Chanthoeun is a 35-year-old welder from Cambodia. He is married and has a 15-year-old daughter in grade 10 at a public school. His wife is a garment worker. In his free time, he enjoys listening to the news on the radio and watching boxing on TV. In September 2022, Chanthoeun was in a motorcycle accident on his way home from work and fractured two major bones in his left lower leg. Because he did not have enough money, he went to a Khmer traditional healer, but his leg became infected. His leg is red and swollen, and it is very painful. He has an open wound on his shin, is unable to walk, and must use a wheelchair. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, can help. On November 1st, Chanthoeun will undergo a fracture repair procedure, which will cost $483. A debridement of the dead skin and an external frame to stabilize the broken bones will support the mending of his fractures. Doctors hope this will help him walk again. Chanthoeun said: "After surgery, I hope my leg will be better, I will be free of pain, and I can return to work to support my family."

Mark is a primary school student in a special need school in Nairobi. Mark wears a broad smile and is feeling proud to take his photo and share his story. Mark is the firstborn in a family of two children. Mark's parents are both hawkers at a local market in Githurai. His father sells second-hand shoes famously known as Mitumba and his mother sells t-shirts at the same market. This work results in inconsistent income for their family. Mark has a fracture and dislocation of the shoulder joint and the upper part of the bone of the arm (humerus). As a result of his disability, Mark is unable to communicate the cause of the injury, but his mother suspects he fell a couple weeks ago and injured himself. Mark is unable to use his arm and hand as a result of the fracture. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner can help. On October 5th, Mark will undergo a fracture repair procedure, called an open reduction and internal fixation. This procedure will help him heal well and he will be able to use his arm and hand again. Now, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Mark's family raise $1,500 to fund this procedure. Mark's mother shared, “Mark is struggling to use his hand. He is in constant pain and it is written all over his face. Normally, he is a jovial kid but the pain is making him frown constantly.”

Jonathan is a courageous fire officer from the Philippines. He lives with and helps support his siblings and elderly mother. He works to provide their family's sole income. Last month, Jonathan began to experience pain and other troubling symptoms that caused him to seek medical attention. He was diagnosed with mixed hemorrhoids, or a combination of internal and external hemorrhoids. This condition causes the veins of the lower rectum to become swollen. He requires surgery to prevent his symptoms from getting worse. Fortunately, our medical partner, World Surgical Foundation Philippines (WSFP), is helping Jonathan receive treatment. He is scheduled to undergo a hemorrhoidectomy on August 20th at WSFP's care center. During this procedure, surgeons will remove his hemorrhoids. A portion of the cost of his treatment is being supported by the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation, and WSFP is raising the remaining $1,137 to cover the cost of Jonathan's procedure and care. Jonathan shares, "This disease hinders me from doing my job. I'm the only one who works in our family. If I can't work, I won't be able to provide for our needs, so this surgery is a big help for me. To Watsi and World Surgical Foundation Philippines, thank you so much for your kind hearts. May you not get tired of helping the needy."

Ivy is a hardworking 24-year-old mom from the Philippines. Her husband works as a construction worker, and she shared that his income is only enough to sustain their basic needs. For the past five years, Ivy has been monitoring a birthmark on her face, which she noticed is growing in size. However, despite her desire to consult a physician, her financial constraints have prevented her from doing so. Over time, she began experiencing troubling symptoms, such as pain, uncontrollable itchiness, and bleeding from the lesion. Fortunately, Ivy found her way to our medical partner, World Surgical Foundation Philippines (WSFP). They are helping Ivy receive treatment. On July 16th, she will undergo surgery at WSFP’s care center. This procedure will remove her lesion and alleviate her symptoms, allowing her to return to supporting her family free of discomfort. Now, she needs help raising $1,196 to fund her procedure and care. Ivy shares, "Everywhere I go, I feel like people always notice my lesion, and it has started to affect my self-confidence. With Watsi and World Surgical Foundation Philippines helping me get this surgery, I know I can regain my confidence. I am really thankful to them, and I hope they help more people like me."

Dorn is a 37-year-old farmer from an agricultural region in southern Cambodia. Dorn and his wife have two daughters, a 10-year-old and 3-year-old. Dorn's wife is a garment factory worker in Phnom Penh. In his free time, Dorn enjoys playing with his daughters and meeting friends for coffee. Since he was a child, Dorn has had problems with his left elbow. Dorn has been treated by Khmer traditional healers, but his pain has increased over the last year. Dorn suffers from numbness in his left arm and experiences ulnar nerve palsy. As a result, Dorn cannot work at all with his left hand. This makes it very difficult to farm and feed his cattle. A neighbor suggested Dorn visit our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), for diagnosis and treatment. Dorn was diagnosed with a transposition of his nerves and specialty surgeons plan to do an ulnar nerve exploration on June 6th to help him finally heal. CSC is raising $572 to cover Dorn's procedure. Dorn shared, "After surgery, I hope my left hand can get better, with no more numbness, and I can work without pain. This treatment will help me in the future to return to work."

Ko Kyaw lives with his wife and two daughters in the border region of Tak Province in Thailand. He is a homemaker while his wife works as a day laborer. He plans to send his older daughter to a Thai school in the new school year, but his younger daughter is still too young to go to school. In early 2021, Kyaw was still living in his village in Myawaddy Township in Burma but it has been a very challenging time for his community ever since the military coup. He and his wife were injured in an emergency involving the local soldiers who came to their area. Luckily other villagers came to their rescue and Kyaw was treated for fractures on both his upper and lower leg, where a metal rod was inserted to help him heal. Now the bone in his thigh is misshapen and doctors have diagnosed osteomyelitis (infected bone). His doctor told him that in order to heal, he would need to have the metal rods replaced in both his upper and lower leg. Currently, Kyaw’s left leg is in a lot of pain. He can only bend his leg slightly and needs to use crutches to get around. With his leg in pain, Ko Kyaw spends most of his time helping out with household chores he can do and teaching his oldest daughter how to read and write in Burmese. He feels frustrated that since his leg was broken, he cannot support his family. Our medical partner Burma Children Medical Fund is helping to pay the cost of his treatment and is raising $1500 to cover his surgery, which will take place on May 10th. “I feel upset that I cannot support my family as the head of the house,” he said. “We only have my wife’s income. We do not have our own house to live in. I want to say a lot of things but I cannot express what I want to say. I never thought that I would lose my house, my possessions and that my leg would be in pain.”

Cho is a 23-year-old woman from Thailand, living with her husband, son and her husband’s cousin in a refugee camp, in Mae Hong Son Province. Her husband works as a medic at the hospital in the refugee camp, and her husband’s cousin goes to school. Cho is a homemaker, and looks after her son. In her free time, Cho loves to play with her son, while on Saturdays, she likes to attend church. Cho is currently expecting her second child. At a recent antenatal visit, Cho's doctors told her that she would need to give birth via Caesarean section, due to complications she experienced when giving birth to her son. A C-section offers the best opportunity for a safe and healthy outcome for both Cho and her new baby. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is helping Cho access the care that she needs. On September 8th, Cho will undergo a Caesarean section at Mae Sariang Hospital. Burma Children Medical Fund is seeking $1,500 to fund this procedure and ensure a safe delivery. “I want to work as a teacher in the future again, when my children are old enough to go to school,” Cho said.

Stefano is a 5-year-old child from Tanzania. Stefano’s parents are small-scale farmers and livestock keepers. They are not able to afford their son’s treatment costs thus they are asking for help. When we first met Stefano he was having difficulty walking and it was challenging for him to do day-to-day tasks. He looked tired despite being carried on her mother’s back. Stefano has needed support from the hospital to get healthy enough for surgery and has been receiving care since last November. He now is healthy enough to undergo surgery for his leg condition. Stefano was diagnosed with windswept deformity. His legs bow so that the knees appear windswept. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, he has a difficult time walking and experiences pain. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $880 to fund corrective surgery for Stefano. The procedure is scheduled to take place on April 22nd. Treatment will hopefully restore Stefano's mobility, allow him to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease his risk of future complications. Stefano’s mother shared in her language, “Mchugaji alituambia tunaweza kupata msaada wa matibabu kwa ajili yam toto wetu hapa.” Meaning: "The pastor told us our son could get treatment help from here."

Tin is a 45-year-old man. Originally from Burma, he fled to Thailand over 20 years ago due to civil war. He currently lives with his wife, who works as a street vendor selling various snacks and vegetable, and one of his daughters, who is currently in school. His family also raises chickens, which they sell when they need cash. Tin previously worked as a farmer and a construction worker, but he has recently been unable to work due to his condition. In the future, he hopes to go back to work and help support his family. After an incident that occurred this past April that caused him to be hit in the left eye by a mango, Tin lost his vision in that eye and began to experience headaches, swelling, severe eye pain, and dizziness when attempting to stand. Tin eventually sought medical attention at a clinic. There, a medic checked his left eye, gave him a bottle of eye drops, and told him to seek treatment at Mae Tao Clinic (MTC) since they could not treat him there. However, he did not go to MTC right away due to financial constraints. He instead hoped that his eye would recover over time with the help of eye drops. Although his pain was temporarily reduced, the bruising disappeared, and the swelling went down over time, he never regained his vision. The pain in his eye eventually returned, and he noticed that he had a white spot on his left pupil. As the white spot increased in size, his eye progressively became more painful and began to itch. He now experiences discharge and watering in his eye, as well as difficulty sleeping. At the beginning of this month, a small lump appeared near the white spot on his left pupil. The lump gradually increased in size until it bursted on August 13th. After the discharge and bleeding from the lump stopped, he asked his friend to take him to MTC right away. When he arrived at the clinic, he was told to come back on Monday since there were not any eye specialist medics working on the weekend. When Tin returned on Monday, a medic examined his left eye, and he was diagnosed with corneal perforation, a condition resulting from the cornea being penetrated and damaged. Tin was also told that his eye is infected. He now must undergo surgery at our medical partner's care center, Mae Sot General Hospital, to remove his left eye as quickly as possible before the infection spreads to his right eye. Fortunately, Tin was referred to our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund (BCMF), for financial assistance accessing treatment. On August 17th, surgeons at our medical partner's care center will perform an enucleation to remove his left eye. Now, BCMF is requesting $1,500 to fund Tin's life-changing procedure. Tin shares, “I feel very depressed and worried about my eye. I can’t imagine what my life would be like if I lost vision in both of my eyes. I want to receive surgery quickly to prevent my right eye from becoming infected. Without your help, I don’t think I would be able to receive further treatment. Therefore, I want to say thank you to the donors and the organization for agreeing to support my treatment costs.”

Jane is a polite and calm 17-year girl from a family of four children. Jane’s father is a small-scale farmer of maize and vegetables and practices livestock keeping. Jane completed her primary education late last year and started secondary school, but had to stop because the walk to school grew to be too painful. Jane was diagnosed with left Genu Valgus meaning her leg is bent causing her knees to knock against each other when walking. This condition is typically caused by an excessive accumulation of fluoride in the bones, which often stems from contaminated drinking water. As a result, Jane experiences pain and exhaustion after just a short distance walk. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is raising $880 to fund corrective surgery for Jane. The procedure is scheduled to take place on July 5th. Treatment will hopefully restore Jane's mobility, allow her to participate in a variety of activities, and greatly decrease her risk of future complications. Jane shared, “I would like to continue with my studies because I want to be either a teacher or a nurse.”

Meet Emmanuel, a 9-year-old boy, living with his mother and four siblings in a small town in rural Kenya. Emmanuel's mother is a single parent, who works daily jobs like helping with laundry in an effort to support her children. Despite her hard work, the family's neighbors step in at times to make certain the children are fed, as Emmanuel's mother shared that she doesn't always have enough money for food. On Saturday evening, Emmanuel was brought to Kapsowar Hospital, after being hit by a speeding car. An X-ray confirmed that Emmanuel's left femur was fractured. He was admitted to the children's ward, and his leg was placed in traction until he can undergo surgery to repair the fracture. In the meantime, Emmanuel is in pain, and he cannot use his left leg. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner can help. On June 7th, Emmanuel will undergo a fracture repair procedure, called an open reduction and internal fixation, at AIC Kapsowar Hospital. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is seeking $1,145 to fund Emmanuel's surgery, which will enable him to walk easily again, and to resume the life of enjoying being a 9 year old. Emmanuel's mother says: “I am going through so many struggles. I have a one-year-old baby at home. I am unable to take care of her as I am at the hospital. My hope is to see Emmanuel treated so that I can take care of him at home with his siblings.”

Gordon is a six year old boy, living with his parents and two younger siblings in a one roomed house in the Korogocho area of the capital city. His mother is a homemaker, while his father works as a vendor. Gordon was born with multiple birth conditions, including spina bifida, and hydrocephalus, as well as bilateral clubfoot. Currently, he cannot stand or walk - or wear shoes - and he has to crawl every time he wants to move about. At a visit to a mobile health clinic, it was determined that Gordon needs surgery to correct his feet. His family cannot afford the estimated hospital bill, and is requesting help to cover the costs so he can get the care he needs. Fortunately, Gordon's family traveled to our medical partner's care center, AIC Cure International Hospital. There, surgeons will perform clubfoot repair surgery on May 30th. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is requesting $1,286 to fund Gordon's surgery and care. After treatment, Gordon should be able to put on shoes, to stand, and to walk. “I would request the donors to help my son undergo surgery. My desire is to see him grow up like other children,” Gordon’s mother told us.