Youseline lives with her parents, two brothers, and extended family in Cap-Haitien, a city in northern Haiti. She is currently in the fourth grade and wishes to become either a teacher or a doctor. Youseline was born with an atrial septal defect, meaning that she has a hole between the two upper chambers of her heart. The hole results in increased blood flow through the lungs. Over time, this may cause damage to the blood vessels in the lungs. Youseline's condition leaves her short of breath and weak. Youseline needs to undergo open-heart surgery, during which surgeons will sew a patch onto her heart to close the hole. First, she will undergo a full cardiac assessment on January 16. 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 Youseline 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 Youseline's surgical care. Youseline is excited to return to school and play with her friends!

"We are all looking forward to the day when we don't have to worry about Medjina's heart anymore," shares Medjina's mother. Medjina lives in Port-au-Prince, Haiti with her mother, father, and younger brother. She is four years old, and she enjoys going to preschool and coloring with crayons. Medjina was born with a cardiac condition called Tetralogy of Fallot, which involves several related defects including a hole between two chambers in the heart, and a muscular blockage of one of the valves that leads to her lungs. In 2014, when she was two years old, she underwent a surgery to allow blood to flow more freely to her lungs, making her body more healthy and giving her heart time to grow so that a complete repair could be done later. Medjina is now ready for her second surgery, to completely repair her heart and allow her to lead a near-normal life. As a result of this condition, she is constantly sickly and weak. If untreated when she was two years old, it would have been fatal. $1,500 in Watsi funding, and an additional $10,000 subsidy from Have a Heart Cayman Islands will fund the life-saving heart surgery that Medjina needs to grow up healthy.

Sherlin is a fourteen-month-old baby girl from Guatemala. She is the first child in her family, and her parents are incredibly excited to have her in their life. They live in a one-room adobe house with a tin roof in a rural village in the mountains. Her father works as a day laborer, earning only a couple of dollars per day when he is able to find work. This means that they have not been able to afford the treatment that the local government-run health outpost has recommended, leaving them frustrated and unable to help their daughter reach her full potential. Sherlin has been struggling to grow almost her whole life. This is due to being undernourished because her parents cannot afford to give her the protein, calories, and vitamins her body needs to grow and develop. She is now acutely malnourished, leaving her immune system without the strength to fight off common illnesses like gastrointestinal infections, cough, and fever. If she does not get treatment, she could face long-term consequences such as a low IQ, behavioral issues, and increased risk of chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension. Growth monitoring, micronutrients and food supplementation will help Sherlin recover from malnutrition. All of this treatment and medication costs $512. She will gain weight and grow taller to catch up with other children her age. Her immune system will grow stronger with the increased caloric intake. This will further increase her appetite and help her use the extra calories to develop mentally instead of those calories being used to get over frequent illness. Sherlin's parents will receive the support they need to feel empowered to give her the diet she needs to grow and develop healthily, even with their limited resources. Intervention now will prevent the future devastating effects of malnutrition, and give Sherlin the chance to live a healthy and productive life. "I hope that my daughter grows and becomes an intelligent girl and in the future can become a doctor," Sherlin's mother shared.

William is a thirteen-month-old baby from Guatemala, and the youngest of seven children. He lives with his family in a one-room house made of tin. His mother sells corn tortillas, and his father searches for firewood to sell. Although William’s parents want the best for their son, they do not have the resources to feed him even one vegetable, piece of fruit, or egg—the minimum that he needs to be able to overcome malnutrition. William's mother has noticed that her son has been loosing weight and getting sick often. This is because William has acute malnutrition, a condition that results from having a diet that lacks protein, calories, and nutrients. He received a preliminary treatment to keep his condition stable until our nutritionist could develop a customized diet plan for him and begin treatment. William has a history of malnutrition—he has been hospitalized twice for it, along with pneumonia. If he does not receive treatment, William’s life could be in danger and he could face the consequences of malnutrition for the rest of his life—he could have a low IQ, trouble focusing in school, and a greater risk of developing chronic diseases such as diabetes and hypertension as an adult. Growth monitoring, micronutrient and food supplementation, and deworming medication will help William recover from malnutrition. All of this treatment and medication costs $512. He will gain weight and grow taller to catch up with other children his age. His immune system will grow stronger with the increased caloric intake. This will further increase his appetite and help him use the extra calories to gain motor skills and learn new words instead of those calories being wasted on getting over frequent illnesses. His mother will receive the support she need to feel empowered to give William the diet he needs to grow and develop healthily, even with limited resources. Intervention now will give William the chance to live a healthy and productive life and escape the cycle of malnutrition and poverty that made him sick in the first place. "I want him to gain weight so I don't have to keep seeing him suffer in the hospital", shared William's mother.

Keila is an eleven-month-old baby girl from Guatemala. She lives with her parents and her three siblings in a one-room house made of tin and bamboo. Her father works as a day laborer, and her mother works at home, taking care of Keila and her siblings. Although they want the best for her, they cannot afford to give her even one fruit, vegetable, or egg per day. Keila has been struggling with the consequences of hydrocephalus, a build up of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the cavities of the brain, since she was born. She had to have surgery when she was only a couple months old to repair a birth defect in her spinal column (spina bifida), and since then she has not been able to gain weight like she should. She is now acutely malnourished, and needs to gain weight in order to help her development, and get her healthy enough to have surgery to relieve the pressure of the CSF that is building on her brain. Growth monitoring, micronutrient and food supplementation, and deworming medication will help Keila recover from malnutrition. For $512, she will receive the treatment she needs. She will gain weight and grow taller to catch up with other children her age, and give her the chance to receive surgery to correct her hydrocephalus. Her immune system will grow stronger with the increased caloric intake, giving her more of an appetite and energy to grow and play. Her parents will receive the support they need to feel empowered to give Keila the diet he needs to grow and develop healthily, even with limited resources. Intervention now will give Keila the chance to live a healthy and productive life. Kelia's mother said, "I hope that Keila grows well. I know that her condition is difficult, but I hope that one day she can get well enough to get the surgery for her brain."

Emmanuel is a playful two-year-old boy from Kenya. He can't sit still and grabs anything in sight to play with. Emmanuel is the youngest in a family of three children. He lives with his mother and elder siblings in a single rental house in Nairobi suburbs. His father left them one year ago because he could not meet the demands of a family. Emmanuel's mother is employed as a shop attendant and her income barely sustains her family’s basic needs. Emmanuel was born with undescended testes. The doctors advised that his mother wait until Emmanuel was two-years-old to seek treatment, in case they descended on their own, but they have not. If left untreated, Emmanuel's condition may result in infertility, increased chance of testicular cancer, and a hernia in the groin. Emmanuel’s mother is not able to raise the $542 required for the surgery he needs. Let's help them raise the funds! “I hope he gets treated to prevent the effects of this condition, I appreciate anyone who will fund for my son’s surgical care,” says Emmanuel’s mother.

Mariam is a beautiful, fifteen-year-old girl from Tanzania. She is the fourth born and has a twin sister who is perfectly fine. Mariam was born without any problems, but then got very sick and was admitted in the hospital for a long time receiving medicine and injections. When she recovered, she developed Achilles tendon tightness – a condition which has prevented her from walking properly. Mariam is unable to fully step down on her right foot, and when she tries to walk a long distance, she feels pain on that foot. Mariam has never been to school, but she used to enjoy herding her parent's goats together with her twin sister. Currently she can no longer do so because she cannot walk the long distance. Mariam’s mother died some years back while giving birth to another set of twins. Mariam is now living with her grandmother, who is a small scale farmer and keeps a few livestock. As much as she would like her granddaughter to receive treatment for her foot, she cannot afford the cost of surgery. The surgery, a single contracture release, will allow Mariam to regain use of her right foot and thus improve her gait. Mariam says, “I will be happy when I am able to walk like I used to so I can help my twin sister herd goats."

Gift is a thirteen-year-old girl from Tanzania who lives with her mother. Her father lives in a different town, as he is ill and needs to be close to medical care. Gift is a talented student and really enjoys studying. She is in class six at the local school and hopes to go far with her education. When Gift was burned on her left elbow, she was treated with local remedies. All the family's resources have gone into the medical treatment for her father, and nothing was available for the care of Gift. As a result, the burns caused a contracture (skin tightening) on her left elbow while healing. Gift later came to an outreach clinic run by the Plaster House, a Watsi partner center, as a candidate for corrective surgery. For $550, the proposed surgery and rehabilitation to release the burn scar contracture on Gift's left elbow will allow her to regain mobility and function of her arm. This will assist in her daily activities and work around the house. Gift shared, "It makes me very happy to be treated for my elbow. I hope one day that I will be a good farmer and maybe even own some of my own animals."

Chhatra is a farmer from Nepal. He was chopping firewood in the forest when a landslide occurred. He fell down, fracturing his left leg. Since then, his leg has swollen, causing him pain. He can't walk by himself and needs support to move around. Chhatra and his wife hired a jeep and drove four hours to reach Possible's hub hospital. Chhatra lives with his wife and five children. Chhatra works in the field and makes ends meet, while his wife looks after the children and grazes goats. With $541, he will be able to undergo corrective surgery and fixh is broken leg. A steel rod will be inserted into his bones, and he will need to be on complete bed rest for a month. Chhatra says, "I am worried about my leg's operation." Let's help him regain its use.

Laurent is a two-year-old boy from Tanzania. He is his parents' fourth child. His father is in the cattle business. Laurent has a breathing problem, which is particularly bad at night, and he has been a sickly child since he was born. This is due to Laurent having enlarged tonsils and adenoids (tissue between the back of the nose and throat). His parents have been to hospitals all around the country seeking care for Laurent. They have spent a lot of money trying to find the right treatment, but nothing has worked long term. They had given up hope for finding treatment for Laurent when he was identified through the Plaster House (a Watsi medical partner) outreach program. Laurent's mother is really happy that she has finally found a place where he can get the treatment he needs. Laurent now has to have his tonsils surgically removed, thereby eliminating his breathing problems. $545 will provide Laurent with the surgery and care he needs. Laurent's mother said, "I hope that his life will be better after the operation, I am so grateful."

Eric is an eleven-year-old boy who lives with his family in a one-room house in Kenya. Eric’s father is a sales administrator while his mother promotes company products. Eric dreams of being a world class neurosurgeon and has taken a keen interest in his science classes in order to fulfill his ambitions. At the end of every term, Eric ranks the top of his class. An anatomy lesson in school caused Eric to realize he was missing his right testis. After telling his father, he was taken Eric to a doctor. The doctor confirmed that Eric had an undescended testis, a congenital condition, and required surgery to relocate it. Having paid school fees for their three children, Eric’s parents are not able to raise more than $52 for his surgical care. Let's help them raise the remaining $535 for the surgery Eric needs! Brave Eric is unfazed at the thought of going under the knife, and he looks forward to the day he can change lives too as a neurosurgeon. “I am hoping to change lives of many in future as a surgeon,” says Eric. “I wish to give Eric the opportunity to get treated and to be able to follow his dreams and ambitions in life, but I feel helpless that I cannot give this to him myself,” says Eric’s father.