Fedline is a ten-year-old student who enjoys going to school and spending time with her family and friends. Fedline lives in a very rural area in the mountains of southwestern Haiti. She hikes down a trail to reach a larger community. Fedline was born with a cardiac condition called atrial septal defect, a condition which a hole exists between the two upper chambers of her heart. Blood leaks through this hole without first passing through the lungs to obtain oxygen. Fedline needs to undergo surgery to repair her heart. First, Fedline will undergo a full cardiac assessment on January 17. This assessment will include physical exams, labs, and an overnight stay at the hospital. Our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance, is requesting $1,500 to fund these procedures. Funding for Redline also covers the cost of medications and social support for her and her family. Gift of Life International is contributing $3,500 to cover additional costs associated with Fedline's surgical care. "We are very happy that Fedline can have this surgery, so that she can have more energy and not get tired so often," says Fedline's mother.

Shoni is a 15-month-old baby boy from Uganda. According to his mother, Faidah, he has not been eating properly for the last month. He was taken to the local health center, where he was diagnosed with severe malnutrition. Malnutrition is very treatable. Therapeutic milk products and micronutrients will help Shoni recover. Treatment will help him gain weight and strengthen his immune system. Shoni is scheduled to begin treatment on January 15. Shoni is a very active boy who enjoys music, dancing, and playing with others. He is just beginning to talk. He is the only child of Joshua, a farmer, and Faidah, a tailor. They cannot afford the hospital and treatment fees. Our medical partner, The Kellermann Foundation, is requesting $316 to fund this treatment. “Both Joshua and I are orphans, so we don’t have any family to turn to," says Faidah. "The help from the donors means so much. Please thank them.”

Sikenala is a 74-year-old man from a village in Malawi. He runs a small maize and groundnut farm with his nine children. Sikenala's wife recently passed away, a few grandchildren have moved in with him to help on the farm. In his free time, he enjoys reading his Bible. Five years ago, Sikenala developed a painful hernia. His family could not afford treatment, so he managed the pain on his own. Fortunately, he recently visited our medical partner's hospital, Nkhoma Hospital. There, he underwent a hernia repair surgery on December 8. Our medical partner, World Altering Medicine, is requesting $327 to fund this procedure. Sikenala looks forward to farming without pain. "I give thanks to the doctor and for Watsi for coming to Nkhoma," he says.

Khom is a 55-year-old rice farmer from Cambodia. She likes to watch Khmer dramas on television and listen to the news on the radio. Khom developed a cataract in each eye about one year ago, causing her blurred vision, tearing, irritation, and photophobia, or extreme sensitivity to light. She has difficulty seeing objects, recognizing faces, doing her work, and going places by herself. To seek treatment, Khom traveled two hours to a facility run by Watsi's medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC). On October 26, doctors at CSC performed a small incision cataract surgery on each of Khom's eyes, removing her clouded lenses and replacing them with clear, intraocular lens implants. Khom requires financial support to cover the $292 procedure. After recovery, she will be relieved of her symptoms and be able to see clearly again. "I hope that I can see more clearly than now so that I can continue my work in the rice fields, do housework, and go anywhere by myself," says Khom. Let's help fund this operation for Khom!

Lengai is a four-month-old baby boy from Tanzania. He is the second of his parents' two children. His parents are pastoralist subsistence farmers in the hills. Lengai was born at home and was seemingly healthy until his head started swelling when he was about two weeks old. Since then, his head has continued to swell and the resulting pressure on his brain has caused his eyes to drift, and other motor functions to be affected. His head is also very heavy and it is difficult for him to hold it up. Lengai has hydrocephalus, a build-up of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain. Hydrocephalus is treatable if the condition is treated early before any ongoing damage is done on the brain from the swelling. Lengai's parents did not know what to do, but his father was advised by the parent of a previous patient of the Plaster House, a Watsi partner center, to go there for surgery and rehabilitation. $775 will cover the costs of the surgery and care Lengai needs. It is hoped that with the release of pressure on the brain that Lengai's condition will be reversed.

Neema was born on August 10, 2016 in Tanzania with multiple deformities, including a lesion on her lower back, which was leaking cerebrospinal fluid, and bilateral clubfeet. Neema’s mother knew she was supposed to take her baby to the hospital for treatment, but she had no money to do so and so she stayed with her at home, caring for the wound on her back for a month. When Neema turned two months, her mother noticed that the size of her head was slowly increasing. She had no way but to ask her neighbors to help her with at least bus fare, so that she could take Neema to the hospital. Neema’s mother was in great pain when she saw that her baby was born with multiple deformities, and Neema's father unfortunately left them. Neema’s mother used to work at peoples’ farms growing some onions and was paid at the end of the day, but now she cannot do anything. She relies on her little sister to support her and the baby, but it is not easy for her little sister because she also has her own family. Neema’s mother desperately needs financial support so that her daughter can receive the right treatment. For $1,200, Neema will undergo surgery at Arusha Lutheran Medical Centre where a shunt will help reduce the increased intracranial pressure and prevent Neema from completely losing her eyesight. “I have been praying to get a baby girl and truly I am blessed with one, but she has so many problems. I just hope she will get better and at least be able to walk later on,” said Neema’s mother.

Kyle is a seven-month-old baby living in Kenya with his parents. Immediately after birth, Kyle underwent surgery to remove a swelling mass on his lower back. He was underweight, and spent the first month living in the nursery while he recovered. Kyle's mother was forced to quit her job to care for Kyle while he was being treated. Kyle's father works as a graphic designer, but is not fully established yet. At three months of age, Kyle became irritable and his head over-grew his body. Kyle was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, a congenital condition where there is excessive accumulation cerebral fluid in the head that causes increasing pressure and swelling. He had a shunt inserted in his head to drain the excess fluid, but three weeks later he developed an infection. He spent the following three months hospitalized to fight the infection. The shunt had been removed, and now he is fully recovered from the infection, however he now needs another shunt to ease the cranial pressure he continues to experience. If not treated, accumulation of cerebral spinal fluid may cause brain damage. Kyle has lost some weight due to frequent vomiting and he seems irritable due to the high intra-cranial pressure exerted on the brain. His parents have exhausted their savings on his treatment thus far for his original surgery, hydrocephalus, and infection, and are still repaying debts from their friends. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, tells us that for $615, Kyle can receive the procedure he needs to reduce risk of brain damage. The total cost also covers the medications, supplies, imaging, and five days of inpatient care. “I really hope that my son will get a shunt that will work this time around," Kyle's mother shares. "We have done all we could, and now all is left is to pray and hope that this is the last time he will be admitted because it hurts so much to see him cry in anguish."

Bethwel is a newborn baby from Kenya who's not quite two weeks old. "He naps calmly on his young mother’s lap," says our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). Bethwel was born with congenital hydrocephalus, a condition where excess cerebrospinal fluid accumulates on his brain. "Bethwel has an abnormal head size due to accumulation of cerebral spinal fluid in the brain. If not treated, accumulation of cerebral spinal fluid may cause brain damage," AMHF says. Surgery to treat Bethwel will cost $615. Doctors will install a shunt in his brain, which will drain the excess fluid to be re-absorbed elsewhere in the body. This live-saving procedure will prevent brain damage and reduce Bethwel's head swelling. "Bethwel's mother is fifteen years old, she was orphaned at a very tender age," AMHF says. "Bethwel's father abandoned them when he learnt that she was expectant ... Bethwel’s mother depends fully on Bethwel's grandparents who are subsistence farmers with no other source of income. They are therefore not able to raise the funds required for Bethwel's surgical care, which according to the doctor is urgent." “I am glad my son was diagnosed and now we know what we are fighting!" Bethwel's mother says. "If only we could raise the funds required for his treatment. I am dependent on my grandparents and they are aged and so they cannot help much. I will appreciate any help accorded to Bethwel."

"I hope I can recognize faces of everyone clearly and that I can help my daughter do some work at home," says Toy, a 76-year-old Cambodian man. "I'd like to visit my children in Phnom Penh too." Toy developed a cataract in each eye one year ago, which causes him blurred vision, burning, irritation, tearing, and sensitivity to sunlight. He traveled three hours with his daughter to reach Watsi's medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), for treatment. Toy is married with fours sons, six daughters, and seven grandchildren. He enjoys visiting the pagoda to listen to the monks pray. Toy cannot afford the $225 procedure that will allow him to return to the activities that he enjoys and recognize the people around him. Doctors at CSC will perform a phacoemulsification surgery on Toy's eyes, during which they will break apart and remove the clouded lenses and replace them with clear implant lenses. After the operation and a brief hospital stay, Toy will be able to see clearly again.

Edwin is a 17-month-old baby boy and the last-born in a family of two children. The family lives in a one room rental house in Kenya. Edwin’s father is a security guard in an estate near their home while his mother was a cleaner before she quit to care for Edwin. Edwin was born with a leaking mass swelling on his lower back that has been growing in size. To prevent infections from the leaking, Edwin has required dressing changes for the swelling. His parents were advised to seek for specialized treatment and went to a government hospital, but the wait became unbearable as their case kept getting postponed. Finally, a friend advised them to visit African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). A surgery to correct the open spina bifida is required to avoid the risks of infection or the development of a tethered cord. These complications can lead to either scolisis or kyphosis, and loss of muscle function of the lower limbs. Edwin's parents have contributed $73 towards their son's treatment, but are not able to raise all the money needed for their son's treatment. To cover the cost of treatment, they need $805. “Please help my son get treated," Edwin's father shares.

Phalla is a 43-year-old construction worker who enjoys reading the newspaper. He is married with one daughter. Phalla traveled 90 minutes to reach Children's Surgical Centre, our medical partner in Cambodia, with his wife. Phalla developed a pterygium, or noncancerous cyst, in each eye 10 years ago. This causes him burning, irritation, itchiness, and tearing. He can't easily do his work, or feel confident when he goes outside because of the cysts on his eye. $150 will fund the surgery he needs to remove the growths. After a pterygium excision surgery, the cysts will be removed from his eyes and the burning will be relieved. Phalla hopes that after surgery, he will feel more comfortable than he does now. He will be able to continue his work in construction and he will not have to worry about future problems with his eye.

Charles is a 24-year-old former student living with his mother and father in Kenya. Charles graduated from college with a degree in Information Technology in 2014. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, tells us that in June 2014, Charles’s parents were burglarized by armed robbers. Charles attempted to intervene, and both he and his mother were fired upon and seriously injured. Charles’s mother took a bullet to her hand, and has lost the ability to use it. Charles sustained a fracture in his left lower leg that has developed into a nonunion. He currently walks with crutches, and has a significant amount of pain and numbness in his left leg. His father is employed as a driver, and his mother used to sell vegetables. His older sibling is unemployed, and does little support the family. Charles has found that his injury has been preventing him from securing a job that pays enough to afford treatment. He has been reduced to a dependent of his parents. His parents have been attempting to save for treatment as well, but their household income has seen a large deficit since his mother is injured as well. His family has decided that the priority treatment should be for Charles’s nonunion fracture so that he work a higher-paid job and support the family. “I would like to get well,” Charles shares, “and be able to walk on my so I can support my mum’s treatment, too.” A nonunion fracture is a serious complication that develops if a fracture moves too much to stall or halt normal healing. In most cases, if a fracture has not been treated after six months, then orthopedic surgical intervention is necessary. Charles needs an open reduction internal fixation procedure to repair his leg. The procedure includes the insertion of steel rods, screws, or plates to keep the fracture stable during healing. After his cast is removed, Charles will undergo physical therapy to regain his strength. Charles’s family is in need of financial assistance. $1,410 will cover the cost of treatment he needs, in addition to his family's contribution of $210. Without treatment, Charles is exposed to risks of infection that may result in amputation. His leg deteriorates further the longer he is untreated. After his treatment, Charles’s pain will eventually be resolved, and he will be able to walk and work again. Let's help make it happen!