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| Before (December 2009) |
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| After ~ only four weeks later |
Left to right, this is Ronel (7 years old weighs 28.5 pounds in before photo), Marie-Lange (2.5 years old weighs 13.4 pounds in before photo) and Wideline. *They are a sibling set. Wideline was admitted at the end of 2009. She was 6 years old and weighed 30 pounds when admitted. She got down to 26.25 pounds after losing some of her water weight caused from the kwashiorkor.
These three kids have one other sibling that is still nursing. The mother and father are very thin as well. (photo below) As a family they had to save money for two weeks to bring Ronel and Marie-lange. The RHFH clinic would have seen them for free but they wanted to pay the small fee to get their charts made. 2 charts for $1.60 US and it took them two weeks to save and get that together. These three kids were simply starving. There was nothing else wrong with them. They just needed food. That was it.
Any variety of food given consistently would have helped them gain weight but over and over we've seen that Medika Mamba adds weight quicker than anything else. These kids looked and felt tremendously more healthy after just a few short weeks. The proof is in the before and after photos above.
Certainly the hardships faced in Haiti by families like these are heartbreaking and numerous. Those hardships only increased and became more complicated on the day the earth shook, now ten months ago. When the situation gets this dire the best thing to do is respond quickly with something that is known to work miracles rapidly.
For approximately $100 a child can be on Medika Mamba for a treatment plan lasting somewhere between 60 to 90 days depending on the severity of their case. (As an added benefit this product is produced in Northern Haiti and is creating jobs.)
Please chip-in to help World Wide Village fund this program so that Lori, Licia and Zach can continue to be able to use this product to help the children and families they serve recover quickly.
How many more kids can we raise funds to treat in the remaining three days?
Please share on Facebook, Twitter, link to and spread the word in any way you can! Thank you.
*Photos and facts pulled from Licia's archives with permission.



7 comments:
I LOVE this program. One question, that I bet you have heard before, but that I would love for you to touch on. These kids will be nursed back to health with the Medika Mamba and then they will go back to their families where they will once again have no food. What is a preventative program that we can support?
Hi Nikki -
Many of the families that RHFH serve are walking hours (and days) to get to Cazale to be seen. Often times they are the mountain people of Haiti that will survive (sometimes not much more than survive) by growing the little food they can ...
It seems pretty common for a kid or two to get very malnourished, it is less common for a whole family.
Many times the ability to start over for the child ends up leading to a healthier life for the long term. Some kids do come back thin and sick again. RHFH helps with on-gong support when they can in the worst situations. There really is nothing I can point you to that addresses the needs of Haiti's mountain people ... some of their current pain is caused by a local rice market that has been ruined by our "help" bringing in rice that is way cheaper and ruined their ability to continue growing and selling - it is complicated.
They always seem happier in the "after" pictures. Do you think that is just because they are "new" to the clinic and kind of timid/scared of the new staff (the "before" pics), and in the after pics they are more familiar with the staff, so less timid/scared/shy? or do you think the fact that they are healthier in the after pics makes them actually happier, more energetic kids? It is really hard seeing those skinny bodies and sad faces.
KJ -
We think it is a little of both. The kids come in weak and afraid ... they leave strong and unafraid. :) I love the difference even in their shoulders and the brightness of their eyes.
Tara,
I just read your article in Runners World. After this fundraiser you are very close to 200K raised for Haiti. Amazing. Thanks for letting us be a part of it. Just chipped in to Sunday's run for MedikaMamba.
Have been following your blog since just before the earthquake. As a Canadian who has vacationed on Hispanolia, "wow" is about all I can say with regards to the work you do there.
Is there a Canadian arm of your charity that I can contribute to? If I am able to receive a tax donation, I can donate that much more.
Thanks
Lori
Thanks! That is really interesting.
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