Sylivia, who is 51-years-old, is the mother of four children. Their family lives in Uganda, where Sylivia and her husband practice small scale farming to provide for their family. For the past year, Sylivia has been experiencing severe and abnormal bleeding, and lower abdominal pain. She has had to undergo a blood transfusion twice, and doctors have recommended surgery to remove the uterine fibroids that are the cause of Sylivia's symptoms. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $219 to fund the hysterectomy that Sylivia needs. On January 19th, she will undergo gynecological surgery at Karoli Lwanga Hospital, which should allow her to resume a healthy, pain free life. Sylivia says: “All my hopes of getting better are by undergoing surgery, I hope with your support, I will surely get better.”

Sai is a six-year-old kindergarten student. He lives with his parents and siblings (a 12-year-old brother who is in grade four and a 11-month-old sister) at Mae Sot District, Tak Province in Thailand. His father is a daily worker and works as a blacksmith. Sai’s mother is a homemaker who looks after the children at home. Sai was born with a healthy delivery however just after his sixth birthday, his mother noticed that Sai’s left eye was red. He told her that it was not painful, so they did not worry about it. In June 2022 though, his mother saw that there was a white dot in the pupil of Sai’s eye. When his mother covered Sai’s right eye and asked if he could see, he answered that he did not see clearly. Sai had his eyes checked at Mae Tao Clinic and the medic suspected that he had a cataract. He was sent to Mae Sot Hospital (MSH) for further investigation. He was referred to the ophthalmology department which later the doctor diagnosed him with mature left eye cataract. Currently, Sai’s vision in his left eye is blurry and he has trouble seeing the board when he is in the classroom. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to fund lens replacement surgery for Sai. On December 9th, doctors will perform a lens replacement, during which they will remove Sai's natural lens and replace it with an intraocular lens implant. After recovery, he will be able to see clearly. Now, he needs help to fund this $1,500 procedure. Sai’s mother said, “We cannot afford to take a loan (for the surgery) because we would have to pay the interest. There is less work during the pandemic and so it makes things very hard to have such a large loan. My words cannot express the thanks that I feel. It is so lucky for us to have the assistance from BCMF and donors.”

Sunn is a 71-year-old widower and retired farmer, living in Kandal province in Cambodia. He has two sons, three daughters, and many grandchildren. Except for his youngest daughter - who lives with him - all of his other children are married and live elsewhere. Ten years ago Sunn fractured his left forearm in a work accident. He underwent surgery at a local hospital to correct his injury, and plates and screws were placed to stabilize the fracture. Five months ago, after lifting a heavy weight, his arm became deformed and swollen. He has insufficient funds to return to the local hospital, but the metal from the implanted plates and screws is visible, and he is living with constant pain. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, can help. On October 11th, Sunn will undergo debridement and a hardware removal procedure, at Kien Khleang National Rehabilitation Centre. This surgery will decrease the risk of further injury, and allow for proper healing. Now Sunn needs your help to fund the $304 cost of the operation. Sunn shared: " I hope after surgery my left forearm will have no pain, no swelling, and no infection. I need to use my arm to watch my grandchildren and help my family."