Hla Moe is a 30-year-old man who lives with his parents, sister, brother-in-law, nephew, and son in a village in Karen State, Burma. His family owns a paddy farm where most of them work. They use a small area of the farm to plant vegetables for themselves. They also raise chickens, pigs, and goats that they sell. Hla Moe stays at home to look after his son, while his wife lives in Mae Sot, Thailand, and works as a medic. In his free time, he likes to watch the news. Many years ago, Hla Moe experienced pain in his back and the left side of his abdomen. The pain became more frequent and severe, prompting him to seek medical treatment. Hla Moe was seen to have multiple stones in his left kidney and is recommended to have surgery. Fortunately, our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, can help. Hla Moe is scheduled for surgery to remove the kidney stones on March 15th. He needs help raising $1,500 for the surgery. Hla Moe said, “I am lucky that there are donors who will support my treatment. Without your support, I would never be able to get treatment. I am thankful for all the support you’ve given me.”

Purity is is a young lady aged 18 years who resides in in Kiambu County. She is the last born in a family of four children. Purity completed secondary school in 2022 and scored well enough to join the university. Unfortunately, she has not yet joined due to a lack of school fees. Her parents, who are farmers, are not able to raise the fee required to attend the university. This makes Purity very sad because she focused all her effort into studying, though she understands her parents’ situation and hopes she can get help soon to pursue her education. In December 2023, Purity began to experience troubling symptoms, including neck swelling. It was Purity’s elder sister who noted her neck was swollen. She was taken to the hospital, and a scan showed a multinodular goiter. She was referred to our medical partner's care center, Nazareth Hospital, for further tests and treatment. She was diagnosed with multinodular goiter. Her surgeon advised them to have a thyroidectomy to heal her condition, but due to their low income, her parents are not in a position to pay for this treatment. If not treated, the goiter may become very big, compressing the trachea and esophagus, leading to breathing and feeding difficulties. She may also have hyperthyroidism leading to palpitations, sweating and weight loss. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is helping Purity receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on March 5th at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $625, and she and her family need help raising money. “I am very much worried about this condition. I pray that someone will come to my aid so that I can be treated and be ready to go to university by the time my parents will manage to pay,” said Purity.

Allen is a small-scale farmer from Uganda. She completed primary school but was not able to continue because her parents were unable to support her education. She is separated from her husband and raising two children. Her firstborn is 14 years old and no longer in school, and her secondborn is 13 years old and is in primary school. She lives with her parents in a three-room mud house. Ten years ago, Allen began to experience troubling symptoms, including a small painless swelling on her neck which was rapidly increasing in size. She resorted to using herbs, but they did not help her at all. Currently, the mass has enlarged excessively and has caused difficulty in swallowing. She also experiences mild airway obstruction and on-and-off episodes of severe headaches. She was diagnosed with a goiter and needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is helping Allen receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo thyroid surgery on February 3rd at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $333, and she and her family need help raising money. Allen says, ‘‘I pray to have a successful surgery. I hope to continue with farming after complete recovery to be able to support our family. May God bless you.’’