Loveness is a 3-year-old girl being raised by two loving parents. Her father works as a part-time engineer at local garages. He is the sole breadwinner of the family. Her mother is a stay-at-home mom who takes care of the household and family. She tried establishing a small business for additional income, but it was not successful due to lack of capital. Their current income is spent on paying rent, providing food, and paying the basic bills. Loveness was involved in an accident two years ago where she was burnt on both hands with hot milk. After healing, the wounds left her with skin contractures, where both her hands and all her fingers have hardened muscles and rigid joints. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Loveness receive treatment. On February 27th, surgeons at their care center will perform a burn contracture release surgery so she will be able to use her hands freely again. Now, her family needs help to fund this $874 procedure. Loveness’s mother says, “I hope my daughter gets better, I feel like this condition will limit her so much in the future.”

Juliet is a widowed small-scale farmer who has solely raised all four of her children, with the eldest in her senior year and the youngest having just completed primary school. In addition to farming, she does casual labor work on other people’s farms to supplement her income. A while back, Juliet began to experience troubling symptoms, including neck swelling, shortness of breath and difficulty in swallowing. She is no longer able to actively engage in farming or walk long distances because of palpitations and easy fatiguability. After receiving a thyroid test and scan, she was diagnosed with nontoxic goiter. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Juliet receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on January 24th where surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. She and her family need help to raise $252 to fund the procedure and care. Juliet says, “It will surely be a blessing and I will really be blessed having my health restored to normal once given a chance to undergo this surgery under your support.”

Thin is a 20-year-old rice farmer from Cambodia. He lives with his mother, father, and older brother in Kampong Thom province. When he is not in the rice paddies, he likes to play volleyball with his friends. A week ago, Thin suffered an injury to his left forearm from a rice harvest. He went to a local clinic for wound care but was still in pain. At the suggestion of a villager, the family drove three and a half hours to reach our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC) for further care. Doctors at CSC diagnosed Thin with compartment syndrome in his injured forearm. This is a condition that occurs when pressure within the damaged muscles builds to dangerous levels. This puts pressure on nerves and muscles. This can be very traumatizing for a young man. Thin is in pain, cannot move his arm, and there is no pulse on that extremity. Although doctors hoped to save his arm, it was determined that he needs an amputation. The cost of this procedure is $479, and Thin and his family need help to raise the fund. Thin hopes to be relieved of his pain after the surgery. Thin's mother said, "We are worried about our son, and hope after the surgery his pain will be less."