Sopheak, who is 28 years old, comes from a family of rice farmers in rural Cambodia. When he isn't working, his favorite activity is fishing with his friends. In 2021 Sopheak moved to Thailand for a construction job. That November he sustained an injury at work, when a piece of glass cut his right leg. His boss helped him to seek treatment in Thailand, but after one month of hospitalization, Sopheak was sent back to Cambodia. Since returning home, Sopheak has been to multiple clinics, but he hasn't improved. He has been diagnosed with foot drop, caused by compression of a nerve in his leg. This nerve controls the muscles involved in lifting the foot. Due to his injury, Sopheak has lost function in his leg, and he is no longer able to lift his foot when walking. He has also lost sensation in his leg, and as a result of these combined issues, he is unable to work. Sopheak is receiving help from our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Centre. On March 29th he will undergo a nerve repair procedure at Kien Khleang National Rehabilitation Centre. After recovery, he will have improved range of motion in his foot. Now Sopheak needs your help to raise $572 to cover the cost of his surgery and care. Sopheak shared that he wants to be able to walk without dragging his foot, and be able to go back to work.

Hser is a 30-year-old midwife from Burma. She lives with her husband and eight other colleagues in the staff housing of the clinic she works at. Hser is a midwife, and her husband is a medic. In her free time, she enjoys going fishing with her husband and friends, weaving Karen clothes, and visiting the villagers nearby. Around June 2020, Hser felt she had a mass. Thinking it was not serious, she did not go to a hospital for treatment until April 2022. At the hospital, a doctor gave her medication for three months, but the mass did not decrease in size. Currently, Hser's experiences uncomfortable symptoms from the mass. Hser sought treatment through our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund. She is now scheduled to undergo mass removal surgery on March 8th. Hser needs help raising $1,500 to cover the total cost of her procedure and care. Hser said, "I am married, but I don’t plan to have children yet because my husband and I are both busy working as health workers for our community. So, I am very worried that I won't be able to have children anymore because of my condition. However, I have a loving and kind husband who understands me in every way, and he told me not to worry and feel sad. We cannot help but stay strong, helping and encouraging each other."

Elibaraka is a 12-year-old student from Tanzania. He is the third child in his family of four kids. He attends a boarding school for most of the year, and when is home with his family, he helps care for his mother. Elibaraka experienced a serious fire accident in 2015 that caused him to receive burns across his body. He received treatment at that time to care for his wounds, but he is now experiencing burn scars that are making it challenging for him to use his hand. He visited our medical partner’s care center for treatment. On February 27th, Elibaraka will undergo burn contracture release surgery that will allow him to be able to use his hand pain-free. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), is requesting $639 to fund Elibaraka’s procedure. Elibaraka shared: “I know it will be hard for my mother to afford the treatment, but I hope it will be possible for me to get treatment.”

67-year-old Sikora is a small-scale farmer and mother of seven, living in Uganda. While Sikora was never able to attend school, she and her husband, who farms and does casual labor around the village, struggle to raise the money necessary to ensure their children's education. For the past 15 years, Sikora has been experiencing lower abdominal pains, accompanied by an abnormal vaginal discharge. These symptoms started four months after the delivery of her seventh child, during which she experienced complications and prolonged labor. Over the past five years, the pains have worsened, and she has been unable to find relief, despite taking various medications. Ultimately, she was diagnosed with chronic pelvic pain due to pelvic inflammatory disease, and doctors have recommended surgery. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $319 to fund the hysterectomy that Sikora needs to enable her to resume her daily activities without pain. On February 6th, she will undergo gynecological surgery at Rushoroza Hospital. Now she needs your help to cover the costs of this procedure. Sikora says: “I have been in pain for a long period of time. I pray that I may get well through surgery so that I may continue to practice farming for the well-being of my family.”

Meet Tevy, a 13-year-old student from Cambodia. She is in eighth grade, and her favorite subject is math. She has a younger brother in fourth grade, and her family lives four hours outside of the capital city in a sparsely populated town. Her parents work in the local government. In the future, Tevy hopes to become a teacher. Until then, her favorite activities in her free time are watching TV and eating her mom's amazing chicken recipes! Tevy was born prematurely and diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age three. She has had some physiotherapy but is currently finding it more difficult to walk due to her knee flexion, thus impacting her mobility. She also experiences social anxiety in school and around her peers. She visited our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre (CSC), where the surgeons determined that an osteotomy and patella advance in both legs will help her walk without needing support. This will include lengthening the muscles behind the knees (the hamstrings and calf muscles) through an injection of Botox into the spastic muscle, causing it to partially relax as she heals. CSC is requesting $485 for this procedure, which covers the surgery, hospitalization, and post-op physiotherapy costs. Tevy's family has gathered $100 to contribute to her care. Tevy's father shared: "We are worried my daughter will stop going to school even though she is good in school. I hope she can walk better than before and continue her studies."

Meet Night, a jovial and playful five year old girl. Night lives with her parents and two younger siblings in a traditional home in Kenya. Her father works selling second hand clothing, while her mother stays home to take care of the children. Shortly after she was born, Night's parents realized that something seemed wrong. They brought Night to a health facility in Turkana County where they lived, and were referred on to BethanyKids Hospital. There she was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, which meant that fluid was collecting in her head. Surgery was performed, and a shunt was placed to continuously drain the fluid from Night's head. A year later, however, Night's head began to increase in size, and she developed weakness on the right side of her body. The doctors at the local health facility urged Night's parents to take her back to BethanyKids Hospital for additional treatment, but Night's parents didn't have enough money to do this. With the help of our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, Night is now scheduled to undergo a craniotomy on January 5th at BethanyKids Kijabe Hospital, when surgeons will drain excess fluids from Night's brain. Night's father is providing as much of a co-pay as possible for this procedure, but the family needs your help to raise the remaining $1,500 required to cover all of the costs of Night's surgery and care. Night’s father said: “Night is not able to communicate well because of her condition. This surgery will help her to be able to speak.”

Saoly is a 33-year-old former garment factory worker from Cambodia. He is from the Kampong Speu province, and married with two children. His wife makes and sells traditional Khmer cakes at the local market. His children are four and seven years of age. Since an accident, he has been home and likes to listen to the news, watch TV, and play with his children. In March 2020, he was in a motorcycle collision with a truck and fell on his left shoulder on the pavement. This caused paralysis of his left shoulder and arm. He has been diagnosed with a brachial plexus injury on his left side. The brachial plexus is a nerve network that transmits signals from the spine to the shoulder, arm, and hand. Injuries to this nerve network can result in loss of function and sensation. In August 2020, he had a surgical nerve graft, which allowed him to successfully bend his elbow, but he still cannot move his shoulder or his fingers. He cannot work, feels phantom pain in his arm, and is very depressed he cannot support his family and his wife has to work hard. Saoly traveled to our medical partner's care center to receive treatment. This is the only center in the whole country where this treatment is available. On December 1st, he will undergo a brachial plexus repair surgery. After recovery, he hopes that he will be able to move his shoulder, use his hand, and work again to support his family. Our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, is requesting $709 to fund this procedure. Saoly said: "I hope this surgery will help me to use my arm again. I would like to work in a factory again to support my family."

Hatsumi is a 19-month-old baby who lives with her parents and five older siblings. Her mother sells flowers in the market and her father takes care of her and her brothers and sisters at home. Hatsumi was born with a cardiac condition called ventricular septal defect, where a hole exists between the two lower chambers of her heart, causing blood leakage. This often leaves her weak and short of breath. Hatsumi and her family traveled to our medical partner, Haiti Cardiac Alliance, to seek treatment. On March 8th, Hatsumi will undergo a surgical procedure where doctors will sew a patch over the hole to prevent blood from leaking through. Now, Hatsumi's family needs help raising $1,500 to fund the procedure. Hatsumi's mother said, "Our family is praying that our daughter will be able to breathe more easily once her surgery is over!"

Chanla is a 40-year-old who is married and has one son and one daughter, both of whom are students in a public school. He and his wife run a small grocery shop in front of their house, where they sell snacks and drinks. When not managing their store, Chanla likes to listen to the news on the radio. One year ago, Chanla developed a cataract in his left eye, causing him blurry vision and photophobia. He has difficulty working in his store because he is unable to assist customers due his declining vision. When Chanla learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, he traveled for three and a half hours seeking treatment. On November 1st, doctors will perform a phacoemulsification cataract surgery and place an intraocular lens implant in his left eye. After recovery, he will be able to see clearly. Now, he needs help to fund this $253 procedure. Chanla shared, "I hope after surgery I will see well. It is important for me to see well to change money so I can help my wife to sell groceries."

Nay is a 65-year-old retired rice farmer with three sons, two daughters, and six grandchildren. Nay lives with her husband and with her eldest daughter, who is a coffee seller. In her free time, Nay likes to listen to the monks pray on the radio. Two years ago, Nay developed a cataract in her left eye, causing her blurry vision, photophobia, and tearing. She has difficulty seeing things clearly, including colors and faces, and is worried about falling when walking, so is not able to go places on her own. When Nay learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, she traveled for one and a half hours seeking treatment. On September 29th, doctors will perform a phacoemulsification cataract surgery, and an intraocular lens implant in her left eye. After recovery, she will be able to see clearly. Now, she needs help to fund this $253 procedure. She says, "I hope after surgery I can see clearly. I would like to easily see my family’s faces and get around better with my husband."

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.”