International Samaritan is an international nonprofit dedicated to raising the standard of living in garbage dump communities. For 25 years, we have worked to change the lives of the most vulnerable people in the world through a unique blend of hands-on service and advocacy work. On a school trip to Guatemala, Father Vettese’s group was diverted from their route due to traffic and drove through th
e garbage dump community instead. Father Vettese was horrified by what he saw and pledged to do something about it. That chance encounter led to the creation of International Samaritan. All these years later, International Samaritan has grown beyond Guatemala, and our mission is carried out by people across many nations and faiths. International Samaritan currently has offices in Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Nicaragua, and Ethiopia, and gained consultative status with the United Nations in 2011. Our United States office is located in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
