$85 a month for 18 months to ensure a different life for each of these children and their families.
The time to help is now.
When we came to Philomena’s house, despite the afternoon sun shining brightly, the house was dark. “It’s been a hard day” she says quietly, not making any eye contact. We help her draw the curtains and she pulls back her hair drawing a deep breath.
Meet Philomena. Her daughter is Priscilla. For the last 22 years Priscilla has been unable to walk, talk and do anything for herself. She is fully dependent on her mother. Her father works at a local retail store but his income is not enough to meet their health bills.
When we met them, they were trying to manage how many nappies they could afford for their daughter that week. It was heartbreaking.
Illness pushes so many into great hardship. They struggle to pay growing health bills, feed themselves and meet their daily needs.
They are not alone.
There are 5 other families with sick family members that need to find a way out – a sustainable way to earn enough and get the support to manage their helpless situation.
Lakshana – During the war she faced a severe spinal cord injury which has left her bed ridden. Her willpower moves us and she dreams of being able to access a toilet so she can move freely each day to take care of herself and not add this pressure to her aged parents. She knows that without going to seasonal labour, they will not have enough to support themselves and she doesn’t want to add any more burden to them then she already has.
Jeyantha – A young mother, with two disabled children – a five year old who is deaf, and a two-and-a-half year old who is blind, and has kidney failure and other illnesses. Without even enough money for transport she struggles to get her children the care they need and meet her family’s basic needs.
Nanthakumar – a widower whose wife has recently died due to cancer, Nanthakumar is unable to cover the basic needs of the family as well as take care of his 5 years old child who can not do anything on her own. She has limited movement, a heart condition and many other illnesses that Nanthakumar struggles to even understand. Each week her body falls into a seizure and without the funds for regular care, treatment and medication, there is little hope at the moment for his young child without your support.
Nirojini – Her child has special needs but without the money for the right diagnosis, the family struggles to know how to move forward. With little income, she struggles to feed their family and tend to the health needs of her child, who day by day is getting worse.
Fatima Rose – A single woman with 4 children. Her six year old has fallen severely ill and without the income to go to the needed specialists she is unable to care for her child. She is in a vicious cycle, each day she must make snacks to sell at the local store to have enough for her family to eat and save so she can care for her sick child. She needs a small pause – a relief – something to help her escape her cycle and that is exactly what your support can do.
What we can do with your help
It will take time, but with your help we will ensure these children get the support and care they need, and that their families are in a better position to sustain them for the long run.
With your support we will:
- Start by ensuring the appropriate health diagnosis for the children – the vulnerable usually have an imbalance of knowledge and agency which can impact their understanding and access to effective health services
- Put together a plan for the longer-term care of these sick children
- Identify appropriate income streams for the family so they can afford to support the health needs of their child, preferable income streams from home so they can also tend to their children.
- Connect the mothers to other women through Women Empowerment Collectives so they have a needed support network to support them with daily life
- Connect them to needed services so they can leverage other opportunities available to them to support the health needs of their children
- Equip them with the skills to develop a home garden, to ensure long term food security and build their confidence in agriculture.
We will work with these families for a period of 18 months to ensure their children are safe and protected and their families can meet their basic needs, long after we have supported them. It will take a period of close support but over time we will ensure these families have what they need to stand on their own two feet.
The bigger picture
Priscilla and these 5 families are part of a larger program that Palmera is running called Graduating the Poor, which focuses on hundreds of families struggling to eat three times a day. To learn more about that program, click here.
How we will update you
We want to share with you the impact you have had by supporting these families. We will share a video through to your mobile (so make sure you provide that on your donation).
Six Sick Children
$85 a month for 18 months to ensure a different life for each of these children and their families.
The time to help is now.
When we came to Philomena’s house, despite the afternoon sun shining brightly, the house was dark. “It’s been a hard day” she says quietly, not making any eye contact. We help her draw the curtains and she pulls back her hair drawing a deep breath.
Meet Philomena. Her daughter is Priscilla. For the last 22 years Priscilla has been unable to walk, talk and do anything for herself. She is fully dependent on her mother. Her father works at a local retail store but his income is not enough to meet their health bills.
When we met them, they were trying to manage how many nappies they could afford for their daughter that week. It was heartbreaking.
Illness pushes so many into great hardship. They struggle to pay growing health bills, feed themselves and meet their daily needs.
They are not alone.
There are 5 other families with sick family members that need to find a way out – a sustainable way to earn enough and get the support to manage their helpless situation.
Lakshana – During the war she faced a severe spinal cord injury which has left her bed ridden. Her willpower moves us and she dreams of being able to access a toilet so she can move freely each day to take care of herself and not add this pressure to her aged parents. She knows that without going to seasonal labour, they will not have enough to support themselves and she doesn’t want to add any more burden to them then she already has.
Jeyantha – A young mother, with two disabled children – a five year old who is deaf, and a two-and-a-half year old who is blind, and has kidney failure and other illnesses. Without even enough money for transport she struggles to get her children the care they need and meet her family’s basic needs.
Nanthakumar – a widower whose wife has recently died due to cancer, Nanthakumar is unable to cover the basic needs of the family as well as take care of his 5 years old child who can not do anything on her own. She has limited movement, a heart condition and many other illnesses that Nanthakumar struggles to even understand. Each week her body falls into a seizure and without the funds for regular care, treatment and medication, there is little hope at the moment for his young child without your support.
Nirojini – Her child has special needs but without the money for the right diagnosis, the family struggles to know how to move forward. With little income, she struggles to feed their family and tend to the health needs of her child, who day by day is getting worse.
Fatima Rose – A single woman with 4 children. Her six year old has fallen severely ill and without the income to go to the needed specialists she is unable to care for her child. She is in a vicious cycle, each day she must make snacks to sell at the local store to have enough for her family to eat and save so she can care for her sick child. She needs a small pause – a relief – something to help her escape her cycle and that is exactly what your support can do.
What we can do with your help
It will take time, but with your help we will ensure these children get the support and care they need, and that their families are in a better position to sustain them for the long run.
With your support we will:
- Start by ensuring the appropriate health diagnosis for the children – the vulnerable usually have an imbalance of knowledge and agency which can impact their understanding and access to effective health services
- Put together a plan for the longer-term care of these sick children
- Identify appropriate income streams for the family so they can afford to support the health needs of their child, preferable income streams from home so they can also tend to their children.
- Connect the mothers to other women through Women Empowerment Collectives so they have a needed support network to support them with daily life
- Connect them to needed services so they can leverage other opportunities available to them to support the health needs of their children
- Equip them with the skills to develop a home garden, to ensure long term food security and build their confidence in agriculture.
We will work with these families for a period of 18 months to ensure their children are safe and protected and their families can meet their basic needs, long after we have supported them. It will take a period of close support but over time we will ensure these families have what they need to stand on their own two feet.
The bigger picture
Priscilla and these 5 families are part of a larger program that Palmera is running called Graduating the Poor, which focuses on hundreds of families struggling to eat three times a day. To learn more about that program, click here.
How we will update you
We want to share with you the impact you have had by supporting these families. We will share a video through to your mobile (so make sure you provide that on your donation).