After decades of service to the Seventh-day Adventist Church, Dr Branimir and Dr Danijela Schubert are now making an impact through a charity that supports the most vulnerable in Papua New Guinea.
Dr Branimir has been appointed the president and Dr Danijela the secretary of Operation Food For Life (OFFL), an independent ministry of the Adventist Church. OFFL provides physical, emotional and spiritual support for those living in poverty, including abandoned and orphaned children.
The Schuberts were introduced to OFFL while serving at Pacific Adventist University, where Dr Branimir was vice-chancellor from 2007 to 2010. As OFFL was expanding its activities, the charity’s co-founder, Dennis Perry, sought Dr Branimir’s support from PAU. Students and staff were keen to help and volunteered in OFFL’s hospital and prison outreach activities, offering food and spiritual encouragement to patients and inmates. The Schuberts and their children were among the volunteers.
“In the hospital we would provide fresh fruit to the patients in the AIDS ward,” Dr Danijela recalled. “These individuals had been abandoned by their families, nobody wanted to touch them. Some of them were very unwell, but they were grateful for our visits.”
After leaving PAU, the Schuberts went on to serve in other areas of the Church. Twenty years passed before a new chapter with OFFL began.
“When we took early retirement, we wanted to volunteer in some way, though we had no idea what that would look like,” Dr Branimir explained. “We explored various options, including in our local community. Then we unexpectantly crossed paths with Dennis Perry again. He spoke with us about OFFL, expressing the need for leaders to continue the work he started and asked us to take on senior roles with the charity.
“I believe in what I call the overlapping of things, recognising there must be a finger of God in there,” Dr Branimir continued. “Because it was amazing the way things overlapped: we were seeking ways to contribute to the community; Dennis and the team needed new leaders. We were familiar with what Operation Food For Life was all about, so there was a compatibility of ideas and objectives. So, we said ‘yes’, not knowing exactly what we were committing to, but we said ‘yes’.”
The Schuberts quickly immersed themselves into learning their new roles and responsibilities. Now, they are looking ahead to the future, with some major projects in store, including constructing a commercial kitchen at OFFL’s Born Free Sanctuary, which provides care and education for neglected and abused children, teens and youth.
“Currently, the sanctuary provides food for around 50 people each day; the kitchen is basically a camping stove on an outdoor verandah,” Dr Branimir explained. “A commercial kitchen will allow us to feed around 1000 people per week.
“We are also building a new dormitory for the boys in the sanctuary because they are currently sleeping in the backyard under a tarpaulin. We plan to build a wing for them to sleep comfortably indoors.”
Next year they hope to acquire land for a purpose-built sanctuary, enabling them to help more children and become self-sustainable by growing their own fruit and vegetables on-site.
“At the moment the sanctuary can care for up to 40 children, but the need is such that we could care for hundreds,” Dr Branimir said. “Every child has either been abandoned, raped or heavily beaten. One girl came to us with her bones sticking out because a family member used a metal rod and kept beating her. She ran away and found refuge in the sanctuary. We encounter severe cases of abuse, sadly.”
The Schuberts say it breaks their hearts to see the trauma these children have endured, but they feel joy and gratitude for the opportunity to rescue these youngsters and show them the love of Jesus.
“There are many challenges ahead, but God has been very good to us. Let’s see where it goes from here,” Dr Branimir said. “We want to honour the legacy of the pioneers who started Operation Food For Life, who were inspired by Matthew 25—when I was in prison, you visited, when I was hungry, you fed us, when I was a stranger, you accepted us. And so, this is our mission.”
Operation Food For Life relies on donor funds to operate. For more information and details on how you can provide support, go to offl.org.au.
Tracey Bridcutt is the Communication director for the South Pacific Division.
