Heather Barlow has always been an idealist and now that she’s finished high school, she’s ready to make a difference in the world. After graduation, she joins a mission group on a hospital mercy ship sailing to Africa. Once she’s left the ship on the Kenyan coast and is stationed at a hospital in Uganda, however, Heather is not really prepared to face the disease, famine, and misery she encounters. Ian McCollum is also among the medical staff in Uganda. Ian has left his native Scotland to help those threatened by a world of indifference. When Heather meets Ian, she finds her heart quickens and she’s happy to be alive. But as the weeks pass, Heather finds her idealism vanishing amid the overcrowded refugee camps and orphanages; misery is everywhere. Only Ian can see beyond the horror and help Heather understand that the world can be changed by saving those in need, one by one.