STORIES
Making Magic Moments!
What are the chances of scrubbing in, entering the OR on the #AfricaMercy, and bumping into a close childhood friend you’d lost touch with almost forty-five years ago? For general surgeon James Smellie and ophthalmic surgeon Richard Newsom, an unexpected blessing to...
A New Life for Marie Madeleine
Marie Madeleine is incredibly smart. In addition to speaking Wolof and French, this 13-year-old is learning English on top of her studies. She loves school, but there is one class she cannot participate in—physical education. As her classmates run around the yard,...
Mercy Ships and COVID-19
Like so many around the world, Mercy Ships is dedicated to doing our part in stopping the spread of COVID-19. When we heard supplies were dwindling for several first responders near our corporate offices in Tyler, TX, we knew we could help. We partnered with our...
Mercy Ships Response to COVID-19
The evolving situation of COVID-19, highlighted by the WHO as a pandemic and the increasing travel restrictions applied by several countries, have made it impossible for Mercy Ships to continue to carry out its programs to the required standards, while protecting...
Denise Ngum
Denise Ngum was 14 years old when she developed an interest in electrical engineering. For Denise, fixing problems was a fun challenge where she was able to use her eye for detail and creativity. Denise studied electrical engineering at a government university in...
Dr Odry Agbessi
“When I was 12, I saw a woman on TV … her suitor had burned her with acid. Her face had become fused to her neck, so she could never look a person in the eye.” Dr. Odry Agbessi mimics the condition, tucking her chin in close to her throat. “There was not one plastic...
Seny Gets Another Chance
Before her tumor, Seny was studying economics at the University of Dakar, Senegal, West Africa. With goals to graduate and get a job in finance, the future looked bright for this highly intelligent young woman. Then, suddenly, a small bump appeared on the inside of...
Isatu’s Healing
Sometimes the biggest change we see in our patients has nothing to do with the medical condition our volunteers treated. After free surgery onboard the Africa Mercy, Isatu is healing on the inside and the outside. No "thank you" could ever mean as much as the smile on...
Monique’s New World
At 3 years old, cataracts caused Monique’s world to fade. Now 10, she is shy & timid, staying at home with her grandmother instead of going to school. Monique, eye patient, at her home before surgery. At 6 years old, she had almost lost her sight completely. She never...
Life Behind Closed Doors
Confort never imagined the morning she put on a pot of boiling water to make some rice for her hungry daughters would be the start of a mother’s nightmare. One-year-old Gamai, who had just started walking, toddled past the pot knocking it over as she fell. As the...