and to make something productive out of it and not just to wallow in my pity . '' Watch the story of the Rogers family tragedy '' Rogers ' mission manifests itself in a variety of ways . In the past five years , he estimates he has told the story of his loss at least 400 times to more than 120,000 people . The message behind his story is to live life with no regrets by embracing your family and faith . `` People have responded to me that they want to change the way they live their life . They want to have a personal relationship with God and they want to get right with their spouse and children , '' he said . In addition to his speaking tours , Rogers has established a ministry dedicated to serving orphans across the world . Rogers also traveled to Haiti and tsunami-ravaged parts of Asia to minister and deliver aid to orphans . Watch Rogers talk about his ministry '' His mission is to establish five orphanages in five continents to symbolize the five family members he lost . One , called Melissa 's House , already exists in
-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Five years ago , Robert Rogers was driving home with his family from a wedding when a flash flood took his wife and four children from him in an instant . Robert and Melissa Rogers with their four children before they died in August 2003 . Rainfall from a torrential downpour swept the Rogers ' minivan off a Kansas highway . As water filled the van , Rogers kicked out a window in a last-ditch effort to save his family . Instead , he and his wife , Melissa , and daughter , Makenah , were sucked out of the van . Hours later , the bodies of children Zachary , 5 , Nicholas , 3 , and Alenah , 1 , still buckled in their car seats , were found inside the van . Rogers survived . Instead of falling into despair , he became a minister dedicated to honoring his family by preaching messages of hope in the face of adversity . `` It was a huge choice of faith , '' Rogers told CNN . `` It was a determination to live life to honor God , to honor my heavenly family ,