Deodanta is a 77-year-old mother from Uganda. She has nine children, but has sadly lost two. In 2013, she also sadly lost her husband. She lives in a four-room mud house, and her children range in age from 32 to 51 years old. Deodanta practices small-scale farming for a living. When she was about 20 years old, Deodanta began to experience troubling symptoms, including pain in her neck. When she gave birth, she developed a small painless swelling in her neck. Over time, her condition worsened, as the swelling grew in size and became painful. Now, most of the time, she experiences headaches and she can no longer hear properly. She also gets fatigued easily and has difficulty breathing when sleeping. She has had to stop farming due to her condition. Deodanta has been diagnosed with a non-toxic multinodular goiter, and requires surgery to prevent her symptoms from worsening. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), is helping Deodanta receive treatment. On January 6th, she will undergo a thyroidectomy at AMH's care center, where surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. Now, she and her family need help raising $333 to fund her procedure and care. Deodanta shared, “I hope and pray that I may get well through surgery so that I may be able to take care of myself. I hope to be able to supervise my crop fields after complete recovery.”

Tumaini is an 11-month-old girl, daughter to small-scale subsistence farmers, and sister to eight siblings. She is active and attached to her mother. Her mother enjoys playing with her as she laughs and smiles when spoken to in their native language. Tumaini has clubfoot on both feet, a condition in which the foot is twisted out of shape. This causes difficulty walking and even wearing shoes. Fortunately, Tumaini and her family traveled to visit our medical partner's care center, Arusha Lutheran Medical Centre, where surgeons will perform clubfoot repair surgery on February 24th. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $935 to fund Tumaini's clubfoot repair. After treatment, she will be able to walk easily. Tumaini’s mother says, “I was worried when I saw my daughter’s leg. I am hopeful when I heard there is treatment for the condition my child has.”

39-year-old Eunice is a mother of three school-age children. She and her husband work as subsistence farmers in Uganda. For the past year, Eunice has lived with an incisional hernia, which occurs after the unsuccessful healing of a surgical wound. The hernia causes her severe pain when she bends or has to lift items, limiting her ability to work around the farm. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $230 to fund Eunice's hernia repair surgery, which is scheduled to take place on February 14th at Karoli Lwanga Hospital, Nyakibale. After surgery, Eunice should be able to live more comfortably and confidently. Eunice says: “My life is so wearied as I live a poor quality of life due to my condition. I believe that once am helped and have my condition treated, I will work hard to again live a better lifestyle.”