The Heart of the Mission: How Steve Gumaer Brings Medicine to the Forgotten

For Steve Gumaer, a life’s mission began with a single child. Twenty-six years ago, pro-democracy soldiers in a tribal area of Myanmar found a four-year-old girl, the only known survivor after her village was attacked. Steve and his wife, Oddney, helped her find foster care, and in doing so, they uncovered a need far greater than they could have imagined.

That single act of compassion grew into Partners Relief & Development, an organization that now helps half a million displaced people each year, with a focus on children caught in the crossfire of war. Their work takes them where large agencies often cannot go—to complex and dangerous zones in Myanmar, Yemen, Syria, and beyond.

Steve’s motivation is deeply personal and refreshingly direct. "I often imagine what I would hope for if the roles were flipped around and it was my family on the run without essential supplies," he says. "Being the answer to my own questions of justice and being the fulfillment of my own search for meaning and love has consistently invigorated me."

This work is not for the faint of heart. Steve recounts a three-week, 500-kilometer trek on foot across Western Myanmar with soldiers and relief team members. "I lived out of my backpack and slept in a hammock every night in towering jungle terrain," he recalls. "We treated hundreds of people... and got to know the victims of Myanmar’s war intimately."

It was a different trip, however, that prompted a new direction. Two years ago in Iraq, while helping survivors of ISIS violence near Mosul, he felt a critical gap in his own skills.

"On that trip, I realized how little I could help when people were critically hurt, shot, or wounded," Steve reflects. "I felt that to be useful in these remote environments I should be able to do more for people in the event of a crisis."

That realization, combined with a lifelong love for the outdoors—climbing, skiing, and paddling with his family—made the next step clear. "It felt like a responsible step to be competent with emergency first aid," he says. A friend recommended Remote Medical Training, and Steve cleared his schedule for the month-long REMT intensive.

The impact was immediate and profound.

"Because of the excellent training, I can open a patient’s airway, stop bleeding, and perform CPR with confidence," he says. "This creates greater confidence in my leadership of our team and makes carrying a first aid kit incredibly meaningful."

For Steve, the training wasn't just about acquiring technical skills; it was about deepening his ability to connect and serve. It transformed his capacity to bring hope and healing to the frontlines of his mission.

"Saving a life is beautiful," he shares, "but even ministering to a sick person and exercising empathy in such practical ways is transforming."