"One month ago a bird bit Theary's left eye and caused a traumatic cataract," our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), shares. Theary, a four-year-old boy from Cambodia, has been unable to attend school since the incident. He also experiences pain and irritation in his eye. For $150, Theary will receive surgery to replace his cloudy left eye lens with a clear lens implant. His vision will be completely restored after the procedure. As a young, active boy, Theary enjoys playing with his toy cars and with his older sister. His mother is hopeful that after the surgery she will no longer have to worry about his eye having other issues. "I hope my son can see everything clearly again, so he can go back to school and play with his sister and friends like before," Theary's mother shares.

“I am shy around my friends and I don’t feel good when I go outside and meet new people,” says Mey, an 11-year-old girl living in Cambodia. Mey was born with esotropia of the left eye, a condition that causes her eye to turn inward. Mey is the middle child in the family and is in first grade. She loves playing with dolls and drawing pictures. Mey traveled 3 hours with her mother to Children's Surgical Centre, a Watsi medical partner, where she heard she could receive treatment free of charge. With a limited income and three children to support, Mey's parents cannot afford the treatment her daughter needs. Strabismus correction surgery for Mey will cost $290. Following a strabismus correction surgery, Mey’s left eye will be aligned correctly. After surgery, Mey's mother hopes her daughter will no longer be shy around other kids due to her condition.

Over four years ago, 38-year-old Nankya started feeling pain in her navel area. One year later, she was diagnosed with a supraumbilical hernia; a condition that occurs when tissues or organs bulge through a weak portion of the abdominal wall. The swelling causes her pain which gets worse when she’s carrying heavy items, during cold weather, or when she coughs. At the time of Nankya’s diagnosis, she was pregnant and medical providers advised her to wait to have the surgery after the baby was delivered. Post-delivery, Nankya was unable to save enough money for her treatment. Nankya worked in the fields for long hours, tended her garden, and weaved baskets for an income, but the hernia has hindered her from continuing. If her hernia is not treated, Nankya is at risk of serious complications such as obstruction of the intestine, incarceration or strangulation which will cause the intestinal tissue to die and can be fatal. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF), can provide Nankya with a hernia repair at a treatment cost of $220. With her hernia preventing her from working, she cannot save the money for the treatment alone. Watsi funding will provide for the cost of treatment, the medicines, and her hospital stay. Doctors expect that after the treatment she will no longer experience any pain and there will be no more risk of complications. As a married mother of six, Nankya is looking forward to having the surgery, regaining her strength and returning to work to support her family. “Thank you for your assistance. God bless you,” she says.

Four-year-old Bin from Cambodia was born with a cataract in each eye. Diagnosed with cataracts as a newborn, Bin’s natural lenses are cloudy instead of clear. With impaired vision, he can’t walk anywhere by himself or play with his younger sister and his friends. He enjoys playing with his toy car. After traveling two hours to reach our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Center (CSC), Bin’s parents are hopeful that Bin can receive funding to see clearly. Bin’s cataract treatment will cost $225. “After a lens aspiration surgery in each eye, Bin will be able to see clearly for the first time in his life,” CSC explains. Bin’s family is hopeful for his recovery. “I hope my son can see everything normally like the other kids so I won’t need to worry about his eyes becoming blind,” shares Bin’s father. “Then, I can bring him to school and he can play with the other kids.”

Meet Kisembo, a 31-year-old husband and father of six from Uganda. Kisembo spends his days working as a small-scale farmer to support himself and his family. Five years ago, Kisembo went to the hospital with abdominal pain and swelling in his groin. He had been living with the pain for eight years at that point, but was diagnosed that day with inguinal hernia and instructed to have surgery. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF), shares: "If not treated, Kisembo may suffer intestinal obstruction, incarceration, or strangulation." These conditions could become inoperable or cause dangerous infection. AMHF adds that after Kisembo heard about Watsi, he came to the hospital "for assistance and with a lot of trust that he will get treatment." Kisembo has high hopes and plans for life with improved health, AMHF adds. "After surgery he hopes to resume carpentry work, which he had done some time back before he got the hernia so that he can sustain himself and his family." For $220, Kisembo will have surgery to remove the hernia and prevent it from becoming large enough to obstruct his intestines or cause further pain and health risks. Kisembo says, “I have lived with a hernia for a long time. I thank you in advance for the help you are going to give me.”

"When he is feeling good, Gift likes to play soccer for the village team and when he can, watch English premier league soccer on TV," our medical partner, The Kellermann Foundation, tells us. Gift is 18 years old and lives in Uganda. He works alongside his parents on their small farm. They grow ground nuts and other crops, and Gift also helps harvest rice for others to earn money. Recently, Gift's health has been preventing him from living his normal life. For the past few months, Gift has been experiencing pain due to a hernia. He was diagnosed with a few years ago, and he hasn't been able to work since. Gift's hernia causes him considerable pain, and if left untreated, puts him at heightened risk for intestinal strangulation and health complications. Gift is an otherwise healthy young man and the Kellerman Foundation shares that "after surgery, he is looking forward to getting back to work and playing soccer with his team again." For $227, Gift will have his hernia repaired so that it no longer causes debilitating pain, and he can avoid internal complications. Gift says, “I have had the pain for so long and I didn’t know there was help for me. I am so thankful for everyone helping me.”

Meet Sunday, a seven-year-old boy from Uganda. “At birth, Sunday’s mother noticed his right scrotum was bigger than the left,” explains our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). “The swelling kept increasing in size and it is now becoming painful.” Sunday was diagnosed as having a hydrocele. A hydrocele forms when a sac in the scrotum fills with fluid. This is due to abdominal fluid seeping through an incomplete closure where the testes descended during infancy. “The swelling is increasing in size and it is now becoming painful,” adds AMHF. Sunday’s father has passed away, and his mother works as an hourly laborer to support her son. Her income is not enough to be able to afford treatment he needs. “This condition makes my son feel very uncomfortable. Most of the time he isolates himself from fellow children,” she says. For this reason, he is also not attending school. $215 will allow Sunday to undergo hydrocele repair surgery. The surgeon will drain the fluid from the sac and suture the incomplete closure between the abdomen and scrotum. The cost of treatment also covers the necessary antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medication for after the surgery. AMHF shares: "After surgery, Sunday will no longer be at risk of pain and discomfort. He will be able to join school without any fear of stigmatization.”

Keya is a 70-year-old carpenter from Uganda. He currently lives with scrotal swelling and pain in his left inguinal region due to a hydrocele -- a buildup of watery fluid around one or both testicles. While hydroceles can go away on their own in younger men, they typically require treatment in older patients. If left untreated, the swelling can continue to grow, causing additional pain and discomfort. Only having attended primary school, Keya took advantage of an opportunity to learn carpentry when he was young. He used his income from his work as a carpenter to support his wife and four children. After developing the hydrocele, however, his pain became too great for him to continue going to his workshop. Unable to perform his trade, he has relied on surplus from selling produce from his garden to support his family. "Sometimes the family goes many months without getting any money when produce from the fields is little," shares our medical partner African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). "Keya was told by a friend that sometimes some donor organizations send doctors to hospitals to give free treatment. Keya has been waiting for this to happen," reports AMHF. For $215, Keva will be able to receive surgery that will allow him to return to his carpentry work and continue to provide for his family. Keva is a devoted Pentecostal and finds strength through the power of prayer. He says, “Thank you for bringing us help. I have been sick for a long time; now I have hope that I will get help and be well again.”

Two years ago, 30-year-old Linda, a woman from Uganda, began experiencing pain above her stomach. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF), tells us she initially turned to herbal remedies to sooth the pain, but it persisted. After years of visiting medical centers and taking herbal medication, she decided to seek medical attention at a hospital, where she was diagnosed with an epigastric hernia. An epigastric hernia is a condition in which tissue pushes through the epigastric, or upper central, area of the abdomen, causing a protrusion. If the hernia goes untreated, Linda may develop complications, such as ”intestinal obstruction, incarceration and/or strangulation.” AMHF can treat Linda with hernia repair surgery. During surgery, the placement of her abdominal tissue will be corrected, and her abdominal wall will be repaired. Linda will be pain-free and no longer at risk for any complications. Treatment will cost $220, which covers medical and surgical fees, as well as a two week stay at the hospital. Unfortunately, Linda relies on selling tea for income, and cannot afford treatment. With your help, we can get Linda back to good health so she can focus on growing her tea business! “Thank you for the help you are giving us the poor. God bless you,” says Linda.

Akantambira is a 20-year-old peasant farmer living in Uganda with her husband. Her husband works as a common laborer, looking after rice fields to generate their income. Akantambira is pregnant with their first child. While she is very excited for her due date, she is worried due to two past miscarriages and a recent diagnosis of a contracted pelvis. Akantambira's contracted pelvis is of a smaller diameter than normal, and decreases the possibility of a successful childbirth. To give her new baby the best chance of survival, she needs to have a Caesarian (C) section. For $160, Akantambira can have her C-section procedure and four days of inpatient care. This will eliminate the risk of complications from vaginal childbirth, and give Akantambira significant relief. “I pray that everything goes on well and I get my baby,” she shares.

Tola was just two months old when he developed a dermoid cyst above his left eyebrow. A dermoid cyst is an abnormal growth that stems from residual embryonic cells. Such cysts contain derivatives of hair, teeth, skin, et cetera. While most are benign, they should be removed to reduce risk of future complications. Tola is now two years old and lives in Cambodia with his mother, three brothers, and sister. He spends most of his days playing with toy cars alongside his siblings. Tola’s cyst causes swelling, irritation, and pain. Tola’s mother traveled three hours with her son to reach our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Center (CSC). With $99, CSC will remove the cyst permanently from Tola’s face, putting his mother at ease and allowing him to live a normal childhood with his brothers and sister.

"Musabe has lived with a left inguinal hernia for over ten years. The swelling has been on and off and sometimes his feels paralysis in the legs," our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF), says. Musabe is 29 years old and lives in Uganda, where he grows and sells cabbages to support his family. Musabe is in a great deal of pain, especially when riding his motorcycle or digging for work, and is eager to have reparative surgery. AMHF shares, “As he entered the office he looked very much worried about his condition...he shed some tears as he was explaining his pain to me." Musabe could not afford the cost of surgery so he had been using herbal remedies, until he learned that he could get help with Watsi. For $220, Musabe will undergo surgery to remove his left inguinal hernia, which will prevent further complications, such as intestinal blockages. "After surgery he hopes to recover and have improved quality life so that he can continue working hard to support his family."