A Race to Save Yousif

Animal Bite Paralyzes Young Boy

Twelve-year-old Yousif was hunting with his dog in the muggy heat of a spring day outside his village. He enjoyed wandering through the forested terrain and hunting for small animals that he would bring home to help feed the family.

Today was a successful day. His dog caught a squirrel and brought it to the boy. Yousif felt proud. He would be contributing food for his family’s meal tonight.

As Yousif took the squirrel from his dog’s mouth, the rodent sunk its teeth into the boy’s hand in a manic attempt to escape. The bite was painful and immediately Yousif’s hand began to swell. But he ignored the injury, and continued on his way home. The family assumed it was not serious, expecting the swelling to go down on its own. As a result, no steps were taken to treat the swelling or the site of the wound.

Yousif went another two weeks without treatment of any sort. But on day seventeen following the bite incident, he began to break out in welts all over his body. He suddenly became very ill.

At this point, Yousif’s parents took him to their local health clinic in Kordofan. They gave the boy some medicine and he stayed at the clinic for four days to observe whether he improved.

But Yousif wasn’t responding to the medicine. The welts across his body didn’t recede. He was growing sicker. And even more terrifying, paralysis was starting to set in throughout his body.

As this chilling reaction developed, the clinic told Yousif’s parents they were going to send their son to Mother of Mercy Hospital. Yousif was rushed by ambulance to the Sudan Relief Fund partner facility in the Nuba Mountains, the only hospital of its kind for hundreds of miles. Even by ambulance, the trip took four hours. The clinic hoped Mother of Mercy could give Yousif the help he needed – it was his last chance.

By the time Yousif arrived at Mother of Mercy Hospital, he could no longer move. He had become fully paralyzed. He had rashes all over his body. Dr. Tom Catena and his team sprang into action to treat the critically ill boy.

Yousif received immediate injections to counterattack the deadly reaction he was having, as everyone held their breath to see if his body would respond. The diagnosis was correct – and the medicine worked. It was a critical turning point that would save young Yousif’s life.

Slowly his body began to fight its way back. The welts and rashes that covered his body started to disappear. His ability to move began to return. By the grace of God, his mobility was soon fully restored. Yousif would make a complete and miraculous recovery.

Yousif was discharged from the hospital alongside an ecstatic mother, who hadn’t been sure this day would come. Yousif was well and was going home.

But this twelve year-old boy only survived because the medical care he needed was there for him at a critical moment – lifesaving care that supporters like you make possible every single day, at a remote mission hospital in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan.

These stories of Lives Saved are possible because of generous donors who bring medical care to people and places without it. Mother of Mercy Hospital and the medicines used to treat patients like Yousif are fully funded by charitable donations. Thank you for saving lives and bringing hope.

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Challenging Emergency Surgery Saves Dying Man

When 70 year-old Lodu first felt pain in his abdomen, he thought it was just one of those aches and pains of growing old. 

But when the pain became excruciating, it was clear this was something more. Fortunately for Lodu and his family, they lived within reach of St. Theresa Mission Hospital Nzara, a Sudan Relief Fund partner facility. By the time he and his son reached the hospital, Lodu was already delirious and nearly unconscious. 

St. Theresa Mission Hospital Nzara is the only place to find critical medical care for literally hundreds of miles across a vast and remote region of Western Equatoria, a state located in the southwestern region of South Sudan. People in need of medical care come all the way from the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo to find help here. 

Lodu was feverish and slipping in and out of consciousness. Doctors suspected an infection. He was ushered quickly into the operating room where medical officers performed an exploratory laparotomy to determine the cause. They found a life-threatening infection in his intestines. It was advanced to such an intense level that if immediate intervention weren’t performed, they knew death was imminent.

The problem was the only surgeon immediately available was Sudan Relief Fund partner, Dr. Taban, an OB and gynecologist who also serves as the hospital’s director. The next nearest facility equipped to treat Lodu was all the way in Juba, some 280 miles away. It was not an option. “I was certain that without surgery, death was just next door. And with the surgery, there could be a window and a ray of hope for success,” Dr. Taban said. 

As an obstetrician, he had never performed this particular surgery. “I knew they would not have blamed me if I declined to operate. But I knew there was no other surgeon available in this vast area to refer him to.”  Dr. Taban knew what he had to do. So he prayed. “With the trust bestowed and my previous surgical experience, I invoked God to operate through my hands.” 

Dr. Taban responded swiftly and together with the medical officers, they performed the surgery to remove the deadly infected area and reconnect his intestine to healthy tissues. It was a success. Lodu came through the surgery well and experienced no complications. Within two weeks, he was recuperated and ready to safely go home. 

When Lodu’s son came to the hospital to bring his father home, he expressed his amazement at what had happened. “My father was closer to death than life,” he described when he had brought him in. “I came to the hospital expecting to have to bury my father. But instead, Glory to God and the entire team of St. Theresa Hospital!” 

Dr. Taban also gave the glory to God for Lodu’s successful outcome, but admitted we have to be willing to be God’s tools. “I never envisioned that I would perform this type of surgery one day,” he said. “God indeed works through His people and only He knows the hour when He will do it.” 

The hospital staff has been calling Lodu “Patient of the Year” for his remarkable turn of events. “With all the odds favoring imminent mortality, we continue to reminisce over how mysteriously God can perform miracles,” they said. 

Lodu was more than grateful for the level of care provided to him by the staff of St. Theresa Mission Hospital Nzara. He says he prays for the hospital’s “great role in caring for the people of this community.”

These stories of Lives Saved are made possible by compassionate donors who support Sudan Relief Fund facilities that bring medical care to remote places. Thank you for saving lives like Lodu’s and countless others for nearly three decades.

Learn about becoming a sustaining partner.

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A Widow and Baby are Given a New Chance

Pope Francis Center Rescues At-Risk Mothers

It was hard enough before her husband was killed. Riak was caring for her baby while suffering a crippling condition that left her on crutches in order to move about. Now with the loss of her husband, she suddenly found herself a single mother. 

The news was devastating. Alternating between grief and fear, Riak wondered how she would survive. Her physical disability prevented her from being able to farm to grow food. How would she care for her infant, with no income and no assistance? Riak felt hopeless. 

Being a single mother in this part of the world can be a life sentence to poverty, hunger, and poor health – for both mother and child. With few job opportunities, single mothers struggle to survive and feed their children. They have no health care if either one gets sick. Their outlook is often bleak. 

One community in Nzara is working to change this outlook and stop the cycle of illness and poverty. The Pope Francis Center for Peace and Wellness is dedicated to rescuing women in crisis like Riak, and the children affected by these tragic situations. 

Through the generosity of our donors, the Center is able to intervene at the root cause of a family’s distress – to provide meaningful solutions for a sustainable future, and empower individuals to become self-sufficient. 

The Center offers skills training to help widows and single mothers find employment. A food assistance program keeps families safe from the debilitating effects of malnutrition that can stunt a child’s growth permanently. Its medical care program treats children born with HIV and tracks their progress to help them thrive, go to school, and become successful adults.

The program offers widows and single mothers microfinance loans to launch small businesses, along with training in basic finance and management, so they can support themselves and invest for the future. Some of these small businesses grow to be so successful, the benefactor ends up with more than she needs, and is able to help support extended family and others in need. 

Children in the Center’s program are able to attend and complete school and may even go on to college. Some have returned to lead in their communities and help others in the program break the cycle of poverty.

Riak’s life was turned around when she was introduced to the Pope Francis Center. At first it was difficult for her to believe. But then incredible joy and relief sank in. She realized she was not alone in her struggle. And her situation was not hopeless after all. 

With the immediate care provided by the Center, Riak no longer has to worry how she’ll feed her baby. The center offers food assistance until a family like hers is on their feet. Riak will receive skills training so she can obtain employment that’s suitable to her physical constraints. She may even be taught how to run her own small business. 

Because of the Center, she and her baby can look forward to a future with hope and possibility. A future that is changing for many every day, because your partnership supports programs that save.

These stories of Lives Saved are made possible because of generous donors like you who support facilities like the Pope Francis Center for Peace and Wellness. Each year, the lives of women and children in crisis are being transformed from despair to hope. Thank you for making a difference.

Would you like to pray for us? Sign up for our email prayer group to receive weekly emails sharing important needs to pray for. You’ll join a faith community around the globe praying to bring hope and help to suffering people in a forgotten part of the world. Find out more here.