Meet Tame, a 53-year-old from Nepal. Tame has five children. His eldest son is 15 years old and helps him work on the farm. His farm’s produce feeds the family for three months' time. For the rest of the year, he works on other farms to earn money. Tame is also struggling with a hernia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He has had chronic obstructive pulmonary disease for the last 12 years, but it has worsened the last few months. When he coughs, it worsens the strain his hernia is placing on his groin area. If not treated, the hernia can "strangulate" and become life-threatening. For $1,075, a hernia operation can be performed that will prevent hernia strangulation and relieve Tame's discomfort so he can better manage his COPD and live a healthy life. Let's get it done!

Sergio is a sweet 6-month-old baby boy who was born with a cleft lip and palate. Sergio's family lives in a remote community two hours away from the nearest health center. Fortunately, a Partner for Surgery community health promoter brought tiny Sergio to the center for medical attention. He was 15 days old and weighed only 2.7 pounds. Sergio's family is extremely supportive. They hope he will grow up healthy and strong, but his cleft lip and palate make it impossible for him to nurse properly. Without surgery, Sergio won't be able to get proper nutrition to grow. As he approaches his first birthday, the surgery becomes ever more timely as he learns to speak. The surgery Sergio needs will cost $480. It will enable Sergio to get the proper nutrition he needs to grow into a healthy toddler.

Jorge is a delightful 6-year-old boy who was brought to the Wuqu’ Kawoq clinic by his parents because he has never talked. The doctors at WK diagnosed him with severe sensorineural hearing loss. If left untreated, Jorge’s condition will prevent him from hearing anything except for loud noises and will continue to impede the development of his language abilities. Luckily, Jorge’s hearing loss can be easily treated with hearing aids and therapy. Jorge has three brothers and sisters. His mother and father are very supportive but do not have the financial resources to get him medical help. We need to cover the cost of fitting Jorge with hearing aids and giving him speech therapy to help him develop some language ability. He’ll also begin learning to sign, which will allow him to interact in a more meaningful way with his family and friends and enable him to go to school.

For the past eight years, Cheru has suffered from mitral stenosis, a condition that severely narrows his heart’s mitral valve and backs up blood into his lungs. He used to sell goods at the Gurage market in Ethiopia, but his weakening heart forced him to quit his job. If left untreated, Cheru’s condition could result in heart failure. Fortunately, Cheru’s condition is treatable. However, he needs to fly to India to receive a Percutaneous Transvenous Mitral Commissurotomy (a nonsurgical technique for the treatment of patients with symptomatic mitral stenosis). A Bollywood aficionado and avid Manchester United fan, Cheru is usually in good spirits and tries his best to cheer up other heart patients. Still, it is bittersweet for Cheru to see his healthy friends get married and start families: He wants to start a family of his own, but he now spends most days laying in bed. And since he’s had to spend his life savings on medical bills, he’s worried that he won’t have enough money to support a family. Cheru hopes we will be able to raise the money for his treatment in India. He can’t wait to return to his job at the market and one day, start a family. Let’s get Cheru the treatment he needs to thrive!