Anne is a toddler from Haiti. She lives with her parents in Port-au-Prince; her father is a civil servant and her mother is a homemaker. She is their first child. Anne was born with a congenital heart defect called ventricular septal defect. A hole exists between the two lower chambers of her heart; blood leaks through this hole without passing through her lungs to obtain oxygen, leaving her weak and short of breath. Because the surgery that she needs is not available in Haiti, Anne will fly to Dominican Republic to receive treatment. On September 13th, she will undergo cardiac surgery, during which surgeons will sew a patch over the hole so that blood can no longer leak through it. Haiti Cardiac Alliance is contributing $8,000 to help pay for the surgery. Anne's family needs help to fund related expenses for her care. The $1,500 will help cover the expenses of labs, medicines, and checkup and follow-up appointments. It will also go toward the expenses of obtaining passports and the cost of social workers from our medical partner who will accompany Anne's family overseas. Anne's mother said: "My husband and I have been very afraid for Anne's life since we got this diagnosis. We are very hopeful that we can stop worrying after her surgery!"

Isaac is a 37-year-old husband and father to three young children ranging from 2-8 years old. He works as a laborer at a construction site in Nairobi. However, income is tight, as Issac's job has an inconsistent need for laborers and his wife is a stay-at-home mom. On the 13th of April, Isaac was involved in a bad car accident and rushed to our medical partner's care center Kijabe Hospital for emergency care. The car Isaac was in swayed off the road and hit a wall that caused a severe fracture in his right leg. The fracture has made it difficult for him to walk and causes him pain. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), can help. On April 14th, Isaac will undergo a fracture repair procedure, called an open reduction and internal fixation. This procedure will help him regain the ability to walk. AMH is requesting $1,500 to fund his medical procedure. Isaac says, “My family depends on me. I am scared of how to fend for them with this condition. I need the treatment since I cannot work with a broken leg."

Paola is a brilliant little star from Colombia. She was born in Putumayo a region in the south of Colombia, and lives with her mother, brother and grandparents. Her brother is 10 years old and they love painting and drawing together. She is really good at school, and loves math. Paola has clubfoot of both feet. Clubfoot is a condition in which the foot is twisted out of shape. This causes difficulty walking and even wearing shoes. Fortunately, Paola's family traveled to visit our Medical Partner Clínica Noel. There, surgeons will perform clubfoot repair surgery on May 22nd. Our medical partner, Clínica Noel, is requesting $1,500 to fund Paola's bilateral clubfoot repair. After treatment, she will be able to walk without pain and continue studying without further complications. Her mother said: "I hope you can help my little girl, I struggle a lot seeing her suffering and not being able to help her or stop her pain."

Sifurman is a cute three-year-old boy from Ethiopia. He is the only child of his parents. His father is a daily laborer, while his mother washes clothes for people to add to their income. The limited money that they earn covers the rental of their house and the cost of food. Sifurman was born with hypospadias, a congenital abnormality that causes urinary dysfunction. Without treatment, he will continue to experience uncomfortable symptoms and will be at risk of infertility when he is an adult. Fortunately, Sifurman is scheduled to undergo corrective surgery on April 20th at BethanyKids Myungsung Christian Medical Centre. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,293 to cover the total cost of his procedure and care. Not only will Sifurman's condition be corrected, but his parents will no longer have to worry about the health of their only child. Sifurman's mother said: “I would be greatly happy to see him healthy. I will educate him.”

Mary is a grade two pupil from Kenya and the fifth child in her family. Her mother is a single parent raising six kids on her own while also taking in work washing clothes. A little while ago, Mary broke her dominant arm while playing with her classmates at school. She was rushed to a health facility nearby, where an x-ray revealed a right supracondylar fracture that needs surgical attention. Her right arm is currently in a sling and she is unable to use it or attend school. Mary's mother pooled her resources with close relatives to bring Mary to our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare. On March 15th, surgeons with African Mission Healthcare will perform a fracture repair procedure, called an open reduction and internal fixation. This procedure will help to join the bone and enable Mary to use her arm again. Now, Mary and her family need $979 to fund this procedure. Mary’s mother said, “Mary is unable to go to school because of the fracture. She uses this hand that is broken and needs treatment.”

Khin is a 65-year-old woman who lives with her daughter, son-in-law, and three grandchildren in Tak Province, Thailand. Three years ago Khin, who is retired, moved to Thailand from Burma in order to live with her daughter. Currently, the vision in Khin’s right eye is blurred as a result of a cataract. Khin finds it difficult to help with household chores, as she has to rely on her left eye alone. She finds that if she tries to focus on something, she develops a headache. She worries she might lose the vision in her left eye. Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to fund lens replacement surgery for Khin. On February 23rd, doctors at Mae Sot General Hospital will perform cataract surgery, implanting an intraocular lens in Khin's eye, restoring her vision. Khin said: “I feel like I am losing an eye since I cannot see with my right eye. I am also worried about losing vision in my other eye. I am afraid to undergo surgery, but I want my vision back so that I can see people’s faces again. I feel sorry for my children, and I pity them since they need to help me with everything. I felt really happy when I learned that a donor will support my treatment cost.”

John is a hawker (the local name for a street vendor) from Kenya. He has six children all under the age of 18 years. His wife helps at home and John is the family's sole breadwinner. Lately, due to his condition, John has been unable to work. He has no alternate source of income, and shared that he is struggling to raise his family. John first started experiencing a loss of appetite and stomach pain in April 2022. He visited a local health center and was treated for stomach aches, but his condition did not improve. He later started having episodes of diarrhea and has lost a significant amount of weight. He also has been experiencing bleeding that has caused him anemia. As a result, he has had several blood transfusions and hospital admissions. Recently, a biopsy at Kijabe Hospital revealed that John has colorectal cancer. Colorectal cancer is a disease in which cells in the colon grow out of control. At the current stage, his doctors feel the cancer can be stopped surgically from spreading. However, the procedure has to be done as soon as possible because it is urgent. He is now scheduled to undergo surgery and needs support. Unfortunately, John does not have medical coverage and cannot afford the surgery. He is requesting financial assistance to support the $1,074 needed for his medical care. John says, “I cannot eat, and I have lost a lot of weight. I have had several blood transfusions because of bleeding. I need this surgery to help fight the cancer.”

William is a small-scale farmer from Kenya. He is a married man with twelve children. Some of his oldest children are married while others are still in school. William and his family live in a semi-permanent house. He has been a long-term potato farmer who has been growing them mainly for sale. His family has worked on their farm and it has contributed a lot to their income. Through the limited income William makes, he has been able to provide for his children's basic needs. William has medical insurance that he has been using throughout all his visits for inpatient and outpatient services for his medical procedures. In May 2019, when William was walking along the road, he was hit by a motorbike and he fell down, thus injuring his lower limb. Immediately, he was taken to a facility where he was admitted and surgery was done.  All was well up to last year when he started feeling unwell and decided to visit our partner's hospital. He presented with a lot of pain, he had a wound that was discharging pus, and his affected limb was swollen. An x-ray was recommended and it found that he had a non-union on his fractured bone and he had to be admitted for hardware removal, as it was already infected. He went to the operating theater for infected hardware removal and antibiotic nailing was done in order to treat his infection.  Since the nail was not stable, a patella tendon-bearing cast was applied in order to immobilize his non-united fracture. He has been in and out of the hospital for frequent check-ups, change of dressing, and casts. The wound has not improved and at some time after the antibiotic nailing, he went to the operating room for debridement and vacuum-assisted closure of the wound to help in healing and daily dressing change has been done in a health facility near his home. He also suffered eye problems in between and can barely see at the moment. On Monday when he came for review, his wound was not well and had a foul smell. His hardware needs to be removed, the non-union has to be taken down and a procedure will be done for stability. He was prepared for admission, but then it was realized that he had exhausted his inpatient insurance limit. In order to save his leg, it is vital to perform the surgery immediately. William has no alternative way of paying for his procedure, which is very complex. Fortunately, surgeons at our medical partner can help. On December 7th, William will undergo a fracture repair procedure that will help William to be able to walk normally and continue with farming to provide for his family. Now, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $679 to fund this medical care. William says, "Spending most of the time in the hospital has been quite challenging. I cannot work or supervise my work as I did before because of my fractured limb. I am really looking forward to getting better in order to stabilize my family again. Please help me."