Give Back Series — Latter-day Saint Charities

Her life changed at 15 years of age when—in front of her home in Santa Domingo—a car lost control and accidentally ran her over. This tragic car accident left Mayerlinth Reyes with a completely different state of life.

In the Compton Junior Posse, the kids can ride and take care of horses, but they have to be doing well in school in order to participate.

In the 1980s, countless Romanian orphans were infected with the HIV virus through blood transfusions, vaccinations, and immunizations in hospitals. Dan was one of those orphans. Now a grown man, he was the only survivor among his friends.

In November 2013, the strongest typhoon ever recorded slammed into the Philippines. The opportunities to help each other along created a beautiful silver lining around an otherwise terrible tragedy.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and a local Baptist church have teamed up to help tutor kids from struggling communities and families in Los Angeles.

Fatou, a refugee from Ivory Coast, and Toni share a love for cross-country running and develop a friendship far beyond the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.

A story of service at a greenhouse project in Bolivia

Ellen wanted to find a way to give back. She began crocheting toys to donate to the Idaho Falls humanitarian center.

A Haitian community began a humanitarian project that offered chickens, supplies, and training to participants so that they could start their own business. Working has given Lucienne a new sense of hope and purpose.

When Antoinette was a young girl, her parents taught her to take care of those in need by giving them food and a place to stay. Her father told her that some day she should open a free restaurant for the hungry.

Dr. Nemam is a native of Kurdistan, a land torn apart by war. She was working in Sweden when she heard news that her people were suffering, so she decided to return and offer any help she could.

A story of service involving reviving babies at birth.

“We are not perfect, but we love helping others, because we know this is an emergency, and people in hard situations should show who they really are and be good to one another,” says the mayor.

Milan and her daughters are refugees from Bhutan. Michelle and her family meet them and invite them over to cook dinner together and learn about each other’s culture.

At the Idaho Falls Humanitarian Center, people like you dedicate their time and talents to helping others each week. While making quilts, toys, and crochet bereavement outfits for babies, the volunteers themselves feel loved and lifted.

Orphans is Romania received blood transfusions in the 1980s to make them stronger—but the blood was actually infected with HIV. Through the use of a single syringe, the virus was passed along from one child to another.

Dr. Grecu is an ophthalmologist who volunteers his expertise at a social clinic in Romania. The doctors at the clinic help with small things that improve the lives of their patients.

Refugees who fled from violence in Syria to peace in Lebanon are still facing serious challenges. There are no jobs for the adults and no schools for the children. Many are going without daily necessities.

In 2013, the Philippines was devastated by the strongest typhoon ever recorded. The surge of service, love, and hope that followed, however, was even stronger.

A relief society decides to heed the call from the first presidency to help refugees by throwing a refugee mother a baby shower.

Refugees from Mosul in Northern Iraq were given a place to live when two brothers gave up their houses to 23 families.

Children at a local elementary school are able to earn roadrunner tickets for good behavior and academics. They are then able to use those tickets to purchase items from an incentive store once a month.

When she lost her baby boy to a preventable disease, Helen knew she had to do something to save others from similar tragedy.

A local Boy Scout troop teamed up with the IRC to build bikes for refugees in need of better transportation. It turned out to be a bonding experience that the boys would never forget.

One woman shares how she is giving back in her refugee community in Ethiopia.

Providing so many people with vaccinations for deadly diseases like measles seems like an impossible task. That doesn’t stop Gaylene from doing her part in her community.

Malagie Bundor of Sierra Leone, has spent his life with Spina Bifida. Given the skills to build his own wheelchair and wheelchairs for others you can’t help but see how proud it makes him feel.

With millions impacted by the Syrian civil war that broke out in 2011 many have fled for safety and refuge. Watch and listen to Nadia’s story; A 12 year old Syrian refugee child, who while fleeing Syria, was shot in the back and paralyzed.

When looking for service opportunities, Kerry Porter discovered that she could use her few spare hours during the week to teach English at a local refugee center.

The people of Haiti endure unemployment, sickness, hunger, and more. Some have found hope, however, thanks to a special project that gives them the means to live happier, healthier lives.

War devastated Sierra Leone for over 10 years. Rebels were killing civilians, civilians who weren’t killed had no food, and the road to freedom was blocked. Survivors Abie and Mohammad Turay are proof that God lives and loves His children.

Sierra Leone is in the midst of a water crisis. Listen to this Sierra Leonean woman tell her story of water crisis and how the people in her village were able to build a well and receive clean, healthy water.

LDS Charities helps a town in the DR Congo get clean water. Men from the village dug a trench by hand to bring the water from the mountain to the people. It took them 1,000 days.

The Welcome to America project is a nonprofit in Phoenix that brings donated goods to refugees’ homes and helps them start their new lives. 

One Haitian man wanted to plant more trees, so he connected with the local congregation of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

When Chantal and her family were relocated from Africa to the United States, they felt a culture shock. What made the most difference for Chantal was having adults who were willing to be mentors for her.

LDS Charities donated equipment to Dr. Vatavu to assist her in preventing blindness in premature babies in Bucharest, Romania. She comes to love these families and cherishes her ability to help them.