Birhanu is a cheerful and affectionate eight-year-old boy from Ethiopia, the youngest child in his family of nine children. He enjoys playing football with his friends and spending time with his siblings. His father, a farmer, and his mother, a housewife, work tirelessly to support their 11-member family who primarily rely on agriculture. Their income is insufficient to meet their daily needs, so they are enrolled in a government food aid program and receive maize every month. The family also strives to save money in hopes of purchasing additional small plots of land to improve their financial situation.
Birhanu was born with hypospadias, a condition that causes urinary dysfunction. His birth brought a mix of emotions to his father, because Birhanu’s elderly brother had been born with a similar condition. Birhanu’s father believed it was a divine punishment. He didn’t seek medical help, thinking the condition could not be treated, neither with medicine nor herbal remedies.
Everything changed when he visited his daughter in Sekota, a regional administrative unit. There, he heard about a boy in the neighborhood who had received successful treatment for a similar condition through our medical partner’s care center, BethanyKids Myungsung Christian Medical Centre (BKMCM), under the Watsi program. Encouraged by this, he contacted a BKMCM field patient coordinator, who arranged a home visit and reassured them that the condition was treatable. Hope sparked in him as he began to believe Birhanu could get the treatment he needed. During his first visit to BKMCM, the warm welcome from the staff filled him with gratitude and renewed optimism.
Birhanu is scheduled to undergo corrective surgery on June 6th. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $1,293 to cover the cost of his procedure and care.
Birhanu’s father said, “I hope my son gets the treatment he needs and gets healthy. Then he’ll be able to learn without any shame or embarrassment.”

