Bronh is a 63-year-old widower. A retired fisherman, he has one son, six daughters, and 16 grandchildren. He lost his wife several years ago and lives with one of his daughters, who is also a fisherman. He now stays at home, listening to the news on the radio or watching TV, but is lonely because he stays home by himself most of the day. Two years ago, Bronh developed a cataract in his right eye, causing him cloudy vision and difficulty seeing in bright or low light. He is no longer able to throw a net to catch fish due to his poor vision. When Bronh learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, he traveled for four and a half hours seeking treatment. On December 6th, doctors will perform small incision cataract surgery and place an intraocular lens implant in his right eye. After recovery, he will be able to see clearly. Now, he needs help to fund this $253 procedure. Bronh shared: "I hope after my eye operation I can help my daughter with fishing and teach my grandchildren to fish too."

Kong is a 60-year-old corn farmer. He is a loving grandfather and lives with his wife who manages the farm with him. Together, they have two sons, two daughters, and two grandchildren. At home, he likes to listen to the news on TV. Two years ago, Kong developed a cataract in his right eye, causing him photophobia and blurry vision. It is difficult for him to spend time outside with his crops and he feels like there is a film covering his eye. He has difficulty seeing things clearly, including colors and faces, and is worried about falling when walking, so is not able to go places on his own. When Kong learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, he traveled for three and a half hours seeking treatment. On October 6th, doctors will perform a phacoemulsification cataract surgery and place an intraocular lens implant in his right eye. After recovery, he will be able to see clearly. Now, he needs help to fund this $253 procedure. Kong said, "I hope after surgery I can see better to plant corn and vegetables. I want to be able to still work outside to support my family."

Lilian is a 25-year-old woman who works as a helper for another family. A mother of two young children, she is raising them alone, since she and her husband are separated. She says that despite struggling to sustain them, she loves them a lot. Six years ago, Lilian began to experience troubling symptoms, including a swollen neck, snoring, difficulty breathing especially at night and feeling the weight of a growth in her neck. She has also been experiencing low self-esteem due to the neck swelling. She was diagnosed with large Right Multinodular Goiter, and needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Lillian could not go to the hospital for lack of money until one of her neighbours who had been supported through the Watsi program brought her to Nazareth Hospital for possible support. She was advised to have an ultrasound scan and thyroid function tests. For three months, she did not return to Nazareth, until last week when she had finally managed to raise money for the tests. Now our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Lilian receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on October 24th at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $657, and she and her family need help raising money. Lilian is very optimistic and says, “Now I have the results and I am very hopeful that the sponsors will answer to my plea, so that I can regain my normal life, self-esteem and take care of my small children.”