Charity is a 60-year-old woman from Uganda. She grew up in a family of eight children, she is the fifth-born, with four brothers and three sisters. Her siblings all have families of their own and are farmers. After losing their father at a young age, their mother, who was also a farmer, could not afford school fees for all of them but managed to support Charity until she completed seventh grade. Charity and her husband are blessed with five sons. One works as a butcher, one works as a day labor on other people's farms, and the remaining three children are still in school. To make ends meet, Charity grows food crops for home consumption and sells the surplus to generate income for her family. Her husband works as a builder. About a year ago, Charity began to experience troubling symptoms, including a swelling on the front of her neck. Initially, it was painless, but she later began experiencing shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, frequent headaches, and painful swallowing. At first, she relied on painkillers, but they provided no relief. One day, while with a friend who noticed a significant increase in the size of her neck, she was advised that it could be a goiter. She then visited a hospital, but she was unable to raise the money needed for the procedure and returned home. For the past few months, she has been using traditional remedies, but none have provided any relief. While listening to a radio talk show, she learned about a surgical support program at Nyakibale Hospital that assists patients with conditions like hers. She decided to seek care there. She was diagnosed with a goiter. The thyroid is the gland located in front of your neck and produces thyroid hormones. These hormones are responsible for functions such as metabolism, growth and other bodily functions. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is helping Charity receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on July 7th at Karoli Lwanga Hospital. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $252, and she and her family need help raising money. Charity says, “I don’t see any where to get the money needed for my surgery, but I have hopes that with your support, my surgery will be successful and I will get better.”

Shain is a 34-year-old man from Burma. He is a volunteer doctor at a hospital near the border of Thailand and Burma. In his free time, Shain loves reading books. In May 2021, Shain started to experience troubling symptoms that kept recurring, despite medications. His symptoms cause him pain and discomfort, preventing him from performing his daily tasks. He is unable to sit or move comfortably. Shain has an abnormal growth in a sensitive part of the body. He sought treatment through our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, and was advised to undergo a mass removal surgery on July 16th. He is requesting $1,500 to help cover the total cost of his procedure and care. Shain shares, "I hope to get better so I can continue volunteering." Shain likes to conduct training for the medics in the area.

Lim is a three-year-old boy from Cambodia. He is an only child from Svay Rieng Province and lives with his grandmother, who is a rice farmer. Due to financial difficulties, his parents work away from home; his mother in a garment factory and his father as an air conditioning repairer. He enjoys playing with toy cars with his cousin and friends in the village, and loves eating fried eggs and caramelized pork. When he was one year old, shortly after he began walking, Lim slipped and fell, causing a fracture of his left shinbone. His grandmother initially took him to a traditional healer, but his condition did not improve. She later took him to a hospital in Phnom Penh, where an X-ray confirmed the fracture. However, the surgery kept being postponed until October. As his condition worsened, his grandmother brought him to our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), after hearing about the hospital from a neighbor. The condition has made it difficult for Lim to stand and walk normally, preventing him from playing with other children and reaching normal developmental milestones for his age. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, can help. On July 1st, Lim will undergo a fracture repair procedure, which will cost $600. The surgery will stabilize and straighten his left leg, allowing the bone to heal properly. It is expected to improve his ability to walk, support normal growth of his leg, and give him the opportunity to start school and play with other children. His grandmother said, “After the surgery, I hope that my grandson will be able to walk normally, go to school, and play with his friends like other children. Thank you to everyone who will help him.”