Sephania is a baby from Simanjiro, Arusha in Tanzania. He lives among the Maasai people. He comes from a large family of six siblings, raised by a single mother. His father died shortly after he was born, and his mother depends on her brothers, who are cattle breeders. They help provide basic needs for the family since his mother does not work and has no means to earn a living. Sephania was born with both his legs twisted inward and downward. His mother was informed that there was treatment for the condition. She could not afford transport money at the time and had to wait for almost 2 years before she was able to collect enough money to travel to a medical center. She arrived at our center with an escort, who helped her translate as she only speaks Maasai. After a brief assessment with our team, we set up a treatment plan for Sephania, starting with a series of castings. Sephania has clubfoot on both feet. Clubfoot is a condition in which the foot is twisted out of shape. This causes difficulty walking and even wearing shoes. Fortunately, Sephania traveled to visit our medical partner's care center, Arusha Lutheran Medical Centre. There, surgeons will perform clubfoot repair surgery on May 12th. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is requesting $935 to fund Sephania's clubfoot repair. After treatment, he will be able to walk easily. Sephania’s mother says, "It has taken a while to be able to come for treatment. I hope my son will get treatment that will help with his foot’s condition."

Mwandu is a 5-year-old girl — the first born and the only child in her family. She lives with her parents in a small town called Msevya in the northwestern side of Tanzania. Her parents are subsistence farmers who rely on agriculture for food and money. Inflation has negatively affected their source of livelihood. As small-scale farmers, managing their crops has been more costly than purchasing crops from the market. One day when Mwandu was young, she was playing inside the house while her parents were working on the farm. Her mother had set a pot on the stove to prepare tea. Mwandu walked close to the stove and pulled the pot with her bare hands. Hot tea spilled on her arm and the right side of her body. She got burnt on her arm and armpit. Now burn contractures have developed, tightening the skin around her burn, limiting her arm extension and involvement in day-to-day activities. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Mwandu receive treatment. On March 3rd, surgeons at their care center will perform a burn contracture release surgery to help her increase extension of her right arm and allow her fully enjoy her childhood and school activities. Now, she needs help to fund this $639 procedure. Mwandu’s father says, “I hope she gets better because she will be starting school soon.”

Eva is a 37-year-old mother from Uganda. Her husband works in a Sacco and she owns a small hairdressing business in her local village. However, due to limited capital for expansion, her business has not been able to compete with similar businesses in the area and her husband's job does not provide financial stability for their family. 15 years ago, Eva began to experience troubling symptoms, including a painful swelling on the front of her neck, shortness of breath, and disfigurement of her neck. She was diagnosed with a goiter, an abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Eva receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on February 14th at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $252, and she and her family need help to raise the funds. Eva says “I know that my condition has limited my progress, but I hope that now I will have the surgery done under your support, I will live a happy and improved lifestyle as I resume with my work.”