Seven-year-old Jonenskia was born with a cardiac condition called ventricular septal defect, in which a hole exists between the two lower chambers of her heart. “Blood flows through the hole in her heart without first passing through the lungs to get oxygen, leaving her sickly and short of breath,” says our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance (HCA). “Because she has lived for so long with this condition, there is a chance it may no longer be repairable, but the only way to determine this is by inserting a catheter into the chambers of her heart. Since this is not possible in Haiti, arrangements are being made to bring her to Dominican Republic to perform this extremely important test in the hopes that she can have heart surgery later in the year.” Jonenskia lives in Port-au-Prince with her mother, father, and three sisters. Her father works in construction and her mother stays home with the children. She is in primary school and likes going to school and playing with her friends. "We are praying to God that Jonenskia can have an operation so that we don't have to worry about her heart anymore,” her mother says. With $1,500 we can fully fund Jonenskia’s travel, transportation, and diagnostic procedure to help move her treatment forward.

Meet, Alinafe, a one-year old baby girl living in Malawi. To support the family, “Alinafe’s mother runs a small scale business to earn their living,” shares our medical partner, World Altering Medicine (WAM). At a crucial point in her early childhood development, Alinafe has experienced growth issues as a result of a condition called hydrocephalus. Alinafe was brought to WAM’s clinic when her mother observed a growth on her head. A medical examination confirmed the diagnosis of hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is a rare neurological medical condition caused by a fluid buildup in a localized area of the brain. Without intervention, the pressure and fluid buildup can lead to long term health complications, especially throughout important stages of childhood development. At this point, Alinafe is beginning to have problems with her vision and is experiencing issues with walking. With, $992, Alinafe will undergo surgery to drain the excess fluid from her brain. This procedure will be done by means of an endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV), which will naturally drain out the blocked fluid. In addition to her operation, Alinafe will receive seven days of hospitalized care as well as all of the necessary preoperative and postoperative examinations required for a safe surgery. This procedure is expected to have a great impact on Alinafe’s childhood growth and overall health, allowing her to “regain her sight and start walking again,” comments WAM. “I am hopeful to have the surgery done,” Alinfe’s mother shares.

Meet Richard, a cute, one-year old baby boy from Tanzania. Richard likes to play with cars and crawl around. He is an only child and his parents “love him very much," says our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). Richard was born with bilateral clubfoot. This congenital deformity has delayed his ability to begin walking, and if not treated, Richard will not have the ability to walk on the sole of his foot or wear normal shoes. For $1,160, we can fund treatment that will allow Richard to walk normally for the rest of his life. The cost of the treatment includes cost for the surgery as well as a fiberglass cast. Richard's parents are small-scale farmers and have “already spent a lot of money trying to look for the right treatment for their son without success. Now that they have found where the clubfoot can be corrected, they do not have enough funds to cover the treatment,” says our partner, AMHF. Let's help Richard get walking. As Richard's mother says, “I would like my son to be able to walk, go to school, study well, get a good career and live a better life.”