Khin is a 39-year-old woman who lives with her family in Hpa-An Township, Karen State, Burma. Both her children are in preschool. She and her husband are subsistence farmers, growing rice during the rainy season on rented land. The rest of the year, her husband collects leaves used to make roofs, works as a daily labourer or collects branches to sell. Khin was born with a scar the size of an ant bite on her upper lip. Her parents thought that it would disappear or heal on its own but the scar developed into a growth and increased in size. Her parents passed away when she was young and after that she went to live with her brother’s family. By the time she was around 20 years old, the growth had become large and soft, covering the area between her upper lips and her nose. When the pain became unbearable in 2005, her uncle dropped her off at Mae Tao Clinic (MTC) in Thailand, a free clinic close to where her uncle used to work. At this point, the growth had become so large that dragged her upper lip down and extended into her nostrils. At MTC, she was seen by doctors and medics, before she was diagnosed with a hemangioma. At this point, the growth had worsened, and she was bleeding from her lips. In April 2006, Khin went to Chiang Mai Hospital and had the hemangioma removed surgically. The growth later has returned. Overtime, the hemangioma has increased in size and become hard. It has now expanded into Khin’s nostrils, especially her left nostril, which causes her to have difficulty breathing at times. She feels uncomfortable but is not in pain. Sometimes she also feels like she has a blood clot in her nostrils during her nosebleeds. Because the nosebleed can start at any time and can last anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes, her life revolves around managing her nosebleeds. She is unable to work or sleep properly, and if she is about to have a nosebleed, she is unable to eat. The nosebleeds have also affected her ability to earn an income for her children and continues to impact her social life. “When I socialise, I do not feel comfortable and some people think I have a disease that I can infect them with,” said Khin. “So, I hope to get better after surgery, and I hope I will no longer have nosebleeds. I don’t want to bleed, and I want to socialise with my friends and family happily. [Right now] my friends won’t even touch me.”

Sarah is a student from Kenya who lives at a girls’ rescue center together with her two sisters. They escaped from forced circumcision that their parents were pushing for and the rescue center secured their child custody rights. However, the center does not have health insurance for the children living there. In 2018, Sarah suffered a snake bite but it was never treated. She healed with contractures on her left wrist and elbow, which has strained her ability to utilize her left hand. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Sarah receive treatment. On June 19th, surgeons at their care center will perform a contracture release surgery. With successful surgery, she will be able to use her hand with a lot of ease. Now, she needs help to fund this $1,176 procedure. Sarah’s guardian says, “Sarah is limited in her left-hand functions. Please assist her.”

Sina is a third grade student from Cambodia. He has two older brothers. He likes to play football and wants to be a policeman when he grows up. His favorite subject in school is Khmer and his favorite foods are milk and all kinds of soup. Three days ago, an insect entered his ear, causing ear pain, discharge, and bleeding. Sina traveled to our medical partner's care center to receive treatment. On April 15th, surgeons at our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), will remove the insect and treat his ear. Now, Sina needs help to raise $231 to fund this procedure. "I hope that my ear will stop pain and bleed. One day I will go to school and become a policeman," Sina said proudly.