A modern-day Samaritan

Day 1: on a guided tour - part 2

He is one of those who will likely never be elected Time's Person of The Year. No one would recognize his face if they were to print in on the front page of the magazine either. To most people he is, and will remain, totally anonymous. He is, though, what I consider to be a hero AND a modern-day Samaritan.

Some years back Pastor Samuel decided to relocate himself and his family from their spacious and comfortable Luxor home, and move into one of Kairo's slum areas. Why would a sane man do that? In the Garbage Districts there is no clean water, no public amenities, people breathe in hazardous fumes 24-7, and life-spans are short. No one will raise an eyebrow if you pass away in your mid-40s. So why do it?

Pastor Samuel has a different heart. He exhibits an extraordinary love for those whom the State has neglected and written off as recorded loss. In an ocean of decay this man and his wife and his co-workers work from sunrise to sunset towards one goal: to meet the needs of the have-nots.

We spent a little less than an hour with him, and were touched by and inspired by his plans to start a hospital. At the time we were there, there was little to indicate that that will ever happen: only a red-brick frame of empty walls and no windowpanes. But I'm not fooled by this man's quiet and dignified demeanour: pastor Samuel means business. And he may very well succeed in this endeavour.

He is not alone in his ambition. I, for one, plan to help him as much as I can. Will you?