‘Machine Gun Preacher’ raising funds for Off The Chain
Photo: Contributed
ACCLAIMED humanitarian Sam Childers, better known around the world as “the Machine Gun Preacher”, will be dropping into Toowoomba to inspire residents and raise funds to help abandoned animals.
Mr Childers is the guest of honour and main speaker at the major fundraising event by Toowoomba animal rescue group Off The Chain K9 Rescue tonight.
A reformed drug addict and bikie gang member in the United States, Mr Childers became a born-again Christian before heading over to South Sudan and northern Uganda to rescue and re-home orphans displaced by the violent Lord’s Resistance Army.
His actions were recorded in a book Another Man’s War, which was turned into a 2011 movie starring Gerard Butler.
Off The Chain co-founder Jess Otto said she had been inspired by Mr Childers for years, and had jumped at the chance to recruit him for the evening.
“He’s amazing - I’ve been following him for years, he’s one of my heroes,” she said.
“I wanted to quit rescue a few years ago because it is so tough, and then I read his book and it revived me.”
While they come from different worlds, Ms Otto said there were some basic similarities between her work and Mr Childers’ accomplishments.
“For me, we’re complete different industries, but the belief of why we do the work is there,” she said.
An Evening with Sam Childers will be held at The Glennie School assembly hall on today from 6.30pm.
For bookings, head to stickytickets.com.au.