs them, God wants them thriving in His Kingdom."
