Kabare is a farmer from Uganda. Kabare is married and a father to three children. He has two girls and one boy, all are married and are also small-scale farmers. He earns a living from his small banana and coffee plantation but at a one time he also grew small gardens of beans, maize and millet for home consumption. But he no longer does this because of pain which he experiences while cultivating. Three years ago, Kabare developed a right inguinal hernia. His hernia causes him weakness and pain and prevents him from working. Fortunately, on July 21st, he will undergo hernia repair surgery at our medical partner's care center. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $230 to fund Kabare's surgery. Once completed, this procedure will hopefully allow him to live more comfortably and confidently. Kabare says, “Once my surgery is done, I hope to recover from this condition and resume with farming to provide for my family.”

Joseph is a 19-year-old joyful boy who hails from the Mount Elgon area in Kenya. He shared that he is known around the village as the guy with the large mass due to his protruding hernia on his abdomen. In February 2019, Joseph was involved in a road traffic accident when he was headed home from his daily labor. He sustained injuries in his stomach where he was rushed to a hospital and an exploratory laparotomy was done. A few days later, Joseph was discharged from hospital and as his wounds were healing he started developing a mass on his stomach. Joseph feared to go to the hospital again because he didn’t want to be in pain. As the mass grew bigger, Joseph started worrying about his life. He went to his church pastor where the church raised money to send him to the capital city to get it removed but they were told he needed a specialist who demanded a lot of money which they could not afford. Joseph had given up on the possibility of getting treated. It was not until a friend asked his pastor to bring him to our hospital, where he was diagnosed with an incisional hernia that he was happy to be told that his condition can be treated. Joseph's father died of illness while he was young. He dropped out of school in Grade 4 because his mother re-married and she didn't have money to send him to school, so he began to work in farms to help get money for his daily needs like food. Joseph works in the farms and gardens and enjoys planting and farming. He wants to be able to have a big farm and grow lots of vegetables, corn, and millet. Joseph has gone to other doctors to help with his mass but everyone said it wasn’t operable. He is most disturbed by the way people who stare at him. Joseph is a very practical man and looks forward to going back to his farm and working hard to have a good crop and harvest and have a good life. Joseph is worried that he might not get a wife due to his condition. He is also facing stigma by people talking about his condition and has been denied work. If he is not treated, his condition will continue to worsen and his future plans feel bleak to him if he does not get treatment. Joseph told us, “I just want to be able to find a girl to marry and have a family.”

Akatwijuka is a child from Uganda. He is the only child that his parents have and his mother is pregnant and expecting her next child toward the end of this year. Akatwijuka’s mother is a small-scale farmer and so is her father. Since birth, Akatwijuka has had an inguinal hernia. This hernia causes him pain and discomfort Fortunately, on July 21st, he will undergo hernia repair surgery at our medical partner's care center. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $230 to fund Akatwijuka's surgery. Once completed, this procedure will hopefully allow him to live more comfortably and confidently. Akatwijuka's mother shared, “I hope that when my child successfully receives his surgery, he will again be in a position to grow normally with others and attain a good health once again.”