Tonton Very sad news about Tonton, I am sure you will remember that he is the 9 year boy with hydrocephalus and cerebral palsy, and also remember the great fundraising efforts of Gerald and Phil to raise enough money for his surgery. Well I took him to the National Children’s Hospital in Manila for treatment. We were there for twelve days and eventually after several tests and yet another brain scan, the consultant decided that the operation would not make any difference to his quality of life; and as there is a 35% chance of infection he therefore would not operate… I am crying now to think that if only someone had done something when the child first got sick, he could now be leading a normal life; instead of which he is locked in his own world! He is deaf, blind, and unable to eat solid food, weighing only 12kg he is the same size as a two year old! Now we are told that nothing can be done to help him and he must just wait for the good Lord to take pity on him and release him from his hell here on this earth…. All this suffering through poverty and ignorance…. Please pray for Tonton…. Jeffy Some good news! Jeffy is the little deaf boy who lives near us. I took him for check up in Manila last year, and was told that there was no hope of him ever hearing. I then found a special school for him, but the parents didn’t seem bothered about the child. Well God is good and when I arrived home the mother came to me and said she wanted Jeffy to go to the school for the deaf I had found. I made all the arrangements and the following week Jeffy started school… He loves school and is making good progress. Bahay ng Pag-asa pays all Jeffy’s transport costs, and helps with school supplies. Court Case Yes you guessed it cancelled yet again… will it ever come to an end! But as I always say “everything is for a purpose” and God’s knows best… Daisy Daisy has been one of my long term psychiatric patients. Last January she was discharged and was leading a normal life along with her five year old son Denmark. After I returned I did not see Daisy for a few weeks. I was told she was working in the fields, so I did not worry. However the morning of the court case. I was told that she was in a very bad state, and would not let anyone near her. As we were going to the court I saw someone lying by the side of the road; they were only wearing shorts no top. I could not believe it was my Daisy; this person looked like a skeleton and Daisy was at least double the size of this person. I made everyone wait in the tricycle, as to be honest I thought she was dead. As I approached the almost lifeless body, to my horror I saw it was indeed my Daisy! Apparently she had not eaten for a month and for the last week she refused to move just lay in the field, she would not drink, and if anyone tried to touch her she bit them! As I said her name Daisy opened her eyes put her arms around my neck and began to cry… We took Daisy to Bahay ng Pag-asa and called the doctor. Daisy was so weak that she could not even feed herself, but after a few days of T.L.C. She was soon on the way to recovery. Unfortunately after a few days her recovery took a nose dive and Daisy became withdrawn and violent; she hit me and bit me very badly (five months later the bite marks are still visible on my hand), There was no alternative I had to confine her in the mental hospital. After three weeks confinement Daisy retuned with me to Bahay ng Pag-asa, where she remained with her son for a further two months. I am so pleased to be able to say that Daisy is now very well and has even managed to get a job which will certainly not only help her financially but also mentally. Mr Salvador Mr Salvador is fifty seven years old and is extremely poor. The family live in a native hut and do not have electricity… Mrs Salvador came to Bahay ng Pag-Asa asking for medicine for her husband. We took Mr Salvador to the hospital for check-up. He was diagnosed and confined for several days with T.B. Bahay ng Pag-Asa provided for all of Mr. Salvador’s medicines and hospital fees. We even managed to get him onto the Government six month T.B. programme. He is now recovering well, and even managed to help with the last rice harvest. Mrs Salvador Several months after Mr Salvador was diagnosed with T.B. Mrs Salvador also fell ill. She came to Bahay ng Pag-Asa for help… Sadly she was also diagnosed with T.B. Bahay ng Pag-Asa provided for all of Mrs Salvador’s treatment and medicines… we even provided the family with food while the husband and wife were unable to work. Bahay ng Pag-Asa also managed to get Mrs Salvador onto the Government T.B. programme… she is now making good progress. Daisyrel Ten-month old Daisyrel was born with a congenital heart disease. She desperately needed heart surgery; the cost of the surgery would be approximately one and a half thousand pounds. Daisyrel’s parents are indigents and were unable to raise the much need funds, and so asked Bahay ng Pag-Asa for help. The cost of the surgery was far beyond the means of the mission, but I was so moved by the plight of this poor little baby, I just had to do something to help her. I contacted the Governor of Isabela and asked for help. She was very kind not only did she provide some funds she also gave me a letter to the President of the Philippine Senate! Luckily I had no idea about politics or maybe I would not have had the courage to approach this very important and influential gentleman, but ignorance is bliss and so I approached the Philippine Senate on behalf of the parents. The Senators were extremely kind and they agreed to fund the much needed operation. After several weeks stay in Manila and many visits to both the Senate and the hospital Daisyrel received her life saving surgery at the end of November. The surgery was a success and is now at home with her parents in Planas. Nida Vallejos Over the years I have made several friends among the medical profession, and in November a surgeon friend asked if Bahay ng Pag-asa would be able to help one of his patients Nida Vallejos. Dr. Jade told me that Nida was 56 years old and has breast cancer she should have had the surgery six months earlier but the family could not afford the operation. Dr. Jade said that if Bahay ng Pag-asa could fund the operation he would operate free of charge… he is a good friend… and that the costs would be reduced if he operated in the Government hospital… Hospitals and medicines are not usually free in the Philippines. I of course agreed to pay for the operation which went ahead a few days later. I will tell you at another time about the Government hospital, the lack of facilities and supplies, and how I had to ride on the back of a motorbike with a syringe of anaesthetic in my hand before they could start the operation! We are hoping and praying that Nida will make a full recovery, but the cancer was very far advanced and Dr. Jade is concerned that it might have spread. Please remember Nida in your prayers. Mr Mariano Darupan Mr. Darupan is 39 years and suffers from diabetes and has cataracts in both eyes. Mr. Darupan became very weak and was unable to work and provide food for his family. They came to Bahay ng Pag-Asa for help. We took him for a check up at the hospital and he was confined. Bahay ng Pag-Asa paid all the hospital fees and continues to provide the diabetic medicine to keep him stable. Bahay ng Pag-Asa also arranged for Mr. Darupan to have his cataracts removed free of charge through a government scheme…. One cataract was removed in November and hopefully the second will be removed in February. Divine Grace Natividad Divine Grace is only two years old. What a hard life this little poor little girl has had so far. Divine suffers very badly with asthma. When she was only a year old her mother died from leukaemia. Divine has been hospitalised with asthma and pneumonia several times in her very short life. Divine fell sick again and grandparents who look after her came to us for help. Bahay ng Pag-Asa has paid the cost of hospitalisation twice for baby Divine and we also provide her asthma medicine. But she desperately needs a nebuliser that she can use at home. If you feel you could help Divine or any of our very needy clients please contact us. The Tabye Family Terasita her husband Jesus and their five children, and their in-laws have been living in this ramshackle house for almost six months, since their own home caught fire and burnt to the ground. Bahay ng Pag-Asa has been trying to find a charitable foundation to re-home the family. Sadly the cost of re-housing is beyond the means of Bahay ng Pag-Asa at the moment. Lita Cerozo Lita is 40 years old and through poverty has suffered with a thyroid problem for over 12 years….. Bahay ng Pag-Asa paid for tests and provides the medicines and believe it or not iodized salt (the poor do not buy iodized it is more expensive than ordinary salt). Within a couple of weeks of treatment the condition started to improve and Lita feels like a new woman. David Belcar David is fourteen years old and suffers from epilepsy and sadly he is also mentally retarded. His family are indigents and have several other children; unfortunately they are finding it more and more difficult to take care of David. They can only give David the medicine to control his fits (which are very frequent) when they have any extra money… they don’t often have extra money, therefore David does not get the medicine he needs. Bahay ng Pag-Asa has been providing David’s medicine for the last two years, and I am pleased to say that the fits seem to be under control now. We have also offered to take care of David for a while to give his family a break. Fernan Florentino Fernan is 37 years old, a married man with two young children. Fernan suffered a brain haemorrhage and was in a coma for several weeks. The family are rice farmers and had to sell every thing they owned to pay the hospital fees. Unfortunately Bahay ng Pag-Asa was unable to shoulder all the costs, but we did make a substantial contribution. The family are local and I try to visit at least once a week. Sadly nothing can be done to help Fernan, but supplying some of the liquid food that he needs and visiting regularly seems to help the family in this very difficult time. Maria Mitcha Maria is 49 years old and is suffering from uterine fibroids. She came to Bahay ng Pag-Asa requesting us to fund her surgery. We took her for a second opinion. We were advised that there was a chance to reduce the problem with medication before the last option of surgery. Needless to say we went for the medication, and hopefully it will not be necessary to operate after all. Maria is due for another check up shortly. I will let you know what happens in the next update. Leonida Boromaio At two o’clock one very rainy morning we were awoken by one of our neighbours. His mother Leonida who is 63 years old had collapsed and needed to be rushed to hospital. The only transport Bahay ng Pag-Asa has is a tricycle which is not the best way of transporting a dying woman to hospital especially in the rainy season! But we had no option; we rushed Leonida to the hospital. We were advised by the doctor that had she not been taken when we did, she would not have made it! God is good, and after a few days confinement Leonida returned to Planas. Bahay ng Pag-Asa paid all the medicines and hospital fees….. We really, really need a vehicle and now that we are a registered charity maybe we will be able to raise enough funds to buy one. Betty Arquilano Late one evening Betty came to the house. She was in a terribly agitated state and was having difficulty breathing. Betty is 53 years old and suffers from heart disease. We rushed her in the tricycle to the hospital which is about a forty-five minute ride away; where she was confined for several days. The doctor told Betty that if mama Nickie had not taken her when she did. She would not be alive today…. Betty is on medication provided by Bahay ng Pag-Asa, and is now telling everyone who visits her store how Bahay ng Pag-Asa saved her life. Ricardo Barruga Ricardo is 31 years old and is married with two children under five. He came to Bahay ng Pag-Asa asking for medication for his bad chest… the alarm bell in my head rang and I insisted that I took him to the hospital for check up. We did and he was diagnosed with T.B. T.B. is very, very common in the Philippines. There is a government program which provides free medication for six month… if you can get on it… that is not as easy as it sounds. But I don’t give up easily and eventually managed to find out who decided which patients get on the program. I contacted them and managed to get Ricardo on the program. Malinda Alam Malinda’s mother came to Bahay ng Pag-Asa asking for help, she said her daughter was very weak and could not stand. God is so good because I was home that day and free to visit her. I could not believe the condition Malinda was in. I rushed her to the hospital where she was confined at our expense for twelve days. Malinda was diagnosed with T.B. and pneumonia. One of her lungs was almost full of fluid. The doctor did not give her much chance of survival. Malinda has three children under five years old! She had to live… we bought the very best medicines we could and the fluid was drained from the lung. Malinda did make it and she is now on the government T.B. program and making wonderful progress, as you can see from her photo. James Bad-ang James is eleven years old. He suffers from cerebral palsy and epilepsy. Poor James lives in a world of his own, where all he knows is suffering. His fits were becoming more and more frequent so his mother came to Bahay ng Pag-Asa for help. We took James for check up and tests and are now providing the medicine to control his epilepsy. Please, please help us to continue helping James, Malinda, Ricardo, Leonida, Betty, Fernan, David, Divine Grace, Daisyrel, Tonton, Bullet (who is pictured on the home page)…. And all of the others who’s stories didn’t make it onto the website this time, and yet who are receiving the help they so desperately need for Bahay ng Pag-Asa. Please make a donation today… |
| Tonton Aged 9 |
Jeffy
| Daisy Arrives at Bahay ng Pag-Asa |
| Daisy with Jenny & Denmark Now ready to make her own way in the world! |
Mr Salvador
Mrs Salvador
Mr Darupan
Lita Cerozo
Betty
Daisyrel
Nida
Divine Grace
| Tabye Family |
David Belcar
Fernan
Maria Mitcha
Leonida Boromaio
Ricardo Barruga
Malinda Alam
James Bad-ang
| The Clients During the last six months Bahay ng Pag-asa has provided hospitalization for fourteen people and has helped many others in various ways. At the moment there are approximately 35 clients receiving help from us. Here are just a few of their many stories… |