In New Ireland Province, Papua New Guinea, four adult siblings had been living with blindness for years. Rose, 37, and her brothers Bulu, 32, Lipi, 27, and Disem, 20. For these siblings, life was incredibly difficult.
In New Ireland Province, Papua New Guinea, four adult siblings had been living with blindness for years. Rose, 37, and her brothers Bulu, 32, Lipi, 27, and Disem, 20. For these siblings, life was incredibly difficult.
Simple tasks became overwhelming challenges for all four siblings.
Rose, for instance, struggled to care for her children on her own. Bulu, once an active part of his community, found himself unable to provide for his family. Lipi and Disem, were missing out on valuable parts of their education and facing an uncertain future.
Then one day, everything changed, thanks to compassionate people like you.
Joe, a local community worker, heard about Rose and her brothers, living for so long with blindness that was completely avoidable. Determined to help, Joe made the long and difficult journey across rivers and rugged bush trails to bring the four siblings to Namatanai Rural Hospital. Thankfully, a week-long remote outreach was taking place there, led by a team of eye doctors and nurses who were providing vital eye care services to hundreds of people in need.
Thanks to your kindness, this remote outreach was able to bring life-changing eye care to hundreds of other people, including Rose and her brothers, who were living with blindness that could be prevented or treated.
For the first time in years, Rose and her brothers could see again. Their lives were transformed. They could see their children; they could see each other, and they could see their wonderful community.
As their eye patches were removed, their joy was overwhelming. Local community worker Joe stood beside them, hopeful for the moment they had all been waiting for. When it was Disem’s turn, Joe gently asked, “Can you see me?” Disem smiled and said, “I can see you!”
Rose could now see her children’s faces again. For the first time in a long time, she was able to see their faces with a clarity she had long lost.
Bulu, Lipi, and Disem experienced the world around them in a way they hadn’t in years. Lipi could return to his education, and Bulu could begin to provide for his family once again. Disem, the youngest of the four siblings, was especially thrilled to be able to go back to school, which he had been forced to abandon due to his avoidable blindness.
When you give a gift to The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ, you become a part of something transformational. Without local eye doctors and nurses in the Pacific, this life-changing day may not have come for Rose, Bulu, Lipi and Disem. Because of you, the team of local eye care specialists in Papua New Guinea were able to visit their remote village and provide vital eye care services for 432 patients, including 177 sight-restoring surgeries.
The Fred Hollows Foundation NZ is a registered charitable organisation under the Charities Act 2005.
Charities Commission registration number is CC23722.
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