Gladys is a 48-year-oold small-scale farmer from the Kanungu District in Southwestern Uganda, near the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo. In her late 40s, she is known for her warm smile, caring nature, and sociable personality. She grew up as one of eight siblings—two brothers and five sisters. Unfortunately, her father did not prioritize education for girls, so Gladys and her sisters never attended school. Instead, she spent her childhood working on the family farm until she married at 18. Together with her husband, Gladys has two sons and six daughters, some of whom are still in school. The couple farms a small piece of land, using part of their harvest for home consumption and selling the rest to support their family. Ten years ago, Gladys began experiencing troubling symptoms, starting with a painless swelling on the front of her neck. Over time, the symptoms worsened, including shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, and painful swallowing. Although surgery was recommended at one point, she could not afford it. Recently, a friend told her about a surgical support program at our medical partner care center, Nyakibale Hospital. There, doctors conducted a thorough examination, including a scan and thyroid function tests, and diagnosed her with a non-toxic goiter. This condition affects the thyroid gland, which is located in the neck and plays a crucial role in regulating metabolism, growth, and other body functions. Without surgery, her symptoms could continue to worsen. Gladys is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on December 4th at Karoli Lwanga Hospital, where surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $252, and she and her family need support to raise the funds. Gladys says, “I am hopeful that with your support, I will be operated, will get well, and will surely continue farming in good health to sustain my family.”

Maria is a 67-year-old mother and retired policewoman from Malawi. She has five children, four sons, all with families of their own, and one daughter who just completed college. She lost her husband in 2008. She retired from the police service in 2022 but she is yet to receive her retirement package. Maria currently receives financial support from her sister. In her free time, she enjoys chatting with friends and enjoys eating nsima, a traditional porridge dish, served with beans. Forty five years ago, Maria began to experience troubling symptoms, including swelling in the neck, difficulty swallowing, loss of voice, an inability to carry items on her head, and choking at night. She has been to the hospital several times where tests were done. Maria was diagnosed with a goiter, which is the enlargement of the thyroid gland, which produces essential hormones for growth, metabolism, and other bodily functions. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, can help! Maria will undergo a thyroidectomy on June 4th. During this procedure, surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland and our medical partner is requesting $1,015 to fund this procedure. Maria said, “I have hope that I will get better after an operation and I am now ready for anything, my symptoms are overwhelming, and I can’t continue staying like this forever.”

Somary is a 15-year-old girl with five members in her family. She has two younger sisters, a nine-year-old in third grade and a two-year-old. Her parents are rice farmers in Kampong Cham province. In school, she likes science and would like to be a teacher when she is older. At home, she loves to read books. Several years ago, Somary developed a large tumor in her right thigh. She visited several hospitals and received different diagnoses. The most recent biopsy revealed a diagnosis of liposarcoma, a rare type of cancer that develops in fatty tissue. Liposarcoma is a malignant tumor, which means the cancer can spread to other areas, including vital organs. Somaly has pain and is very worried about what may happen to her. Another children's hospital recommended amputation, but her parents chose to have the tumor removed to save her leg and were referred to our medical partner, Children's Surgical Center. With ongoing medical treatment, doctors hope to prevent her tumor from growing back after a large excision. Somary and her family need help raising $726 to fund her procedure and care, including surgery, medications, post-op care, and rehabilitation. Somary said: "I hope that the tumor will be removed and also stop my pain. I don't want to lose my leg and would like to go back to school again."

Florence is a small scale farmer from Uganda. She travelled across eight districts to reach Nyakibale Hospital, seeking treatment. She was directed to the hospital by a program beneficiary, a bodaboda taxi driver who had faced a similar condition. She works as a farmer, cultivating food crops such as beans, maize, and potatoes primarily for home consumption. Any surplus from her harvest is sold to generate income for her family. Unfortunately, she never had the opportunity to receive an education due to a lack of school fees, which limits her employment options. Her husband is also a farmer, and they have six children, all currently pursuing their education. 24 years ago, Florence began to experience troubling symptoms, including a large anterior neck swelling. Initially, it was not painful, but over the last six years, she has been experiencing persistent headaches, heart palpitations, shoulder heaviness, and respiratory symptoms such as shortness of breath and difficulty breathing. Upon consultation with a doctor at Nyakibale Hospital, she underwent an examination and was subsequently advised to undergo a special scan. She was diagnosed with giant goiter and needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Florence receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on October 24 at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $252, and she and her family need help raising money. Florence says, “I hope to be relieved from the pain I have been having for 24 years and to gain a complete recovery.”

Chandy is a 56-year-old grandmother from Cambodia who lives with her husband and three of her four children. Her oldest child married last year and moved to a nearby village. Chandy and her husband are vegetable farmers, and they also help care for their grandchild when their daughter is at work. In her free time, Chandy enjoys listening to the radio and spending time with her family. Around fifteen years ago, Chandy had an ear infection. This infection caused her left ear's tympanic membrane, or the ear drum, to perforate. For this reason, Chandy experiences hearing loss, pain, and discharge. She feels embarrassed talking with other people, experiences frequent discomfort, and spends a lot of their income on numerous medicines from the pharmacy that don't help long-term. Chandy traveled to our medical partner's care center to receive treatment. On October 4th, she will undergo a myringoplasty procedure in her left ear. During this procedure, surgeons will close the perforation. Our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), is requesting $487 to fund this procedure, which covers medications, supplies, and inpatient care. Chandy said, "I hope I can stop this problem and improve my hearing so I can go out more and make it easier to care for my grandchild."

Sou is a 71-year-old retired vegetable seller from Kampong Thom province in Cambodia. He is married and has one son, three daughters, and four grandchildren. He lives with his wife and their children support their living. Sou said that he enjoys listening to monks pray at the local pagoda and listening to the news on the radio. Three years ago, Sou developed a cataract in his left eye and started to experience itchiness, tearing, and blurry vision. He has trouble staying outside due to light sensitivity and finds it difficult to do his usual activities. Now, Sou has difficulty seeing things clearly, including colors and faces, and is worried about falling when walking. Fortunately, our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), can help. When Sou learned about our CSC, he traveled for three hours seeking treatment. On June 6th, doctors at CSC's care center will perform cataract surgery on Sou and implant an intraocular lens in his left eye. After recovery, he will be able to see clearly. Now, he needs help to fund this $253 procedure. Sou said, "I hope after surgery for my eye I will feel happy and recognize relatives."

Bo is a resilient and bright 18-year-old student from Thailand. He is in grade ten. During his free time, he likes to spend time listening to music. In May 2021, Bo started to experience pain in his left arm. He was then diagnosed with osteosarcoma and had to undergo a left arm amputation in August 2021 with the help of Watsi. He underwent multiple rounds of chemotherapy, but in late 2022 the cancer had spread to his lungs. He has since undergone two surgeries to remove the tumors from his lungs, and he also received more chemotherapy. Since there are still some parts of his right lung where the cancer has spread, the doctor wants to perform a lobectomy (removal) of his right lung. Bo experiences shortness of breath which worsens during physical activity. He also feels exhausted since his last surgery a couple of months ago and undergoing several rounds of chemotherapy. Bo sought treatment through our medical partner Burma Children Medical Fund (BCMF) and is scheduled to undergo mass removal surgery on July 31st. BCMF is requesting $1,500 to cover the total cost of his procedure and care. "The only thing I can do is stay strong and think positive. Whenever I feel sad or depressed, I listen to music, sing a song, or talk to my parents,” said Bo.

Horn is a grandmother from Cambodia who is 87 years young. She has four sons, one daughter, and fifteen grandchildren. She and her husband live with their daughter, who is a teacher. For many years, Horn worked selling groceries from their house, but she has had to stop due to poor eyesight. At home, she likes to listen to monks pray on the radio. Six years ago, Horn developed a cataract in her right eye, causing her to experience light sensitivity and poor vision. She has difficulty seeing things clearly, including colors and faces, and is worried about falling when walking, so she is not able to go places on her own. She previously enjoyed walking to the pagoda with her husband, but she now fears that she will trip and fall because she is unable to see well. When Horn learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, she traveled for four and a half hours seeking treatment. On August 15th, doctors will perform a small incision cataract surgery and place an intraocular lens implant in her right eye. After recovery, she will be able to see clearly. Now, she needs help to fund this $253 procedure. Horn says, "I hope my vision improves and I can get around easily by myself."

Srey Net is a beautiful three-month-old newborn. She is the youngest of four siblings. She has a 15-year-old sister who dotes on her, a 9-year-old sister, and a 7-year-old brother. Her parents are farmers and grow rice. She loves to be rocked asleep in her mother's arms. Srey Net has clubfoot in her right foot, which is a condition in which the foot is twisted out of shape. This causes difficulty walking and wearing shoes, with pain and other complications arising later in life if the condition goes untreated. Fortunately, Srey Net traveled two and a half hours to visit our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC). There, surgeons will perform Achilles tendon tenotomy repair on September 19th. CSC is requesting $444 to fund Srey Net's clubfoot repair, which will improve her ability to learn to walk when she is older. Her mother said, "I am worried that Srey Net will have problems with her foot and I hope the doctors can help her."

James, a hardworking father of three children, works on casual labor jobs as a builder and often complements that with farming to earn a living for his family. His wife is a farmer. James desires to have his children go to school to the highest levels, which he missed out on while growing up. For about a year now, James has had a left inguinal hernia. The hernia causes him pain that he describes as needles and pins and this prevents him from working well. He visited Nyakibale Hospital and doctors have recommended surgery. He is not able to raise the funds needed and appeals for help. Fortunately, on May 4th, he will undergo hernia repair surgery at our medical partner's care center. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $230 to fund James's surgery. Once completed, this procedure will hopefully allow him to work more comfortably and confidently. James says: “I am the breadwinner to my family but with poor health, I am unable to work well. I hope to regain my health and continue providing for them.”

Mic is a 5-year-old, jovial boy, and the last born in a family of two children. When Mic was 3 years old, his mother noticed that one of his testicles was missing. However, due to insufficient funds, Mic was not taken to the doctor. Early last year, his grandmother then managed to gather some funds, and took Mic to a hospital. Mic was examined and diagnosed with cryptorchidism, a condition in which one or both of the testicles remains undescended. If left untreated, Mic has an increased risk of developing hernias, testicular cancer, and fertility problems in the future. He was referred to BethanyKids Hospital for treatment. Upon arrival, he was examined and booked for surgery. Mic's mother is a house helper abroad who unfortunately often doesn't get paid by her employer. Mic’s grandmother, who brought him to the facility had a shop in a nearby town but had to close it down due to the Covid-19 pandemic. She now sells charcoal in their home area where the income is very little. She can not raise the required funds for Mic’s surgery and is seeking for financial assistance. Mic will be receiving assistance from our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). Fortunately, he is scheduled to undergo corrective surgery on November 9th. AMHF is requesting $646 to cover the total cost of his procedure and care. Mic’s grandmother says, “I would really like to help my grandchild so that he cannot have problems in future."