It’s easy for our crew members to get attached to the patients who receive free surgeries onboard our hospital ship.  Listen as a volunteer tells about saying goodbye to a sweet boy named Djazim.

It was a beautiful weekend at the park in Panama City Beach, Florida.  Off-duty sheriff’s deputy Jeff Haire was enjoying time with his family.  Suddenly, he noticed a man carrying what looked like a lifeless child out of the swimming pool.

A crew member shared a memory about her favorite funny Valentine.

Fetene has been a crossing guard at the Harvard Elementary School in Houston, Texas, for 10 years.  The kids LOVE him!  He’s always positive, creating laughter and joy.

Excellent was a baby boy in Benin, West Africa.  His mother left her very sick husband to bring her baby to our hospital ship for a free surgery to repair his cleft lip.  While they were on the ship, her husband passed away. 

Madeleine Heatherton’s personal experience with her very premature son motivated her to produce a documentary about Mercy Ships called The Surgery Ship.  She explains her reasons.

The pediatric patients onboard our hospital ship will steal your heart!  A volunteer physiotherapist tells about one adorable little boy.

If you want a fun volunteer job, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Georgia, pairs volunteers with premature babies that need cuddling. They’re called Baby Buddies.

A mother had a very difficult decision to make.  Her husband was terminally ill.  But her baby, named Excellent, needed a free surgery onboard our hospital ship, which would correct his cleft lip.

Blessing Hospital in Quincy, Illinois, started a toy bear project about 25 years ago.  Volunteers make stuffed bears for pediatric patients.  One of those volunteers is Edith Kroencke.