Jennifer is a 51-year-old, small-scale farmer. When she was young, she was in school up to the 4th grade, but then had to stop. She shared that her husband died in 2001 and left her and their children a two-room mud house. She has four daughters who are all married now and she lives with one of her grandchildren who helps her in domestic work. Five years ago, Jennifer began to experience troubling symptoms, including a painless neck swelling that has been growing gradually. After using herbs with no improvement, Jennifer visited a hospital, and a scan was performed. She was diagnosed with a multinodular goiter-an enlarged thyroid gland with separate bumps (nodules) on it. Jennifer was told that she needed surgery, but it was not done at that time due to finances. Now the goiter has continued to grow, and Jennifer is experiencing airway obstruction and periodic severe headaches. Jennifer needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Jennifer receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on September 22nd at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $333, and she and her family need help raising money. Jennifer says, “I hope to become well through surgery so that I can keep up with my day-to-day farming duties.”

Victor is a bold looking boy aged 13 years from Kenya. He lives in Ruthigiti, Kiambu County with his parents. Victor is in class seven going to class eight, and he says he likes playing football. He looked very excited of his performance and love for education. Victor is the second born in a family of 3 kids. His dad does small business of buying and selling chickens. When Victor was about seven years, his mother noticed that he could not feel his testis at its right place. Since they didn’t know the risk they delayed care, until recently someone explained to them the risk of this condition. They brought him to Nazareth hospital and an ultrasound scan was done. Victor was diagnosed with cryptorchidism, a condition in which one or both of the testicles remains undescended. If left untreated, Victor has an increased risk of developing hernias, testicular cancer, and fertility problems in the future. Victor will be receiving assistance from our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). Fortunately, he is scheduled to undergo corrective surgery on November 27. AMHF is requesting $483 to cover the total cost of his procedure and care. Victor’s father said, “I am requesting for support for my son. Though he has no pain, I now know how risky his condition is. I therefore hope he will be assisted to have this surgery and hope he will be able to grow up in a normal way like other boys.”

Besufikad is an energetic 4-year-old boy from Ethiopia. He loves playing football with other children. He enjoys eating Shiro with injera, meat, and vegetables and loves drinking milk. He has one older sister; she is in grade three at a community school. Besufikad's mother used to work at a government office, but she had to stop working in order to care for him. People around her support her with food and house rent. They live with her sister, who is paralyzed. She and her family are dependent on unreliable support, thus they are unable to afford the recommended treatment for Besufikad. Besufikad 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. Fortunately, Besufikad is scheduled to undergo corrective surgery on May 2nd. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $1,293 to cover the total cost of his procedure and care. Besufikad's mother said, “If he gets the treatment and becomes well, I may be able to start working again. I will educate him. I hope he will become a doctor.”