Biruk is a young boy from Ethiopia who loves to eat spaghetti and macaroni. He also enjoys doing arts and crafts, and loves to play hide and seek with his friends in his neighborhood. Biruk is the second child in his family, and he has one older sister. His dad is a teacher in primary school and his mom is a housewife. Biruk lives together with his parents and sister in a rented house. Biruk was born with hypospadias, a congenital abnormality that causes urinary dysfunction. Without treatment and surgery, he will continue to experience uncomfortable symptoms and will be at risk of infertility as he grows older. Fortunately, Biruk is scheduled to undergo corrective surgery on March 16th. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,231 to cover the total cost of his procedure and care. Biruk shared with us, “I want to heal well and go to school and become a pilot.”

Rosemary is a 55-year-old woman, who is a very cheerful, talkative, and full of humour. Rosemary has a small kiosk where she sells beauty products. In recent years, she has been supporting her sick mother until her mother passed away last year. Early February 2020, Rosemary started experiencing some pain in her abdominal area. The pain became severe, and persisted for some time before she went to a hospital for a checkup. During the examination, she was found to have helicobacter pylori and gallbladder problems, and was also suspected to have gallbladder stones. Rosemary was given medication, which seemed to work at first but her gall bladder problems eventually worsened. Afterwards, Rosemary was referred to another facility in Nairobi for further treatment, but after going through scans and treatment, she did not notice any change in her condition. Eventually, she came to our Medical Partner Kijabe Hospital in February 2021. After the examination, the doctor recommended that she undergo a curative laparatomy to better treat her condition. However, Rosemary cannot afford the cost of her care. While supporting her mother, she found herself in a lot of debt that she is still trying to clear. Rosemary does not have National Health Insurance Fund coverage, and her condition needs urgent treatment. Rosemary has no extra source of income and is appealing for financial help. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner can help. On March 31st, Rosemary will undergo a laparoscopic cholecystectomy to treat her persistent pain. Once recovered, she will hopefully be free of pain and her quality of life will significantly improve. Now, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $616 to fund this procedure. Rosemary shared, “The financial situation I'm in makes it hard for me to raise enough funds for my surgery yet it is worsening as time goes by. Any financial help offered will be highly appreciated."

Ra Sa is a 67-year-old woman who lives with her nephew in Mae La Refugee Camp in Thailand. Ra Sa is a homemaker and her nephew is a student. Ra Sa’s daughter, who also lives in the camp with her husband, supports Ra Sa with food and visits several times a week. Ra Sa’s daughter works as a domestic worker in the camp, and her son-in-law works as a porter unloading supplies from delivery trucks, but the support they are able to provide for Ra Sa does not always cover her expenses. In her free time, Ra Sa likes to teach children at the local mosque. However, since a hernia appeared last year, she has not been able to teach in the same way. Once she has recovered, she wants to live happily with her nephew and to continue teaching. Since the 7th of March 2020, Ra Sa has had an umbilical hernia. She experiences a lot of pain in her lower abdomen and has three lumps that are increasing in size every day. She can no longer sit for more than 10 minutes before she is in pain, feeling more comfortable when she lies down. Sometimes she cannot breathe well and is having other troubling symptoms. Fortunately, on March 5th, she will undergo hernia repair surgery at Mae Sot General Hospital, our medical partner's care center. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to fund Ra Sa's hernia repair surgery, which will hopefully allow her to live more comfortably again. Ra Sa said, “I prayed every day that I would get a donor to cover the cost of my surgery and I feel like my prayers have been answered. I am so happy! I would like to say thank you so much to all of the donors. I will never forget what you have done for me and I hope that you will continue to help more patients in the future.”