Samnang is a four-year-old boy from Cambodia. His favorite foods are fried chicken and milk, and he loves to paint, go for walks with his family, and watch cartoons. Samnang was born with a congenital condition that resulted in a fractured lower right leg. It is difficult for him to walk normally and be fitted for shoes. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, can help. On February 26th, Samnang will undergo a fracture repair procedure, which will cost $465. Treatment will help to heal his fracture and bones in alignment, and allow him to walk and grow up without difficulty. "I have tried to find treatment for my son for a long time and it has been very difficult. I hope that my son's condition will be able to be corrected and my son will get better." -Samnang's Mother

Anna is a 44-year-old woman from Uganda. She and her husband grow food for their family on rented land and also work on other farms in the community to earn extra money. Anna is active woman who likes to go on walks around her village and in the hills when she is not working. She is also considered an expert weaver in her village, making mats, baskets, and wall hangings. Anna is currently pregnant with her second child. Since she is considered to have a high-risk pregnancy because of her age and because her baby is lying in a transverse position, it is recommended that Anna give birth to her child by cesarean section. Anna is scheduled to undergo her c-section delivery on May 21, and our medical partner, The Kellermann Foundation, is asking for $333 to cover the total cost of her procedure. After delivery, Anna wants to start a small shop so she can earn money while keeping her baby with her. Anna says, “Thank you so much for the good spirit of helping others. I will ask God to bless them abundantly in all they do.”

Steven is a 10-year-old fourth grade student from the Dominican Republic. He lives with his mother, brothers, and grandparents. His favorite subject in school is science, and he hopes to be a doctor one day. When not studying, Steven likes to play soccer with his brothers. Steven was was born with a cardiac condition called ventricular septal defect, in which a hole exists between the two lower chambers of his heart. As a result, blood leaks through this hole without first passing through the lungs to obtain oxygen, leaving Steven feeling sickly and weak. On February 7, Steven will visit our medical partner's care center, Hospital Pediatrico Robert Reid Cabral, for a cardiac assessment that includes exams, labs, and an overnight stay at the hospital. Our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance, is asking for $1,500 to fund his cardiac assessment, as well as his medications and social support. Gift of Life International is contributing $7,000 to cover additional costs associated with Steven's surgical care. "I am happy to have surgery so that afterward I will be able to run as fast as my oldest brother!" says Steven.

Mu is a fifteen-year-old girl from Burma. She lives with her aunt, uncle, and three cousins. Her aunt and uncle run their own shop that sells drinks and juices, where Mu and her youngest brother also work. Her parents have their own farm where they grow rice. They are all currently saving money in order to buy a house. In her spare time, Mu enjoys reading fictional stories. Four years ago, Mu started to feel pain in her stomach. Despite the pain, she did not visit a hospital or clinic. Last July, a heavy object fell on Mu's stomach. Her aunt brought her to the hospital, where she was told that she had a mass of blood in her abdomen. In other words, Mu had a hemangioma, a benign tumor made up of a bundle of blood vessels. Per the doctor's recommendation, Mu visited our medical partner's care center. Now, she is scheduled to undergo surgery to remove the tumor on January 11. Our medical partner is requesting $1,500 to fund the labor cost, supplies, lab tests, and medication needed for the procedure. Mu shares, "In the future, I would like to run a juice shop of my own in the village where I am from."

Nyein is a 28-year-old woman originally from Burma. When she was a child, her mother opened a mohinga, a Burmese noodle shop. Nyein quit school after sixth grade to help her mother in the shop. When she was 18 years old, Nyein moved to Bangkok to support her mother financially. She currently works as a babysitter and housekeeper in Bangkok, living with her employer’s family. She looks after the young children, prepares food, cleans the house, and does laundry. Nyein sends most of her income home to her mother, who she visits once a year. Three years ago, she paid for her mother to undergo two cataract surgeries to restore her vision. In September of 2016, Nyein began to experience stomachaches. She took painkillers, but the pain continued. Finally, she visited a public hospital in Bangkok, where she underwent an X-ray and was diagnosed with stomach flu. Despite taking oral medication, her symptoms were alleviated only temporarily. Nyein decided to return to Burma to see her mother. There, she learned about our medical partner’s clinic, Mae Tao Clinic (MTC). When Nyein visited MTC, she was diagnosed with a benign colon tumor. She underwent a tumor removal procedure on December 19. During her free time, Nyein loves watching Thai movies and listening to Thai music on her mobile phone. She hopes that she will be fully cured so that she can return to work and continue to support her mother. For now, she needs help to pay for this $1,500 surgery.

Angelica is 10-years-old and lives with her five siblings and parents in a one-room house with a tin roof. Her father works as a day laborer, making only $3 per day. Her mother works taking care of Angelica and her siblings, cooking, and cleaning. Angelica has strabismus, a condition which means that she is unable to control the direction of both of her eyes. This condition has made her have trouble with depth perception and headaches, but more importantly has prevented her from going to school. After finishing the first grade, she got so worried about what others thought of her 'bad eye' that she stopped going. Although they want the best for Angelica, her parents cannot afford to pay for her surgery. This surgery will correct Angelica's strabismus, giving her better control of both of her eyes. This will alleviate her physical symptoms, as well as improve her self-esteem so she can continue to attend school. Angelica said, "This next year I would like to keep studying if my eye is better and I can see better. I want to continue studying and get a job, so I can earn money and support my parents. I appreciate the help that you can give me."

"Dylan is suffering from malnutrition, meaning that he is much too small for his age," says our medical partner, Wuqu' Kawoq (WK). "Not only has his physical grown been stunted, but he also has a weak immune system due to a lack of protein, calories, and nutrients." Dylan is a nine-month-old baby who lives in rural Guatemala with his parents. He's the youngest of two children. His father works in the fields as a day laborer where he earns a few dollars a day when work is available. His parents don't have the resources to feed him fruits, vegetables or eggs needed to maintain healthy growth. WK explains, "Unfortunately, malnutrition also decreases his appetite--Dylan's mother says that she has to struggle with him to get him to eat. If Dylan does not receive treatment, he could face the consequences for the rest of his life—such as short stature as an adult, lower IQ, a harder time focusing, and have trouble in school--all making it more likely that he will have lower-paying job as an adult and have children who are also malnourished." For $512, we can enroll Dylan in WK's malnutrition therapy program, which will provide growth monitoring, food supplements and deworming medication, allowing him to resume normal growth. If he's treated now, he can resume normal mental and physical development. "His parents will receive motivational nutrition education so they can learn how to best feed Dylan, even with the little resources they have," WK says. "This treatment will give Dylan a better chance of escaping the cycle of malnutrition and poverty," WK says.

Meet Joyce, a mother of three children from Kenya. Joyce works as a domestic house help to earn a living. She separated from her husband in 2012, and unfortunately her children have not been able to continue with higher education due to a lack of school fees. The children stay with their grandmother, as Joyce is not able to financially support them due to her medical condition. In 2014 November, Joyce felt severe abdominal pain. She visited the hospital, where she was sent home with pain medication. However, the pain persisted and a subsequent x-ray revealed fibroids (benign growths) in her uterus. Joyce experiences pain, fatigue, and bleeding. She is not able to work consistently, especially when she is in pain, and a majority of her income is used for medical expenses. Joyce needs a total abdominal hysterectomy to treat her fibroids and return to full health. Treatment will cost $800, and includes all pre- and post-operative care. “I'd like to be relieved of the pain I am experiencing and be free from further complications," Joyce shared.

15-month-old Miloury was born with a cardiac defect called an aortopulmonary fistula, in which a hole exists between the two major blood vessels that connect to the heart. Blood leaks through this hole, depriving Miloury's body of the oxygen she needs and leaving her sickly and weak. Miloury lives in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, with her mother, father, grandmother, and several other relatives. Her parents are both currently seeking work. She is a happy baby who likes to wear dresses and have her hair braided. For $1,500 (and with an additional $5,000 subsidy from Have a Heart Cayman Islands), Miloury will receive the heart surgery she needs. "I am excited to know that Miloury will be a normal child after she can have her surgery," her mother shared.

Phanny is a two-year-old boy who lives with his family in Cambodia. He spends his time at home being looked after by his mom, and he enjoys playing around his house. When Phanny was only one week old, he received poorly administered injections in his thighs. As a result, he developed quadriceps fibrosis in both legs, making his legs stiff and unable to bend. He cannot walk easily. Phanny traveled three hours with his mom to reach Watsi's medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), for treatment. Surgeons at CSC will perform a quadricepsplasty surgery on each thigh to release the contracted muscle and allow his leg to bend freely. Phanny will undergo surgery on the left side first. $378 covers the costs of surgery as well as two weeks of hospital care, five days of post-operative care, and four follow-up appointments during the first year after surgery. Phanny's mother looks forward to a successful surgery for her son. She hopes he can walk normally and be free of pain, and she wants him to study English when he grows up.

Suzan is a cute, three-year-old girl from Tanzania. Suzan was born without any deformities, but since last year, her parents noticed their daughter’s gait slowly but surely changing. She now knocks her knees when walking and she sometimes complains of feeling pain on the knees especially after walking a long distance. Suzan is the third born in a family of four children. She is in kindergarten, and when at school she enjoys singing. She is very talkative and likes all sorts of games—running around, jumping, crawling under the bed and tiny places, and throwing balls especially in the company of other children. After each hospital visit where Suzan needed an injection, later on she would tell her father that one day she would also like to be injecting people in hospitals. Suzan’s parents are livestock keepers and they also do a little bit of farming. They earn enough to support their family’s basic needs, but the cost of their daughter’s surgery, $940, is too high for them to afford. Suzan needs corrective surgery to allow better gait and reduce the risk of developing osteoarthritis at a young age. Her father says, "I hope my daughter will regain her ability to walk normally so that she can continue with school and later become a doctor."

Tariku is a ten-month-old little boy from Ethiopia. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF), introduces Tariku: “Tariku is very active and loves to play and laugh with his parents. He is a beautiful baby. Unfortunately, Tariku was born with an anorectal malformation. An anorectal malformation is a congenital birth defect in which the rectum develops abnormally, making bowel movements difficult and often putting the patient at risk for spinal or heart complications as well. Depending on the severity of the malformation, emergency colostomies are sometimes necessary to avoid a bowel obstruction. This was the case with Tariku, who received his colostomy bag at just three days old. Since then he has been unable to independently pass stool, and is likely to undergo further colostomy complications such as leakages, infections, or obstruction if his condition is not addressed. Furthermore, Ethiopia, Tariku’s home, is located in a region whose weather patterns are significantly affected by El Niño; the country is currently experiencing its worst drought in 50 years. Tariku’s family is one of the many who are having difficulty harvesting crops during the drought. Subsequently, with already limited finances, they are unable to afford further treatment for Tariku. “His father and I don’t have the money to cover our son’s expenses,” Tariku’s mother shares. “I hope I will see my baby’s condition treated and see him be healthy.” Tariku needs a posterior sagittal anorectoplasty to surgically reposition his rectum and anus and allow for regular bowel movements. While Tariku recovers from the anorectoplasty, another colostomy opening will be created. Then, two to three months later a colostomy closure will be done to complete the process. With $1,500, this will be possible for Tariku. The funds will also include his antibiotics, imaging, and inpatient stay. After his recovery, Tariku is expected to be able to independently pass stool and live a normal and healthy childhood.