Gift of Life Stories.
Stories about our children.
Our 40,000th Child
Three year old Rea from Kosovo is the 40,000th child to have their heart healed through our global network of caring since 1975.
Rea has an older sister named Tea who is five. Rea and Tea l ...
Meet Rahiima Nalwoga of Uganda
Rahiima Nalwoga is a 19 months old girl diagnosed at 6 weeks with Tetra-logy of Fallot with absent pulmonary Valve on 26th June, 2019 at Uganda Heart Institute. This means her unique heart has ( a ...
Juan Carlos from Honduras
Gift of Life International identified that he needed care when we conducted a screening visit to San Pedro Sula, Honduras in November 2019. In January 2020, he was accepted for care at New Orleans ...
Kevin Alexander Ferrufino, El Salvador 2010
Since 2010 everything changed, I continued my studies, my physical activities with my friends and I started to play soccer with the Independent team of the second division,
but after a fibul ...
Kenia Rivas – El Salvador
Kenia Rivas: Operada el 23 de julio de 2012. Edad 19 años
Fui operada el 23 de Julio del 2012 en el hospital de niños Benjamín Bloom.
Mi experiencia después de mi operación ha si ...
Our 36,000 Child: Abel from Bolivia
Now Healing over 36,000 Little Hearts!
Abel from Bolivia has become the 36,000th child treated by the Global Network of Life since 1975.
On behalf of the 9 children treated and th ...
Our 35,000 Child Muhammad
Now Healing over 35,000 Little Hearts!
7 year old Muhammad from Pakistan has become the 35,000th child treated by the Global Network of Life since 1975. Muhammad was treated through funding ...
Daniela: The 33,000th Child Treated Through our Global Network
Six-year-old Daniela from Romania had her heart healed during our October 2018 Training Visit to Grigore Alexandrescu Hospital (GAH) in Bucharest. Daniela's family lives in a small city very near Bulg ...
Our 30,000th Child Receives the Gift of Life!
In October 2017, exactly 42 years after the 1st Gift of Life recipient (Grace from Uganda) received her lifesaving surgery, Rood from Haiti was operated on during a Gift of Life International/Rotary s ...
Giving Ugandan Children a Second Chance
Mulambuzi Joshuah is not likely to forget his fifth birthday.
He spent the day recovering from heart surgery that will allow him to attend school again in his village outside of Kampala, Uganda.
...
Child Saved by Clarence Rotary in 1996 Gives Thanks Today
John Rydzik, President, PDG, in 1993-94, shared the following update on Zahir Khan, the first Gift if Life child saved in 1996:
Thought you would like to see the wonderful letter a ...
Grace Agwaru: Being the First
By the time Grace Agwaru was four years old, the doctors had already informed her parents that she would not live to more than 16 years of age. She needed corrective open heart surgery, and her condit ...
Simon Sausande, 11 months, male, Zambia
This year another child from Africa namely Simon, 11 months, male from, Lusaka, Zambia underwent successful open heart surgery to cure his congenital heart diseases under ‘Gift of Life’ prog ...
A Host Family’s Story
Barbara Chicollo, Host for Marlon Johnson (10 months of age) from Jamaica, December 2008
My heart breaks every time I see a sick child, but even more so when I hear that they cannot get treatment f ...
Full Circle: A Child’s Story
My name is Brett Halvorson. I was born in South Korea as Lee Kil Woo. In 1983, I was brought over to the United States by President Ronald Reagan, First Lady Nancy Reagan, and Harriet Hodges on Air Fo ...
Jonathan Olunga: Our 10,000th miracle
Jonathan is the sixth born in a family of 7 children (3 boys and 4 girls). Born on 28th December 1995 he will be 12 years old this coming December. He is in 5th grade and attends Biotech primary schoo ...
Fathima Hafsa, 3.3 Years, Female, Sri Lanka
There was yet another child from Sri Lanka namely Fathima Hafsa, 3.3 years, female, who came to Delhi for open heart surgery on 18 February 2014. She was from a remote area – Kalmunai, in the east ...
Tenzin Yangzom, Female, 4 Years, Tibetan Government In Exile
Tenzin Yangzom, female, 4 years, daughter of Tashi Phuntsok working for the Central Tibetan Administration, Office of H.H. The Dalai Lama (Tibetan Government in Exile). was another Interna ...
Ngozichukwu Leah Ogwude, 10 Months, Female, Nigeria
10 months old girl child Ngozichukwu Leah Ogwude from Magboro, Lagos/Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria, escorted by her mother Funmilola Tinuolaji Fakehinde will reach Delhi for undergoing open hea ...
Simon From Zambia
I first learned of Simon's condition in February 2013 while visiting on of our rural schools in Kafue, Zambia. His father was persistent in trying to help his baby. However, Simon's life was declini ...
Gift Of Life Celebrates 10,000 Children Saved!
When 29-year old Robbie Donno came to his weekly Rotary meeting in the summer of 1975, he had a modest idea in mind to help save the life of a single child in Uganda. At that time, Robbie could not ha ...
Kezia Munir, 5 Years, Female, Lahore, Pakistan
Kezia Munir escorted by her parents Munir and Fauzia reached Delhi from Lahore (Pakistan) on 11 July 2014 by Lahore-Delhi bus. The child is undergoing evaluation at Escorts Hospital on 12 July 201 ...