by Darren Swain | Feb 9, 2026 | Patient Stories
Embracing Her New Identity: Vavitsara’s Story Vavitsara is a 47-year-old woman from a village in the North of Toamasina. She’s a devoted wife, mother of five children, and the grandmother of an 8-year-old boy. Her days are filled with farming duties, providing...
by Darren Swain | Jan 26, 2026 | Patient Stories
From the moment Abubakarr took his first steps, it was clear no shoe would ever fit his feet. Running, jumping, and slipping on shoes are second nature for most children. But for 6-year-old Abubakarr from Sierra Leone, these simple joys were out of reach as he was...
by Darren Swain | Dec 10, 2025 | Patient Stories
Armella’s mother, Caessah, is a housewife and mother of four whose greatest pride is her children. Her eldest live with their grandfather in the countryside, while her youngest live with her and her husband in a compound hut in the port city of Madagascar. The day of...
by Darren Swain | Nov 17, 2025 | Patient Stories
Thirteen-year-old Mohamed is bold, bubbly, and charismatic. He is the eighth of nine children and comes from Koinadugu, a district in the northern province of Sierra Leone. His story is one of resilience and restoration. Mohamed was an active child who embraced all...
by Darren Swain | Oct 23, 2025 | Patient Stories
Everything changed when Anne-Marie van Tonder, a crew clinic administration assistant on the Global Mercy™, saw Memunatu at a local children’s hospital in Freetown. “I saw this little baby, very fragile, looking at me,” Anne-Marie, a volunteer from South...
by Darren Swain | Oct 16, 2025 | Patient Stories
Marie Jeanne and Germaine were able to receive a free 15-minute cataract surgery on board the Africa Mercy in Madagascar. After the surgery, for the first time in nearly three years, Marie Jeanne and Germaine’s eyes met. Light and colour flooded back in an instant....
