Cristina lives with her mother, a food vendor; her father, a construction worker; and eight older brothers and sisters in a neighborhood of La Paz, Bolivia. As a small baby, she struggled to breathe normally, and so her mother took her to the children's hospital where she was diagnosed with ventricular septal defect, a hole between the two lower chambers of the heart. Cristina also has Down syndrome. During surgery, doctors will sew a patch over the hole so that blood can no longer leak through it. Christina needs your help to raise $1,500 to pay for her heart surgery. Her mother says, "Our family is so grateful to know that there is a way to fix our daughter's heart so that she can breathe normally."

Yean is a retired rice farmer who lives in Kampong Cham province with his wife and their oldest son, who supports the family by working in a nearby rubber plantation. In total, they have three grown children and seven grandchildren who visit often. Yean likes praying at the pagoda, spending time with his grandchildren, and listening to the local news on the radio. About one year ago, Yean developed a cataract in his right eye, causing him photophobia, tearing, and blurry vision. When Yean learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, he traveled for four and a half hours seeking treatment. On February 14th, doctors will perform a small incision cataract surgery and an intraocular lens implant in his right eye. After recovery, he will be able to see clearly. Now, he needs help to fund this $253 procedure. He shared, "I hope after surgery my eye can see better and I feel happy again. I want to go places on my own and know my neighbors when I see them."

Jannifer is the second-born child in a family of two. She lost both her parents in a road traffic accident when she was four years old. She was the only survivor of the accident. After her parent's burial, she stayed with her grandmother in the village until she started having abdominal pains and was taken in by her aunt for proper care and support. The aunt is a single mother of 4 children aged 20 (twins),16 and 6. Beatrice, the aunt, separated from her husband, who does not render support so she works as a driver and uses her income to support the children. They live in a two-bedroom rented house with water and electricity. For four years, Jannifer has had abdominal pains originating from the umbilical region. This has affected her studies as she keeps missing school attendance. Jannifer has now been diagnosed with a hernia, and fortunately, she is eligible for surgery which can cure her condition. Her aunt looks forward to a successful surgery that would enable Jannifer to concentrate on her school. She said she could not wait to see Jennifer continue to excel in life as a loving and beautiful girl. Jannifer said, “I don’t like the pain because it hurts,” and Beatrice, her aunt said, "Kindly help my daughter because I want her to live happily.”