Dr. Phil Travels to North Carolina and Finds Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse Is Putting FEMA to Shame
Dr. Phil McGraw praised the work that Franklin Graham’s relief organization Samaritan’s Purse is doing to help the victims of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina.
It is putting the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s work to shame.
“Let me tell you, these [Samaritan’s Purse] guys don’t have meetings to fill out forms to plan a meeting to get something going. They have verbs in their sentences. They have springs in their step, and they’re out making things happen,” McGraw said.
“FEMA, all these other people are talking, thinking. No, not Samaritan’s Purse. They’re out doing things,” he added.
McGraw shared that he wants to keep the story alive of what’s happening in terms of hurricane recovery, because the rest of the country has gone on with their lives.
“I want you to see this,” he said. “They need us. They need our help. They need our support. And most importantly they need to know we haven’t forgotten about them.”
McGraw indicated in a post on X that his charity organization Merit Street is partnering with Samaritan’s Purse to help people in need.
My team at @MeritStreet and I have teamed up with @SamaritansPurse and our friends at @MichaelsStores to deliver supplies, generators, and a helping hand to people affected by the hurricane. A special thanks to @TimKennedyMMA for getting us moving in the right direction. A lot… pic.twitter.com/fVzHsi47bo
— Dr. Phil (@DrPhil) October 6, 2024
McGraw also shared a video from an airport in Boone, North Carolina, where the television personality said he is helping distribute several hundred Starlink units that Elon Musk donated to get communications up.
The video included an older couple who apparently had told McGraw’s team that FEMA had not shown up. In fact, the private relief workers were the first people they had seen.
People are stranded out there with no way to contact emergency services, doctors, any other kind of help, or loved ones. Thanks to @elonmusk, @mikecoryell from @Starlink and the @SamaritansPurse team, we were able to put a lot of people back in contact with the world. Stay tuned… pic.twitter.com/WtP3Xtia9o
— Dr. Phil (@DrPhil) October 7, 2024
Edward Graham, the son of Franklin Graham and the chief operating officer of Samaritan’s Purse, told Fox News host Lawrence Jones on Monday that western North Carolina is a war zone and reminds him of places he had seen while in the military.
Graham is a West Point graduate, who served for 16 years in the U.S. Army, including in Special Operations with multiple combat deployments.
“There’s been a lot of criticism of the federal government’s response to this,” Jones said. “The one organization that I continue to hear from all the locals that we speak to is Samaritan’s Purse: ‘We see them on the ground.'”
“What are you guys doing differently that is reaching all of these folks?” he asked.
Graham responded that they’re working on distributing their aid through local churches and volunteer fire departments.
“They’re going to make sure they get the needs to where they need to do first. They will prioritize,” he said. “We give it them, and it’s working quickly.”
Graham recounted that Samaritan’s Purse has 10 helicopters operating in the region, including Black Hawks they have leased.
He also noted that the needs of the recovering effort are shifting from mostly food and water, to providing generators for power and Starlink kits for communication.
No wonder McGraw was inspired.
Former President Donald Trump has also partnered with Samaritan’s Purse, bringing in truckloads of supplies to Georgia last week.
Learn more about Samaritan’s Purse’s response, volunteer and donate here.
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