Meet Abner, a four-year-old boy from Guatemala. Abner lives in a one room house with a tin roof. He is the youngest of three children. His mother takes care of Abner, cooks, cleans, and provides for the family. Unfortunately, they cannot afford to give Abner high-calorie and high-protein foods such as eggs and buy nutritious fruits. Abner's dad works as a messenger, but he only gets paid when there is work to do. Abner's family are often left without an income sometimes for days at a time. Abner was diagnosed with acute malnutrition. He is below the average height and the average weight for his age. He is currently not consuming enough calories and enough quality foods. As a result his physical growth is stunted, and we worry his mental growth will be stunted as well. As a result of food insecurity and marginalization, indigenous Guatemalan villages have the highest rates of stunting in the world. In addition to growth stunting, malnutrition can lead to lower IQ, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. $512 will fund the treatment Abner needs to address his nutritional deficit and improve his low energy and subsequent limited mental potential. This involves micronutrient and food supplementation, deworming medication to rid Abner of a parasitic infection, and nutrition education for his parents. With these combined efforts, Abner will recoup his weight and height and strengthen his immune system, laying the foundation for a healthier future. "I am very worried about my son because he is not gaining weight," Abner's mother shares. "We have fought for him, but we haven't gotten any results. Nevertheless, we are hopeful."

"Vannak is a three-year-old boy with one brother. He enjoys playing with toy cars and playing with other children around his home. He traveled 2 hours with his mom to reach CSC for treatment," reports our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC). "Vannak touched an electrical socket on April 17, 2016 and burned his hand. The electricity burn caused a contracture of the middle finger on his right hand. It is difficult for him to hold anything with that hand," continues CSC. With $280, Vannak can receive surgery that will allow him to regain his hand's mobility. "Surgeons will perform a release procedure and an FTSG (full thickness skin graft) to treat the burn contracture. He will be able to move his fingers easily and use his right hand once he heals," explains CSC. Let's help Vannak get back to a childhood in which he is free from obstacles to his health.

Delia lives with her family in a one-room adobe house with a tin roof in Guatemala. Her father works as a farmer, who cultivates corn and green beans. Her mother takes care of her and weaves traditional Mayan textiles, which she sells in the local market. Delia loves to play with her rattle and her teddy bear with her older sister. She absolutely loves to eat scrambled eggs and güicoy, a type of squash, but eating is difficult with her cleft lip and palate, which makes it hard for her to gain weight without access to high-protein foods and micronutrient supplements. Delia was supposed to receive surgery to repair her cleft lip and palate three weeks ago, but doctors told her that she was too malnourished to receive the surgery. Her weight is far too low for her size, weakening her immune system, and making even a bout of diarrhea or a fever life-threatening. Her neurodevelopment is also slowing due to her malnutrition, which makes it hard to reach key developmental milestones such as learning to sit on her own. Growth monitoring, micronutrients, food supplementation, and deworming medication will help Delia gain weight, grow taller, catch up with other children her age, and help her grow stronger. Treating her now will have a large impact. She will likely be able to reach developmental milestones just like healthy kids her age. This treatment will strengthen her immune system, increase her overall caloric intake, and provide her with more energy to play. Her parents will receive the support they need to give Delia the diet she needs to grow and develop. They will receive motivational nutrition classes to learn what, when, and how to feed Delia the best diet possible. This will give Delia the chance to live a healthy and productive life. "We want her to grow better and go to school," Delia's mother said.

Neftali often suffers from malnutrition. He is far below the average weight for his age and height for his age. His immune system is weak and his diet consists primarily of tortillas and starchy vegetables. His mother already knew his child was stunted but never has received treatment or consult on how to improve Neftali’s health. Without intervention Neftali’s immune system will continue to weaken, and his growth physically and mentally will be stunted. Mental delays in development will become apparent and this will limit his ability to succeed academically and will lower his economic productivity - malnutrition is strongly associated with decreased academic performance and low economic productivity. If he continues to get sick often, his mother will have to continue to stay home to care for Neftali, rather than attend market to sell blouses. Neftali’s family cannot afford to buy fruits, vegetables, or sources of protein (eggs) regularly. Neftali lives with his parents and 3 siblings (ages 6, 4, 3 years old) in an adobe mud house with a metal lamina roof and dirt floor. His mother sells blouses at market, and his father is a corn farmer. He is a very attentive little girl, taking notice of everything that goes on around her. He loves to play with anyone he meets and his favorite foods are rice and eggs, although his mother says that she currently cannot afford 1 egg per day for her son. This treatment will provide Neftali with micronutrient and food supplementation as well as medication to prevent gastrointestinal infection. She will start to recoup the height and weight he has lost and her immune system will improve. She will have more energy to concentrate and succeed in school and her physical and mental development will improve. Her mother will receive the education she needs to supply the best nutrition possible to her child. She will feel confident in her abilities, and perhaps will be able to apply what she learns to the health of her next child, thus preventing malnutrition all together.

Votey is a 14-month-old girl with one brother. She enjoys playing with her brother and with her dolls. Votey traveled two hours with her mother to reach Watsi's medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), for treatment. Votey was born with a deformity of her left hand and both her feet. She has a constriction band of the second, third, and fourth fingers on her left hand, of three toes on her right foot, and of four toes on her left foot. Constriction band syndrome occurs in the womb, and is when the baby becomes entangled in amniotic bands. It leads to the restriction of blood flow and can affect the baby's physical development. Her diagnosis is a congenital abnormality that can be corrected with surgery. Surgeons will perform syndactyly repair surgery to release the constriction bands and improve the appearance and functionality of her hand and feet. The treatment will cost $321 and will allow Votey to grow and develop normally.