Two-year-old Alyn lives with her parents and her older sister in a one-room cinderblock house in Guatemala. Her favorite thing to do is to play with her dolls and plastic tea set with her older sister. Alyn’s parents are worried because they have noticed their daughter is getting sick more often than the other children in their village, and won’t eat any food that isn’t a liquid. Alyn’s poor appetite, weak immune system, and slow growth are due to acute malnutrition. These symptoms all make it likelier that Alyn will have lower-paying job as an adult and will also raise children with malnutrition. However, Alyn’s parents cannot currently afford to feed her the vegetables and protein that she needs in order to escape the acute stage of malnutrition that she has fallen into. Although Alyn’s parents work hard as a seamstress and day laborer, together they make only about a couple dollars per day. For $512, we can help Alyn recover. She will receive food supplements, deworming medication, and lab tests that will ensure she develops at a healthy pace, both mentally and physically. Her parents will also receive motivational nutrition education so they can learn how to best feed Alyn on their budget. If Alyn receives treatment now, she will be able to have normal mental and physical development, giving her a better chance to be a successful student and to one day be qualified for a well-paying job. “We dream that our daughter will be a great teacher,” shares Alyn’s mother.

Aye Win is a 36-year-old woman who lives in a village in Burma. She lives with her mother and two children, a son and daughter. Aye Win sells snacks in her village and earns about 3,000 Kyat (approx. 3 USD) per day. She is the sole supporter for her family. The income is enough to cover daily expenses and basic medical care when necessary, but is not enough to save any money. Four years ago was a very difficult time for Aye Win. In the span of a few months, her six-month-old child and her husband passed away. She developed two masses in a sensitive area that have grown now to the size of a grapefruit. They are very uncomfortable, and make it difficult for Aye Win to function in her daily life. $1,500 will fund the surgery Aye Win needs to remove the masses, which cause her numbness, headaches, weight loss, and abdominal pain. "I hope to get surgery so I can live a normal life and return to my work," Aye Win shared. "I want to be an agriculture day laborer in the future to make more money for my family."

Innocent is a six-year-old boy from a village in Malawi, where he lives with his mother. He loves playing outside with his friends and going to school. For three years, Innocent has had an inguinal (groin) hernia, where soft tissue bulges through a weak point in the abdominal muscles. He has not been able to access treatment for his hernia, which causes pain and decreases his energy. This makes it hard for him to participate in school. Innocent and his family have known others to undergo hernia repairs so they do not feel afraid. They are ready for him to have the surgery and feel better. $327 will cover the costs of the surgery and care Innocent needs.

Kedress is a 50-year-old woman from Uganda. Kedress and her husband have a large family with eleven children, six of whom still live at home. Her husband is a small farmer, working on his own land. He primarily grows cassava and bananas from which he makes a local beer to sell. Until she became sick, Kedress was able to help him in the fields, but has not been able to do heavy work for several years. She still makes “isombe” though, a local dish made from the greens of the cassava plant. Kedress has suffered from abnormal uttering bleeding and fibroids since the birth of her last child seven years ago. Since last May, the pain and bleeding have become so severe that they have made it difficult for her to even do daily activities at home. She is too tired and gets dizzy. Kedress’ doctors have recommended a complete hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus and cervix) to relieve her suffering. $321 will cover the cost of the hysterectomy and care Kedress needs. Having surgery and being pain-free will mean that Kedress will be able to walk to church again, where she enjoys singing and dancing. She also looks forward to being able to spend more time with her grandchildren. Kedress shared, “I am looking forward to getting well and appreciate so much all the donors helping me.”

Born less than one month ago, Quinel lives with her parents and older sister in a one-room rental house in Kenya. Her mother is a housewife, and her father is employed casually as a carpenter. Quinel was born with a cystic mass on her lower back. Her condition—known as spina bifida—is a birth defect in which several vertebrae in the lower back do not close properly, leaving the baby’s spinal canal exposed. The spinal cord and its surrounding membranes protrude through the opening in the backbone, forming a sac on the baby’s lower back. Without treatment, Quinel is at a risk of acquiring infections and experiencing delayed physical development. In children with spina bifida, the exposed spinal canal allows the spinal cord to attach to other tissues in the lower back. The cord can become tethered to those tissues and cannot move freely within the spinal canal, leading to back or leg pain, weakness or numbness of the legs or feet, and difficulty standing or walking. Doctors immediately referred Quinel for specialized treatment at BethanyKids Kijabe Hospital to save her from the effects that come with the condition. At BethanyKids, an immediate operation is required at a cost, but Quinel’s parents are not able to raise the funds required for her surgical care. For $1097, Quinel will undergo a surgical procedure to place her spinal cord back inside the spinal canal and close the opening on her back. Funding for Quinel also covers the costs of a ten-day hospital stay, three days of physical therapy, imaging, lab tests, and medicine. "It's a tough battle, but I believe we will get through," share Quinel's mother. "My utmost prayer is that Quinel gets treated."

Cliton is a one-year old baby boy that lives with his grandmother in Uganda. Cliton's great-aunt Agness was concerned about his health, and brought him to the hospital to get help. He has wasting malnutrition accompanied by fevers, weakness, and lethargy. For $316, Cliton will be treated for malnutrition. Besides food and nutritional counseling, the hospital will work with the family to make sure Cliton has the right support when he goes home. Cliton's great-aunt Agness loves Cliton, and will help take care of him after he comes home. She will make sure he get the right food and nutrition. Agness says, “Thank you so much for the help. I was so worried about Cliton and now I have hope for him.”

Colleter is a farmer from a village in Malawi's Central Region. She lives with her husband, nearby their five children and seven grandchildren. Besides farming, Colleter supports her family in many ways, including fetching firewood, cooking, and washing clothes. When she is not busy, she enjoys spending time chatting with her kids. Unfortunately, Colleter learned three months ago that she has cervical cancer. Malawi has one of the tops rates of cervical cancer in the world for various reasons, but many communities do not have access to screening. Luckily for her, Nkhoma Hospital and their surrounding clinics provide exceptional cervical cancer screening services, and Colleter was diagnosed. In cases like hers, a hysterectomy is the best form of treatment. For Colleter, this will be a life saving procedure. She and her family have accepted her need for surgery, and she is looking forward to returning home to her farm and her family.

Vastina is a 30-year-old mother of two from Uganda. Vastina and her husband are subsistence farmers in a village. They grow cassava, beans, groundnuts, and millet. Her husband also works making bricks to earn a living for the family. Vastina used to weave mats to get to help support the family, but now is in such discomfort, cannot work, even at weaving. When she is feeling better, Vastina enjoys listening to the radio, especially health, religious, and family strengthening programs. Vastina also enjoys playing with her children after school and on Sundays. Three years ago, Vastina's uterus partially prolapsed after delivering her first child. Because she was still young and wanted more children, Vastina was advised to wait and see if her uterus could recover. Fortunately, she was able to conceive again and her second child was born a few months ago. However, after this delivery, her uterus prolapsed completely. Vastina now needs a complete hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus and cervix). Vastina and her husband cannot afford to pay for Vastina’s surgery. $321 will cover the costs of the surgery and care Vastina needs. Let's help raise the funds! Vastina says, “I would like to thank all the donors for supporting me and I pray to God to bless them."

Joselin is a seventy-year-old subsistence farmer from Uganda. She grows sweet potatoes and also keeps four goats from which she gets milk to sell. During her free time, Joselin weaves baskets, which she also sells. However, it is currently a dry season and she cannot easily get the raw materials. Joselin has suffered from uterine prolapse since 1968. Joselin now requires a hysterectomy to remove her uterus and cervix. $321 will cover the costs of the surgery and care Joselin needs. After this surgery, she hopes to feel normal again and get involved in her community activities. She also hopes to support other women who have the same challenges. “I thank the people supporting me to get this life changing surgery and treatment, I cannot manage the cost by myself. May God bless you abundantly," says Joselin.

Annah is a 40-year-old single mother from Uganda. She is a subsistence farmer and grows cassava, potatoes, and beans. She has been diagnosed with cervical cancer, which is fortunately in the early stages and can be treated by having a hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus and cervix). Annah started showing symptoms, including severe pain, five months ago. This has made it difficult for her to work. Besides her son, she is the only support for her younger sisters. She is not able to afford the surgery she needs. When she is not working, Annah enjoys meeting friends in community savings groups ("Bataka Groups"), which encourage savings and community development. After school and on Sundays, she and her nine-year-old son play and dance traditional songs. Annah also enjoys singing in church and listening to health programs over the radio. When she came to the hospital to learn what was wrong, Annah was told about the Watsi program and how it could help her get the treatment she needs. $321 will cover the costs of the life-saving surgery and care Annah needs. Annah says, “I would like to thank all the donors for supporting me. It has been a gift from God”.

Lydia is a 56-year-old woman from Uganda. Lydia and her husband have six children, two of whom still live at home. They are small scale farmers, working on their own land. They grow bananas and beans, selling the surplus of the harvest. Before her condition worsened, Lydia was able to help him in the fields. For the past five years, Lydia has suffered from abnormal uttering bleeding. Since July, the pain and bleeding have become so severe it has made it difficult for her to do daily activities at home. Lydia's doctor has recommended a complete hysterectomy (surgical removal of the uterus and cervix) to relieve her suffering. $321 will cover the costs of the surgery and care Lydia needs. Having surgery and being pain-free will allow to Lydia walk easily to church, where she is a parish cell leader and enjoys singing and dancing. Lydia also looks forward to growing food next season since she was unable to help this season. Lydia shared, “I am looking forward to getting well grow food to support my family since to me every earning comes from hard work on the farm. I appreciate the donors for the love and compassion they have for needy people to also have access to quality health care at Bwindi Hospital.”

19-month-old Maria lives with her five-year-old brother and mother in a rented room in Guatemala. Maria's mother used to work selling tea in the market, but due to Maria's special needs, she has had to quit and is dependent on her in-laws for money and for the small room in which they live. Maria's mother says that Maria's favorite things are to listen to classical music and to watch the world around her. Maria previously received treatment for acute malnutrition thanks to Watsi donors. She has recovered well, and is nearing a normal weight and height for her age. Now that she has grown bigger and stronger, and her life is no longer in danger, she is in need of physical and speech therapy to catch up on developmental milestones that she has missed out on because of poor nutrition and because of microcephalus that she was born with. Microcephalus is a condition in which a baby's head is significantly smaller than expected, often due to abnormal brain development. Despite being over a year and a half old, she cannot sit up on her own - a developmental milestone that most healthy children reach by six months of age. She has not begun to speak yet, either, and is in need of special therapy to help her develop mentally and gain motor skills. This treatment, which costs $452, will give Maria intensive speech and physical therapy for six months, helping her to catch up with developmental milestones, and helping her become more independent. This treatment will help Maria develop the strength to sit up on her own, turn over, and crawl, and help her learn to communicate.