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Tuesday, July 03, 2007

First Surgeries on Board

On Monday, June 25, the first surgery was successfully completed onboard. Suah lived her entire life in a small village called Oil Town in West-Central Liberia. Along with her large family. Suah is a subsistence farmer; raising their own food along with a bit left over to sell in the market. Three years ago, cataracts stole the last of Suah’s sight. The loss was devastating for such a proud, active woman. She missed being able to work on her farm and missed fishing in the nearby river. She hated not being able to dress herself or even to use the toilet without assistance. Suah thanked the doctors and nurses for her renewed vision, saying, "When I get home I will gather my people and tell them what you have done for me. I can’t pay you, but God will pay you. He will bless you and your children and your children’s children."
The first VVF repair surgeries were conducted onboard the next day. 35 year old Mamie Paye of North-Central Liberia was one of the patients selected to undergo the procedure. Mamie has leaked urine constantly since she suffered a birth injury in 1995. She was abandoned by her husband as a result of the incontinence, a tragically common occurrence. "Everyday I cry," Mamie says. "When you have this problem you don’t have friends. You don’t have nobody. People gossip the whole day about you. People abandon you. But God doesn’t ever abandon nobody."
What faith in the midst of trial!