Partners Against Hunger and Poverty

After joining Bread for the World in 1982, activists Doug and Gail Seebeck moved to Africa. From 1983 until 1997, the couple lived in Uganda and then Kenya, working on agriculture and healthcare projects. Their five children -- three of whom are former war orphans from Ethiopia – were born in East Africa.

Whether living in East Africa or Michigan, Doug and Gail Seeback (shown here with their children) have been faithful advocates for hungry people.

Doug and Gail are active in Bread for the World's Offering of Letters campaigns and other efforts to fight hunger. They are also longtime financial supporters of our work (according to Doug, "With five kids and tons of bills, right now it's more about activism and less about money.")

"My worldview was profoundly changed by working in Bangladesh in the late 1970s, fresh out of college," Doug recalled. "I saw how God was at work in a very tough situation. I also began to realize that the very talented Bengali farmers around me could not work themselves out of poverty, no matter how productive they were, because they only had a quarter-acre or half-acre to farm. I knew then that I would work for justice over the long haul."

Doug and Gail feel encouraged by the significant progress made against global hunger in recent years. "If the developing world could reduce its hungry population from 1.2 billion to 800 million in the past 25 years," said Doug, "then surely an organized all-out effort can spell the end of hunger."

In 1997, the Seebecks returned to the United States to start Partners Worldwide, which builds partnerships between businesses in an effort to alleviate hunger and poverty. Partners Worldwide also advocates for a "level playing field" for small businesses in poor countries and provides access to capital for private sector initiatives. "We knew a lot of businesspeople who wanted to get involved but felt out of place," said Doug. "It's good to see them visit Kenya and say, 'Hey – I want to do something to help here.' We have 45 team leaders who have started their own partnership initiatives. We're not trying to raise money from our members, but rather to help them share their knowledge." Thank you to Doug and Gail Seebeck for their faithful work on behalf of hungry and poor people!

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