The man had received a free surgery to repair a hernia onboard our hospital ship.  Now, he was getting ready to return home.  But first, he had a surprise up his “sleeve.”

In 1985 Dave Valle played baseball for the Seattle Mariners.  During the winters he honed his skills in the Caribbean Leagues.  One night in the Dominican Republic, Dave and his wife saw some young boys searching through garbage for food.  Dave thought, “What if it were my son who was hungry and desperate?”

Helping others has its own reward … like a sense of fulfillment and purpose that comes when you reach beyond yourself.  Dr. Mark Shrime is a wonderful surgeon who volunteers onboard our hospital ship.  Listen as he explains.

Jason and Adrianne Stewart have two biological children and an adopted son.  But they felt there was another child in the Philippines who needed them.

The treatment to correct club feet can take a long time.  It requires many painful changes of leg casts over time.  Mercy Ships volunteer Anna wrote about her observations of a club foot patient.  Listen carefully.

Clementine Tengue is as a Patient Life Counselor onboard our hospital ship.  She went to school in Ghana, learned French in Burkina Faso and moved to Togo.  She’s worked with Mercy Ships since 1996.  Listen as Clementine tells why.

Eight-year-old Valentin suffered severe burn injuries.  He was the first surgery patient during our hospital ship’s 2016 field service in Benin, West Africa.

It was a beautiful Hawaiian day.  Two young pilots, Dave and Sydnie were getting flight time off the coast. Suddenly, the right engine lost power.  Then, the left engine quit. 

Krissy traveled to a small village in West Africa where she had volunteered her help some years earlier.  She’d formed close bonds with the villagers while serving them.  She received a very warm welcome, which included greetings and hugs.  But it also included a surprise gift.

Vince Hubach buys and sells restaurant equipment.  One summer he was setting up a pizzeria in a poor section of Philadelphia.  He says, “Kids would be hanging around.  I’d say ‘Why don’t you go to the beach?’  They’d just look at me like, ‘The beach?’”