Jonathan BerginUNIVERSAL FUND MEMBER
Jonathan's Story

Jonathan joined Watsi on March 18th, 2018. Two years ago, Jonathan joined our Universal Fund, supporting life-changing treatments for a new Watsi patient every month. Jonathan's most recent donation supported Michael, a precious 20-month-old baby from Haiti, to fund the costs for heart surgery.

Impact

Jonathan has funded healthcare for 23 patients in 10 countries.

patients you have funded

Meet Night, a jovial and playful five year old girl. Night lives with her parents and two younger siblings in a traditional home in Kenya. Her father works selling second hand clothing, while her mother stays home to take care of the children. Shortly after she was born, Night's parents realized that something seemed wrong. They brought Night to a health facility in Turkana County where they lived, and were referred on to BethanyKids Hospital. There she was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, which meant that fluid was collecting in her head. Surgery was performed, and a shunt was placed to continuously drain the fluid from Night's head. A year later, however, Night's head began to increase in size, and she developed weakness on the right side of her body. The doctors at the local health facility urged Night's parents to take her back to BethanyKids Hospital for additional treatment, but Night's parents didn't have enough money to do this. With the help of our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, Night is now scheduled to undergo a craniotomy on January 5th at BethanyKids Kijabe Hospital, when surgeons will drain excess fluids from Night's brain. Night's father is providing as much of a co-pay as possible for this procedure, but the family needs your help to raise the remaining $1,500 required to cover all of the costs of Night's surgery and care. Night’s father said: “Night is not able to communicate well because of her condition. This surgery will help her to be able to speak.”

57%funded
$870raised
$630to go

Joyce is a 54-year-old wife and mother of three. She is a subsistence farmer who grows crops and raises farm animals mainly for food for their family. She lives in a corrugated iron house with her husband and her youngest son. Her oldest son is currently employed and married, but her middle son lost his job due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She proudly shared that her youngest son just sat for the Malawi School Certificate Examination and he is awaiting the results. Joyce's oldest son helps to pay the school fees for his younger brother because he is the only one currently working in their family. Last year Joyce noticed a lump on her breast. Her sister advised her to go to Kamuzu Central Hospital (KCH) where she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Surgery was recommended, but the waiting list for an operation has been too long. A KCH doctor advised her to come to Partners In Hope because her condition needs urgent attention. The Partners in Hope surgeon recommended Joyce get a mastectomy. A mastectomy is a surgery to remove all breast tissue from a breast as a way to treat or prevent breast cancer. Due to her financial status, she was referred to our medical partner African Mission Healthcare and has also contributed $19.40 herself to support her treatment. Joyce is fearful of what may come next because she has been reading and has learned of the impact of breast cancer on an individual. Hopefully, having the surgery will erase all these fears and allow Joyce to live her normal life again. Joyce says, “It will be great for me to live a life without a lump on my breast. This thing kills my self-esteem and my hopes to live.”

$1,194raised
Fully funded

Saw Hsar is a 21-year-old man who lives with his mother, stepfather, and sister in a refugee camp in Hong Son Province. He used to live with his father in Burma, but he moved back to live with his mother in 2018 and hoped to receive treatment for an eye injury. His stepfather is a homemaker, while his mother weaves traditional Karen sarongs to sell. Saw Hsar stopped studying after he graduated from grade four, when he injured his eye. Currently, he is unemployed. In 2018, Saw Hsar began to experience blurry vision, and an inability to clearly see the objects around him. While he is comfortable moving around in his home, he needs someone with him when he leaves home, as he is afraid of tripping over unseen objects in his way, given his increasing inability to see clearly. Saw Hsar was diagnosed with a detached retina, which means that his retina has pulled away from the supporting tissue in his eye. Without the proper treatment, Saw Hsar could completely lose the vision in his eye. Saw Hsar is scheduled to undergo surgery to reattach his retina on September 3rd, at Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to cover the cost of Saw Hsar's procedure and care. After surgery, Saw Hsar's vision will hopefully be restored, and he will be able to resume his daily activities without his current limitations. He said, “I would like to see clearly like before. In the future, I will find a job and earn a living. I want to grow rice or vegetables on a farm, save money and support my family.”

$1,500raised
Fully funded

Martin is a playful and friendly young boy and the last-born in a family of six children. Martin has not started going to school yet, but his father plans to enroll him in two years. Martin's father says life has been tough for him and his family since he fell sick for most of 2020, something that he says made life for his family tough. Prior to falling ill, Martin's father was a hardworking man practicing small-scale farming to provide food for his family and was also a catechist at their local catholic church. For over a year Martin's father was moved from one hospital to another seeking treatment. Martin's parents were forced to sell most of their property to cover the resulting medical bills. In 2021, Martin's father's health returned and he was able to grow his strength back. Martin's father moved their family to another village for a fresh start. They are now slowly rebuilding their life with the hope of restoring their livelihood once more. Since then, Martin has been diagnosed with Left Genu Varus meaning his leg is bent at the knee so that they do not touch. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, it is difficult for him to walk. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is raising $880 to fund corrective surgery for Martin. The procedure is scheduled to take place on July 5th. Treatment will hopefully restore Martin's mobility, allow him to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease his risk of future complications. Martin’s father says, “Because of the long period I was sick I was not able to provide for my family. My son now needs treatment, but I still can’t afford the cost.”

$880raised
Fully funded