Three-year-old Neymarah lives in Haiti with her mother, who works as a tailor, and her grandmother. She likes to help her mother prepare the fabric for the school uniforms that she makes. Our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance (HCA), tells us, “Neymarah was born with a condition called complete atrioventricular canal defect, in which blood mixes between all four chambers of the heart without fully obtaining oxygen. This leaves her weak and out of breath and would eventually be fatal.” Neymarah needs surgery to create two functioning valves between the upper and lower chambers on both sides of the heart and to place patches over the existing defects (holes). “Following surgery,” says HCA, “Neymarah should have normal circulation restored to her heart. She should not need further surgery in the future.” For $1500, HCA will provide the overseas preparation and transportation required for Neymarah’s surgery. MECENAT is donating $5000 to cover the remaining treatment costs. Neymarah is excited to start preschool after surgery. Her mother shares, "I want Neymarah to be able to walk to and from school like the other children."

Meet Sunnary, a 55-year-old Cambodian woman who loves everything from cooking to watching her favorite Khmer dramas on TV. Sunnary used to enjoy these activities regularly, but since she developed glaucoma her vision has rapidly deteriorated, making it difficult for her to perform even her most basic daily chores. "Sunnary has blurred vision in both eyes due to glaucoma. Her eyes burn and is often painful," our medical partner Children's Surgical Center tells us. "She is unhappy that she cannot care and cook for her family as she used to, and has had to stop selling goods in the market to earn an income." She misses cooking, and most of all misses watching her favorite shows, but cannot afford the cost to treat her glaucoma. For $300, Sunnary will be able to undergo surgery to treat her glaucoma and reverse her vision loss. This operation will not only restore Sunnary's vision and ability to resume her routine, it will also eliminate the pain and burning she's experienced for so long.

Meet Duesi! This three-year-old boy from Uganda loves to run around with his hand-made soccer ball. Duesi's doctor at our partner The Kellermann Foundation tells us, "He lives in a mud house near a farm where his family harvests the local crops, which is a four hour walk away from the hospital. His mother and father hope to enroll him into nursery in two years, so he can learn English and get a better education than they received.” Duesi recently lost his appetite and become malnourished as a result. He no longer has the stamina to play outside with his sister. His doctor says, "Along with an unhealthy amount of weight loss he is also very irritable, fatigued, and has a high temperature; also, he has poor dentition due to a micro-nutrient deficiency. Without immediate treatment Deusi will become underdeveloped and possibly die.” For just $375, Duesi will receive treatment for malnutrition designed to get him back in good health. His doctor says, “Treatment will save Duesi’s life and get him back on developmental track. His sister and he can finally go home and once again play and chase each other around with a soccer ball and dig holes. Duesi will be able to go to school in two years and hopefully fulfill his parents' dream of learning English.”

Recently Lengai was bitten by a snake while exploring in the bush. "...ever since the incident the condition of his hand has been getting worse despite being taken to the local dispensary," AMHF writes. "Lengai’s mother has spent so much money that she can no longer afford to pay for further treatment of her son’s hand." Meet Lengai from Tanzania. He's four-years-old and the youngest of three children. Lengai's mother is a farmer and has been the sole caretaker of her children since her husband passed away two years ago. "Although he is shy and afraid of people he doesn’t know, he very quickly makes friends after sitting with a person for a while," the AMHF team tells us about Lengai. "He likes being close to his mother and when with children of his age, he likes to run around with them playing games that they know." $780 will cover the cost of an amputation of Lengai's little finger and skin grafting so that he will be able to have full function of his hand. Let's help this little guy out.