Jessica Ford
Jessica's Story

Jessica joined Watsi on January 7th, 2014. 5 other people also joined Watsi on that day! Jessica's most recent donation traveled 8,200 miles to support Timothy, a baby boy from Uganda, to fund malaria treatment.

Impact

Jessica has funded healthcare for 11 patients in 7 countries.

Patients funded by Jessica

Jonica is a 10-month-old girl from the Philippines living with her parents and two siblings in a small house made of nipa and bamboo. Her family shares electricity with the neighbors and gets water from a deep well. Jonica's father works as a pineapple planter and struggles to provide enough food for the family. As a result, Jonica is moderately acutely malnourished and has a tiny body and a slightly bloated belly. Worldwide, poor nutrition is associated with nearly half of all deaths in young children. Without proper treatment, Jonica risked delayed development and potential long-term physical and cognitive impairments. Fortunately, on October 17, 2016, Jonica began receiving treatment from Watsi's medical partner, International Care Ministries (ICM). ICM's $184 home-based feeding program provides nutrient-enriched food packs to help malnourished children regain normal weight and achieve optimum physical and mental development. In addition, staff and community volunteers make weekly visits to check up on the child's progress. To help sustain the child's health, ICM staff also educate family members about proper nutrition, organic vegetable gardening, sanitation, and hygiene. With this treatment regimen and educational component, Jonica will be able to recover from her condition. "I hope that Jonica will recover from malnutrition so that she will grow to become healthy and strong," says Jonica's mother. "I want her to be a teacher someday." Let's help Jonica achieve these goals!

$184raised
Fully funded

Ken-Ken is a 4-year-old boy from General Santos in the Philippines. He lives with his parents and two siblings in a small house made of bamboo and scrap materials, without proper water supply and electricity. Due to a difficult financial situation, Ken-Ken is now suffering from severe acute malnutrition. Despite having a weak body, he still likes running and playing with his toys. "I really hope that he will recover and become strong because he wants to be a basketball player someday," said Ken-Ken's mother. Ken-Ken will be treated by International Care Ministries (ICM), a Watsi medical partner. One out of five children under 5 in ICM communities is either severely or moderately acutely malnourished. Worldwide, poor nutrition is associated with nearly half of all deaths in young children. In remote communities and urban slums of the Philippines, the lack of clean water and unclean environments add risk to potentially fatal childhood diseases. ICM’s Home-Based Feeding program provides nutrient-enriched food packs to ensure malnourished children get additional food to regain normal weight and achieve optimum physical and mental development. After identifying a child as malnourished, staff and community volunteers make weekly visits to monitor this child’s progress. To help sustain the health of the child, ICM's professional staff educate the mother, guardian or other family members about proper nutrition, sanitation, hygiene and organic vegetable gardening.

$268raised
Fully funded