Briven is a 2-year-old boy from Uganda. His parents are farmers who grow food for the family. He has two older brothers who are in school. Briven's father hopes his son will be an engineer in the future. Briven was born with hydrocele or a swelling in a sensitive area of the body. The doctors recommended surgery for him once he reached eight months. However, his parents couldn’t raise the funds needed. Recently, Briven has been in pain, unable to walk or play. Fortunately, on March 12, he will undergo hydrocele repair surgery. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $139 to fund Briven's surgery. Once completed, this procedure will hopefully allow him to live more comfortably and confidently. Briven's parents shared, “The only hope we have for a complete recovery of our child is by surgery, yet we have no money. We really need support.”

23-year-old Roth lives with his parents and three younger siblings in Kampong Thom province in Cambodia. His parents are rice farmers, while his two sisters and one brother are all in school. On August 5, Roth fell off his motorbike and injured his left knee. He went to the local provincial hospital, where the wound on his knee was stitched up. However, Roth is unable to put weight on or to extend his knee. He is in pain, and cannot work in the rice fields with his parents. After reading about our medical partner on their Facebook page, Roth consulted with their doctors. They determined that Roth has a completely torn patellar (knee) tendon, which requires surgery. If left untreated, this injury could result in other foot and leg problems, such as inflammation and pain in the ligaments in the soles of his foot, and tendinitis in other parts of his foot. He might also develop arthritis. Surgeons from our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, are scheduled to perform patellar tendon repair surgery on December 5th, at Kien Khleang National Rehabilitation Centre. Roth needs your help to fund the $572 cost of the procedure, hospitalization and rehabilitation. Roth said: "I hope I can walk more easily with no pain or swelling after this operation, so I can return to help my family with the rice crop."

58-year-old Natchokani is a widow from a village in Dedza District in Malawi. With seven children, six of whom have passed away, she now lives with her youngest child, who is 7 years old and attending primary school. Natchokani never had the opportunity to attend school, making it challenging for her to find employment. Consequently, she relies on farming to sustain herself and her son, growing maize, beans, and groundnuts for both sustenance and income. Twenty years ago, Natchokani noticed an itch and an uncomfortable feeling in her throat whenever she was eating. Shortly after, people in her vicinity informed her of a swelling on her neck, which she eventually noticed herself. The swelling has been increasing in size over the years but she never went to seek medical help in health centers as she did not have finances to pay for treatment. Instead, she tried traditional medicine to no avail. Natchokani has continued to experience severe headaches and pain in her upper back. She struggles to swallow and sometimes has shortness of breath when she is lying down. She is unable to carry a heavy load on her head, therefore making it difficult for her to carry out household chores such as fetching water, and firewood and going to the maize mill. One day while she was visiting a patient at our medical partner's care center Nkhoma Hospital, she was seen by a surgeon who later diagnosed her with a multinodular mass, and thyroidectomy was recommended. Our medical partner African Mission Healthcare is requesting $491 to fund Natchokani's thyroid surgery scheduled for March 7th. Following the surgery, her symptoms will be alleviated, allowing her to breathe more easily and engage in her daily tasks without discomfort. Natchokani says, “I hope to receive treatment and resume life without this condition so that I can take care of my only son.”