World Neighbors’ late founder, Dr. John L. Peters, was born in Van Buren, Arkansas, on October 6, 1907. As a young man, Peters served in World War II where he saw firsthand the pain and suffering caused by poverty. Following his military service, he finished his doctorate at Yale University and established a home in Oklahoma City. Dr. Peters returned from World War II with a strong conviction to do something to help the poverty-stricken people of South East Asia. On April 22, 1951 at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church in Oklahoma City, Peters gave his seminal sermon titled “Let’s Deal with Basic Issues” that started a grassroots movement called World Neighbors.
A visionary beyond his time, Dr. Peters dreamt of an organization administered by people who saw the benefits of empowering people in need to make their own decisions, and improve their own lives. His idea was unique: to help others by working from the bottom up, with no self-interest and an understanding of the dignity that every person has. Today, that organization is thriving, and since its inception in 1951, World Neighbors has changed the lives of more than 27 million people in 45 countries.
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