Marion is a 6-year-old student from the highlands of Elgeyo Marakwet county in Kenya. She is the second born in a family of three girls and currently attending preschool near her family home. Her parents are small-scale potato farmers. One day Marion's mother went to the river to fetch water. While she was gone, her children were sitting near an open fireplace at home making breakfast. Unfortunately, Marion's dress caught fire on the open flame, and as a result, she sustained severe burns on her back, abdomen and thighs. It has been difficult for her to walk, and the wounds are causing extreme discomfort. She especially needs a third surgery to treat the severity of her burns contractures. Despite Marion's parents having medical insurance, due to previous surgeries that she has had to treat the injuries, the insurance (a monthly subscription) has run its course and is no longer an option. Her parents do not have the funds to pay for Marion's surgery and need support. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), is helping Marion receive treatment. On January 25th, surgeons at their care center will perform a burn contracture release surgery that will allow her to walk with greater ease and resume her normal life at home and school. Now, she and her family are requesting $1,478 to help fund this procedure. Marion's mother says, “I am really looking forward to seeing my daughter live and walk in a normal way. I worked hard to pay for insurance coverage, but unfortunately, it cannot fund the upcoming procedure. I am disappointed, but I will not lose hope. Kindly help her.”

Vy is a 57-year-old mother of four children. She has two sons, two daughters, and six grandchildren. Sadly, her husband passed away many years ago. Vy lives with her youngest daughter, who is a garment worker. In her free time, she enjoys visiting the pagoda. Two years ago, Vy developed a pterygium in her left eye. Pterygiums are non-cancerous growths of the conjunctiva, a mucous layer that lubricates the eye. The growths occur when the conjunctiva is exposed to excessive sun damage and the cells grow abnormally over the pupil. She has difficulty seeing things clearly, recognizing faces, working, and going anywhere outside. She also experiences itchiness, tearing, and burning. When Vy learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, she traveled for two and a half hours seeking treatment. On February 8th, Vy will undergo a surgical procedure to remove the abnormal conjunctiva from the cornea surface and replace it with a conjunctival graft to prevent recurrence. Now, she needs help raising $216 to fund her procedure and care. Vy shared, "I hope after surgery my eye stops tearing and I can see faces and do more things around the house."

Lesina is a married mother of two. Her firstborn was born in 1995 and has special needs that require a lot of support from Lesina. Lesina likes spending a lot of time with her and ensures her safety all the time. Her other child is 13 and is a 5th grade student. Lesina sells tomatoes at a nearby market while her husband is a driver. They own a three-bedroom iron sheet-roofed house for shelter. She also raises some local chickens with free-range farming, but shared that most of them were stolen. Currently, her family has no land where they can do farming and usually has to buy food from the market. Lesina was well until 2019 when she started having a lot of abdominal pains and other symptoms. She went to a clinic and was given medication which helped for while. But, her condition kept recurring. In 2020, she started feeling a hard mass on the left side of her abdomen and when she came to the hospital again the clinician ordered a cancer screening for her. During the procedure, the nurse felt a mass that is suggestive of uterine fibroids. She was referred to a gynecologist who after scanning and examination confirmed the diagnosis of uterine fibroids and ordered surgical intervention of a procedure called total abdominal hysterectomy (TAH) which is the full removal of the uterus. Fibroids are abnormal growths that develop in or on a woman's uterus. Sometimes these growths become quite large and cause severe abdominal pain and heavy bleeding. If left untreated, fibroids can continue to grow, both in size and number and the symptoms will become worse. The fibroids' pain may increase and the heavy bleeding may become worse leading to anemia which may be fatal. After the surgery, it is expected that Lesina will stop having abdominal pains and heavy bleedings and will lead a full, healthy life. She is scheduled for surgery on January 3rd and is appealing for financial support. Lesina says, “I have heard that some uterine fibroids can burst and cause serious problems, I don’t want that to happen to me. My handicapped firstborn needs me in sound health to continue caring for her. Kindly support my surgery.”

Rady is an 11-year-old, sixth grade student. He is the only child in his family. Rady's father works in construction, and in the future Rady wants to become a policeman. One year ago, Rady had an ear infection that caused cholesteatoma, or an abnormal skin growth, to develop in the middle ear behind the ear drum. The growth made Rady experience hearing loss, tinnitus, and ear discharge. It is difficult for him to hear at school and communicate with his friends Rady traveled to our medical partner's care center to receive treatment. On July 1st, he will undergo a mastoidectomy procedure in his left ear. During this procedure, ENT surgeons will remove the cholesteatoma. Our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, is requesting $925 to fund this procedure. This covers medications, supplies, and inpatient care. Rady would like his life to return to normal, "I hope my ear will improve soon so I can return to school and see and hear my friends."

Tukahumura is a 60-year-old small scale farmer and a mother of seven children. Her firstborn is 40 years old, while her last born child is 23 years old and in secondary school class six. All her children are married except her last born, all have their own family responsibilities. Her husband passed away in 2009, leaving her with a semi-permanent house and a few cows which helped her in paying school fees for her children. In her free time, Tukahumura likes exercising by walking around her farm. Eight years ago, Tukahumura began to experience troubling symptoms, including neck swelling. She also complains of being unable to carry heavy loads on her head due to severe neck pains. Tukahumura was diagnosed with multinodular goitre. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Tukahumura receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on April 6th at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $293, and Tukahumura and her family need your support. Tukahumura shared, "I pray that I may be considered for treatment. After treatment, I hope to comfortably resume my farming."

Ampaire is a 30-year-old mother from Uganda. She is a mother of two children. Ampaire is the last born in a family of eleven children and has two brothers and eight sisters, all of whom are married and are small scale farmers. When she was younger, she didn't have enough money to further her studies past senior four level, so she decided to do a course in nursery teaching. She currently makes a living from teaching in a nearby nursery school, and also does some small scale farming to earn a little extra support for their family. Ampaire came to the hospital with a history of two previous C-sections. Her first C-section was in 2011 due to fetal distress, and the second one in 2019 was due to was poor progress in the baby's development. For her current pregnancy, she has attended antenatal care at Nyakibale Hospital six times, and it was during her last visit that doctors recommended she deliver through a caesarean section. This would help prevent complications like uterine rupture that may occur while attempting to deliver normally. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Ampaire receive this procedure. They are requesting $252 to fund her procedure. On January 26th, surgeons at their care center will perform a C-section surgery that will allow her to deliver her baby safely. Ampaire shared, “My prayer is to have a successful delivery of my baby and regain my health after surgery so that I can continue taking care of my family.”

Rwamunahe is a 49-year-old farmer from Uganda. She is a widow and a mother to three children. Of her two sons, one is a builder and the other is a motorbike rider. Her daughter is married and is a small scale farmer. Currently, Rwamunahe earns a living from farming, where she normally grows food crops for home consumption and sells off the surplus to generate a small income to her family. Rwamunahe came to our medical partner's care center with a painful right suprascapular mass, which she has had for nearly one year. As a result, she has been experiencing a lot of pain and discomfort in her shoulder area. Rwamunahe traveled to our medical partner's care center to receive treatment. On November 17th, surgeons will remove the mass in her shoulder. Now, Rwamunahe needs help to raise $196 to fund this procedure. Rwamunahe says “My only hopes of getting better is by undergoing this surgery. I will continue with farming after I have fully recovered.”

Benjamin is a 63-year-old man from Kenya. He is a quiet man who works hard and normally keeps to himself. Two weeks ago, Benjamin sustained an injury on his left hand while coming from his farm. It had rained heavily and Benjamin was rushing home. On his way, he fell on a hard surface and when he stood up, he realized that he could not lift his hand and was feeling pain on his left hand. Benjamin could not access treatment the same day because there’s no health facility near his home. The following morning, Benjamin was accompanied by his wife to a health centre. Because they were not confident of treating him, they just placed a sling on his arm and referred him to a district hospital for further care. Due to lack of finances, Benjamin and his wife returned home to look for money and after three days they were able to go to the hospital. Due to the ongoing medical practitioners strike, no one was there to help them and they finally decided to come to Watsi's Medical Partner Care Center called AIC Kapsowar Hospital. The first returned home to look for money to gather for their travel and other expenses. Because of their socioeconomic status, it took them another ten days to raise USD130 through the help of their neighbors. On arrival to our partner hospital, an x-ray was done which confirmed his left humerus fracture. Treatment requires surgery and an implant to fix his fracture. Benjamin was born and raised in a small village called Kamok where most people work in farms or other small unsteady jobs. He has a family and has been blessed with eight children, five girls and three boys. Benjamin never was able to have a formal education so he doesn’t speak Kiswahili, but his local language Marakwet. His family lives in a small mud hut with grass as a roof and they get their food from their small farm, consisting mostly of millet, beans, and vegetables. Benjamin likes spending his days on his farm. He is the breadwinner of the family and now feels distressed because he can’t provide for them due to his condition. He is worried about the obstacles his family would face if his hand will not be treated and also learning that he has arthritis. Their family doesn’t have money to pay for his surgery and his wife shared that this would be "almost impossible" for them. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner can help. On September 18th, Benjamin will undergo a fracture repair procedure, called an open reduction and internal fixation. The surgery will help him regain utility of his hand and be free from pain and any other complications arising from untreated fractures. Now, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,016 to fund this procedure. Benjamin shared with us, “I just want not to be in pain anymore and be healthy and happy and have a good life because my family needs me the most.”

Veasna lives with her parents, who are farmers. She has five older siblings, all of whom are married and live in other areas. She works at a local government office. In her free time she loves reading, writing her own stories, researching on the internet, and having discussions with friends. When she was younger, Veasna had her left leg amputated below the knee. However, the residual limb she was left with was not suitable for her prosthesis. When using her prosthesis, she experiences discomfort, pain while walking, and soreness. She came to CSC in order to have a surgical procedure in which her limb will be reshaped in order to better fit her prosthesis. Once she has recovered from this surgery, she will have much better functionality of her prosthetic limb and will no longer experience pain or discomfort while doing physical activities. Veasna said, "I have had this pain while walking for so long. I thought that I could not get more surgery to make things better, but thanks to CSC, I think I will be able to get rid of my problems with my leg."

Shedrack is a two-year-old boy living in Tanzania with his parents and extended family. The family operates a small scale farm to support themselves. Shedrack is an active, playful, and curious child. When Shedrack was around a year old, his parents noticed that his head was swelling and he was experiencing frequent fevers. Concerned by the continued swelling, his parents took him to a local hospital, where he was diagnosed with hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is a condition causing excessive fluid build up in the brain. Doctors have recommended that Shedrack undergo surgery to help ease the pressure in his head. If he does not receive the required treatment, the pressure on his brain could put him at risk for permanent brain damage. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,238 to fund Shedrack's surgery, which will be performed on July 8. Shedrack's parents are worried about his future but are hopeful that with treatment, he will grow up happy and healthy. Shedrack's mother says, "I hope that my child gets the surgery because he has bad head pains and I want him to feel well."

Long is a 31-year-old security guard with one son and one daughter. In his free time, he likes to watch TV and read magazines. In June, Long was injured in a motor vehicle accident. He was diagnosed with a brachial plexus injury, meaning that the nerves connecting his spine to his arm were damaged. After visiting a Khmer traditional healer, his symptoms did not improve. Long was in pain, and he could not use his right arm. After learning about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), Long traveled for three hours with his wife to reach CSC for treatment. On November 1, surgeons performed a nerve transfer surgery in his right arm. After recovery, he should be able to use his arm easily. Now, he needs help to fund this $450 procedure.

Meet Pha, a 26-year-old farmer from Cambodia. During a recreational game of volleyball. Pha injured his right index finger when blocking a spike. His proximal interphalangeal (PIP) join became dislocated and eventually infected, which currently prevents the use of his hand. "I can't hold anything," explains Pha, who also enjoys listening to Pop music and watching movies with his four siblings. For $392, we can fund a PIP joint fusion surgery to realign his finger and allow him to return to work. "I hope my hand will be better after the operation and I can hold stuff properly again,” shares Pha. “After I am healed I will go back home and work to support my life."