CURE’s hospital in Mbale, Uganda, opened in 2000.  Overall, it has performed more than 7,000 surgeries on children suffering from hydrocephalus and other neurosurgical conditions.

Over the years, the staff at the hospital has been blessed to watch these children grow up as they returned for follow-up appointments.

Recently, we had the privilege of receiving the stories of two of these children from Miriam Ongom, the spiritual director at the hospital.

Patience and Angela are both beautiful 9-year-old girls.  They are excellent students.  Angela wants to be a doctor and Patience a teacher (although her brother thinks she should become a doctor).

Patience

It is hard to imagine that these smiling girls were once on a path to a lifetime of suffering and possibly death.  If not for the Uganda hospital, this is most certainly the fate that awaited them.

These girls had both developed hydrocephalus just months after they were born.  The signs of the condition soon began to appear:  a growing head, weakness in the neck and, in Angela’s case, sun-setting eyes.

Angela

The hydrocephalus caused confusion, frustration and turmoil in both of the girls’ families.

The story would have ended sadly for both families.  It didn’t, however.  CURE International had just opened its hospital in Mbale. Both children were able to come there for surgical treatment for their hydrocephalus.  The successful outcome is evident by their smiles today.

The beautiful thing about their stories is not just the physical healing Patience and Angela received, but the spiritual care the loving staff at the hospital gave to their parents.

Now, the girls have healed bodies and restored families. Who knows what life would be like for them if CURE hadn’t come to Uganda.

Patience and Angela are living reminders that CURE is truly changing lives.

You can help the CURE Children’s Hospital of Uganda reach even more children like Patience and Angela.  Go here to give a donation today.

Amy Fann is a teacher and artist from Grapevine, Texas.  Last July, she had the opportunity to spend two weeks at our hospital in Zambia as a short-term volunteer.

Amy Fann with a friend in Zambia

She came to the hospital with the intention of using her artistic talents to benefit the hospital.  And CURE Zambia’s spiritual director, Harold Haamumba, had the perfect project for her.

“When the team first arrived at the Beit CURE Hospital, Harold pulled me aside. He took me to the children’s clinic waiting room and asked me if I could paint a mural to help make the room brighter for the kids,” explained Fann. “He said the theme needed to be about the hospital and God’s love. Other than that, he left the design up to me.”

Part of Amy Fann's mural in the children's room

After much prayer and divine inspiration, Fann completed the mural three days later! On the mural she included a verse from Psalm 100,  “For the Lord is good, and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.” The completed mural now brightens the children’s waiting room.

Jonathan and David can now run and even play soccer after their surgeries.

That’s just one part of the story.  While at the hospital, she met David and Jonathan, cousins who both had clubfoot.  They were having surgeries to correct their condition.  Amy noted, “Jonathan and David are inspiring because they have so much joy.  Their lives have been anything but easy, but they have made it through because they had each other to lean on.  Literally!  They are special because they shine!”

Amy came back home determined to help the hospital reach more children like David and Jonathan.  So, she used her artistic talents once again, selling some of her paintings to raise more than $2,000.  This is enough to fund two surgeries at the Zambia hospital!

Amy plans to return to Zambia next summer, so her story will continue.  We look forward to hearing the next chapter.

Visit Amy’s Web site here.

Here’s a story  from the Dominican Republic about Frannely, a  5-month old girl who had bilateral clubfoot. We received it courtesy of Robbie Jackson. She’s CURE Clubfoot Worldwide’s regional manager for Latin America.

Frannely is held by hospital nurse Juanna Solomon before her treatment began.

CURE’s hospital in Santo Domingo is the central location for the CURE Clubfoot Worldwide program for children born with clubfoot in the Dominican Republic. More than 200 children are treated each year at four treatment sites throughout the country using the Ponseti Method of serial casting and foot manipulation.

When Frannely’s mom brought her to our hospital, her little feet were already beginning to become stiff and painful. To this point, she had no success in finding a cure for her daughter’s clubfeet.

A neighbor had told her mom to take Frannely to the CURE hospital. She had heard the hospital treats children with clubfoot, and she should take her right away.

Frannely was put into the clubfoot treatment program. We are happy to report she’s responding well to her Ponseti casts. After six to eight casts, she will have her heel cords lengthened and be ready for her foot abduction braces.

Frannely is one of the lucky ones. Too often, children with clubfoot in the developing world do not have access to this type of treatment.

But thanks to the generosity of CURE donors, many children like Frannely can be spared a life of disability and dependence through the simplicity of the Ponseti Method of clubfoot treatment.

Frannely has her feet casted.

Please pray for Frannely as she recovers from her clubfoot, and thank you to everyone for your continued support of our CURE Clubfoot Worldwide program.

Fran, after surgery

As the sun set behind the horizon, Fran sat by the road in the growing darkness, alone, frightened…and suddenly unable to walk.

It had all happened so fast. The 12-year-old Zambian girl was walking home from school with a smile on her face as she contemplated her evening activities. Abruptly, a sharp pain jolted through her knee. Her legs buckled, and she was horrified to discover that she couldn’t walk. Fran had developed chronic osteomyelitis, a painful bone infection.

It wasn’t until 10 p.m., four hours later than normal, that a shaken Fran finally found a way to get home to her aunt’s house.

Although she had made it home, Fran still felt intense pain. Her aunt took her to a nearby hospital, where an operation was performed. In the meantime, her mother, who lived in another town because of her job situation, was informed of Fran’s plight. 

After a few days, Fran was discharged. Although she continued going for check-ups, she did not get any better. Her life slowly began to unravel.  Fran stopped attending school because she couldn’t make the long walk. She was no longer the bright, vibrant girl everyone knew.

Her daughter’s troubles weighed heavily on the mind of Fran’s mother. But she did have one spark of hope. While attending church, she heard about the Beit CURE Hospital of Zambia and its stellar reputation for treating conditions like Fran’s.

Fran and her mom came to CURE Zambia, where she was placed in the good hands of its medical and spiritual teams. Fran underwent another operation. Only this time, she began to feel much better than before!

Fran is now slowly recovering as she builds up her strength. She’s excited
that soon she’ll be able to walk again and go back to school. That bright,
vibrant girl everyone once knew has returned.

You can help other children experience the same healing as Fran! Give a gift today!