Meet Dagmarit!

Exercise can change everything.

Running helps Dagmarit feel strong and confident. She's one of our sponsored athletic scholars through Girls Gotta Run.

“I am very thankful for this program,” she said. “I was so happy to join this group.”

The three workouts she does with her Girls Gotta Run teammates each week leave Dagmarit feeling healthy.

“The exercise and sport is good for everyone.”

— Dagmarit

But those practices also help the girls bond. They put everyone in a better mood and improve their behaviour off the track.

“The exercise and sport is good for everyone,” Dagmarit said.

And the life skills lessons in the program help her learn about topics that wouldn’t be discussed in the classroom – everything from healthy relationships to hygiene.

Those sessions empower the athletic scholars.

“I know myself, even,” she said.

Because she shares the experience with several dozen other young ladies, there’s a strong sense of camaraderie.

Dagmarit, a quiet young lady, feels comfortable asking anything and everything without getting shy.

Before the program, she didn’t have many friends. But that all changed when she joined Girls Gotta Run. And Dagmarit’s family is happy to know she has those relationships in her life.

When she's behind a desk, Dagmarit enjoys studying math and physics. She hopes to one day be a pilot.

We can't wait to see how high she flies!

Meet Yenealem!

Before Girls Gotta Run, Yenealem didn’t have many friends to count on.

After joining the program, that all changed. Not only did she build relationships and develop social skills, she created deep and meaningful friendships.

“Now, I have many best friends,” she said.

The life skills programming helped her learn about to talk with her peers how to share love with friends and community.

Yenealem saw a physical transformation, too.

Athletic activity used to leave her winded and tired. Now she can run sprints, through practices, and around the schoolyard.

“Before, I was very tired when I did a minute of sports. Now I can run for a very long time,” she said.

And the athletic scholarship that Mothers with a Heart for Ethiopia provides makes it possible for Yenealem to get a good education. Her favourite subjects are physics and chemistry.

Before Girls Gotta Run, Yenealem’s mom was trying to support many children and pay tuition for her school-age siblings. It was getting to be too much. But thanks to the scholarship, Yenealem can continue to get a good education. Her mom hopes it will lead her daughter to “a higher place” in her future.

“Before, I was very tired when I did a minute of sports. Now I can run for a very long time. - Yenealem”

Meet Wubalem!

Wubalem isn’t the only young woman in her household who learns from the Girls Gotta Run program.

She takes the skills that she learns during practice and life skills workshops at Abba Pascal Girls School, in Soddo, Ethiopia, and brings them home to share with her little sister.

She’s grateful, not just for the knowledge, but for the chance to wear a uniform, eat a healthy lunch, and go to school.

Running shoes and injera – those things are tangible. What’s not so easy to grasp is the transformation that Girls Gotta Run has inspired in Wubalem.

Before Girls Gotta Run, Wubalem didn’t realize that girls could play sports just like boys.

The program has helped show her the power of female athletes – and women in general – and recognize her own strength in the process.

That confidence is something that extends far beyond the track.

She has more energy. Her friendships have grown deeper.

And the athletic scholarship allows Wubalem to dream.

She loves English, biology and physics. Wubalem is a dedicated student and she devotes hours to her homework after school. She thinks she might like to be an engineer one day.

Importantly, her parents support her goals and dreams. Wubalem’s father, Ersase, wants to see all of his daughters avoid early marriage.

Wubalem, her father, and her sister Tiblet at Abba Pascal Girls School

He wants her to learn.

“I want her to find good places to go in life.”

The People Behind the Projects: Mark & Allison Karnes

We had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with Mark and Allison Karnes and learn a little more about what inspires them to do this life-changing work in Ethiopia. Dr. Mark is responsible for the prolapsed uterus surgeries, and his wife Allison is the brains behind the WRAPs (washable, reusable, affordable pads) project.

Not everyone has the temperament and motivation to pick up their lives and move to Cameroon.

But Allison and Mark Karnes decided that was the path for them. Oh, and they did it with a baby on the way.

The couple made the trek to central Africa shortly after Dr. Mark graduated, where they operated a primary care clinic.

Life wasn’t always easy – the heat was intense and they dealt with malaria, parasites and all kinds of realities of life that don't exist in the States – but it’s a special part of their history.

Two of the Karnes' children were born in Cameroon, and when they left five years later, a third was on the way. They now have five children, several of whom have lived and worked in various parts of Africa.

A few of the MWAHFE committee members who went to visit with Mark and Allison Karnes in Port Huron. We had a lovely chat at Cracker Barrel! What an honour to find out a little bit more about this inspiring couple.

It would be more than two decades after that journey in Cameroon that the Karnes returned to the continent, spending 25 years in Michigan in between. There, Dr. Mark ran his own gynaecological practice.

“We knew that at some point in time we’d go back in Africa,” he said.

They couldn’t stay away, and they felt called to return. Just over a month after retirement, the Karnes landed in Ethiopia.

“When you visit Africa, it gets in your bloodstream. You get infected with it,” said Mark.

And it would be about more than just serving the people. The Karnes were inspired to share their knowledge and leave a lasting legacy behind.

It was at a medical missions conference that they learned about the Pan-African Academy of Christian Surgeons (PAACS), an organization that seeks to keep African surgeons at home, with hopes of reversing the “brain drain” that often draws the best and brightest physicians to developed countries like the US and Canada.

Knowing they wanted to contribute to that initiative helped narrow down the options for a return to the African continent.

But why Ethiopia?

“They had coffee there. And popcorn,” Dr. Mark said with a chuckle.

Of course the decision was more complicated. The Ethiopian climate attracted the Karnes, and Allison formed a special bond with friends at the Soddo Christian Hospital.

“When you visit Africa, it gets in your bloodstream.”

— Dr. Mark Karnes

It seemed like a good fit.

And PAACS drew them in.

“It's one thing to know how to perform a caesarian, and save the life of mother and baby. But to teach someone how to do that is (about) duplication,” said Mark. And at the Soddo Christian Hospital, that's exactly what he does.

Mothers with a Heart for Ethiopia volunteers even had the chance to take a peek at a surgery conducted by Dr. Mark – with help from an training doctor – on a recent trip. Practicing medicine is very different, even at a privately-funded hospital, in Ethiopia. Supplies are not always readily available, and even water isn't a guarantee.

But what struck our volunteers the most was the incredible patience that Dr. Mark showed throughout the course of the operation. Not only was he working to repair a delicate reproductive system, but he was sharing his knowledge with a less experienced surgeon. 

“It's very important, because I'm not always going to be there,” Dr. Mark said.

Dr. Mark chats with Shelley outside the Bucama Health Clinic in rural Ethiopia in February 2017. This facility directs some patients to Soddo Christian Hospital to undergo surgery with Dr. Mark.

While Mark is changing lives in the operating room (learn more about prolapse), Allison is out doing the same in rural schools all over the region with the WRAPS initiative. (Check out our spotlight story on WRAPS here!)

“We talk a lot about menstruation and what it is, and the biology of it,” said Allison. “I talk a lot about being safe, because rape is still a big concern.”

The WRAPS – washable, reusable, affordable pads – have caught the eye of many, including some local and influential leaders who have brought Allison into schools that had never received similar programming.

Allison teaches a workshop on WRAPS at Abba Pascal Girls School, one of the sites for Girls Gotta Run programming.

It’s sweet to listen to Mark and Allison talk about their lives. What’s clear is that the couple has an incredible bond and partnership. They know each other’s passions inside and out, and the pride in their voices is evident when they talk about those projects.

Over their decades in Ethiopia, the Karnes have played witness to so much change – and progress.

“In 2007 there was only one paved road in Soddo,” said Mark. “When we first arrived, all of the taxis were donkeys and mules and horses.”

There wasn't a bajaj in sight.

Just seven years ago, about 94% of women were estimated to be delivering their children at home without medical care. Now that’s dropped to about 50%, Mark said.

Development is constant, and life changes all the time.

“They even, on the weekends at this one hotel, have ice cream,” said Mark with awe.

It’s amazing how much can change with “funds and a little heart,” said Allison.

The Karnes are the perfect example of that. And there’s so much more the couple hopes to accomplish.

“I can’t live long enough to do enough there. I have projects that would keep me busy for another 100 years,” Allison said. “It only takes a little money to change the lives of an entire community.”

Despite the hard work and the long hours, the Karnes said it is an honour and a joy to work, live and serve in Soddo.

 “We are the ones who are blessed,” Mark said.

“We learn so much from the Ethiopian people.”

The Hospital by the River: A Review

I had barely cracked the spine of this book and I knew I was in for an emotional and inspiring read. The prologue had captured my heart before the autobiographical story even began. Here's the synopsis that Kobo provides for its customers:

Gynaecologists Catherine and Reg Hamlin left Australia in 1959 on a short contract to establish a midwifery school in Ethiopia. Over 40 years later, Catherine is still there, running one of the most outstanding medical programmes in the world. The Hamlins dedicated their lives to women suffering the catastrophic effects of obstructed labour. The awful injuries that such labour produces are called fistulae, and until the Hamlins began their work in Ethiopia, fistula sufferers were neglected and forgotten - a vast group of women facing a lifetime of incapacity and degradation. Catherine and Reg, with their team of dedicated fistula surgeons, have successfully operated on over 25,000 women, and the Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital, the hospital they opened in 1974, has become a major teaching institution for gynaecologists from all over Ethiopia and the developing world. Since Reg’s death, Catherine and her team have continued the work.

What a synopsis can't tell you it what it felt like to read Dr. Hamlin's story. I couldn't escape the thought, "How can this be happening today?" The chance of a Canadian woman suffering an injury like a fistulae is small because labour and delivery are so well cared for by medical professionals. If there is an injury during labour or delivery, our medical system immediately intervenes. So, to know that there are women who are suffering from something that is so readily preventable and treatable in Canada absolutely broke my heart. Their pain is physical and emotional, most often being cast aside from their communities because of their medical condition.

But this book doesn't just present a problem, it documents the lives of two doctors who have made a tremendous difference to both treat and prevent child-birth related injuries. This couple was determined to create a lasting change against all odds, and they did it.

The other wonderful thing about this book is the depth of insight the reader is given into the history of Ethiopia in the past century. The Hamils lived through regime changes, civil unrest, peace and war. Catherine teaches the reader about Ethiopia's fascinating history as a consequence of it being interwoven with her story.

The work that the Hamils have done in Ethiopia is closely related to the prolapse uterus surgeries that MWAHFE sponsors. These women's health issues deserve to be talked about because there are real and tangible solutions for preventing and treating them. In light of Dr. Hamil's story, I am even more glad to know that we have Dr. Mark and his team at Soddo Christian Hospital doing life-transforming surgeries in Ethiopia!

Want to read this great book? Contact your local bookstore and see if they carry it. It’s great to try local first! I couldn't find it in the local libraries but here are some places that you can get a copy if the local options don’t work. (I got a "like new" copy from Amazon for less than $7 including shipping!)

Amazon
Chapters Online
Kobo

Have you read this book? Leave a comment below and tell us what you thought!

Reviewed by Tracy Dunham
@tracyadunham

Surgical Success Stories - #101 and #102

Even as we were celebrating our 100th surgery, Dr. Mark sent us the photos and stories of two more women who had just been sponsored! As great as the milestone was, we're even more excited to be able to continue this life-changing work through Dr. Mark and his team at Soddo Christian Hospital.

Meet Bazite and Akala... more lives changed by your generosity and financial partnership.

This is Bazite Mandabo, a widow from Bucama who has had prolapse for five years. She has been pregnant seven times, has had three miscarriages and has three living children.

This is Akala Awandu, also a widow, who has had fourth degree prolapse for 10 years. She has been pregnant four times and has three living children. She was brought to Soddo Christian Hospital by Dr. Mary Vanderkooi who has a mobile clinic in a very rural area, Adjura, where she takes care of some of the poorest of the poor.  

Celebrating 100 Surgeries: Sulded's Story

Imagine if a complete stranger locked eyes with you and uttered these words: “bless you again and again and again.”

That’s the overwhelming thanks we hear from Sulded, a mother from rural Ethiopia who is using her own experiences to help other women.

Sulded had a number of complicated births and pregnancies, including a late-term miscarriage and a child that was stillborn. She was left not just with emotional pain, but with a prolapsed uterus that plagued her for nearly a decade.

“It was outside (my body) and very infected,” Sulded said. “I went to the hospital three times, receiving cream and taking care of washing.”

But it never got better. In fact, it got worse.

She didn’t want others talking about her private health concerns, so she didn’t tell a soul. Not even her husband.

“My biggest fear was not being able to be with people. I was hiding myself. I was hopeful,” she said.

Sulded worried what others might be saying about her. She told us that she prayed God would take the horrible condition away.

Finally, she was able to have Dr. Mark Karnes operate to correct the prolapse. And now, Sulded is a lifeline for other women suffering from the same issue.

When we spoke with Sulded she had already sent three women from her community to the Bucama Health Clinic to get help with prolapse.

“They were hiding in the compound. I recognized the signs,” she said. Dr. Mark has been able to help those women using options other than surgery, like the use of a ring that supports the uterus.

Though she understands the intense desire for privacy, Sulded said she wants to spread the word about the options – even a cure – that could save other women from the same misery she experienced.

She wants to pay it forward.

“You helped out problems – may God be with you,” she said at the end of our interview.

Thank you so much, Sulded, for your bravery, your determination, and your compassionate spirit.

Celebrating 100 Surgeries: Donor Profile

Donating to Mothers with a Heart for Ethiopia is different. 

Longtime supporter Judi VanDeCappelle said that she likes knowing exactly where her money is going. That's the kind of assurance that a grassroots organization like MWAHFE can offer to its donors.

Judi VanDeCappelle, a regular MWAHFE donor who funds prolapsed uterus surgeries for women in Ethiopia. Thank you so much for your contributions, Judi!

“It’s one thing to donate money to causes where it’s just out there. You really don’t know how it’s being used or even how much of your money gets used,” Judi said. 

But founder Shelley Green, who travels to Ethiopia regularly to monitor MWAHFE projects and meet with partner agencies, offers a special kind of transparency that’s hard to replicate in bigger agencies.

She brings home firsthand accounts of the lives changed through the funding offered by Mothers with a Heart for Ethiopia.

“I honestly believe that when I donate money for something specific here, she’s making sure that gets done. I don’t know about other people, but that’s really important to me,” Judi said.

And it’s the surgeries to correct prolapsed uteruses that touched Judi the most.

“There’s a lot of projects within Mothers with a Heart and they’re all worthy. But this one about the surgeries, that hits home to me,” Judi said. “I want to help these women. Every year I try to increase my donation to see how many more surgeries I can pay for.”

Judi has been an incredibly generous donor for several years, always earmarking her giving for surgeries.

The reality for many Ethiopian women suffering from this condition – years of isolation, depression, and significant pain – is hard for Judi to accept.

“I cannot imagine being shunned by your family and society because of these operations that they can’t get. It just really bothers me,” she said.

Many woman hide themselves away from their communities, ashamed of the odour that often accompanies a prolapsed uterus.

An active person by nature, Judi said she feels for these women who are left to manage a painful and debilitating condition, often without any help or support network. 

“I’ve had certain periods where I’ve hurt my back or something has happened, and it’s a trial to get back to where I was. To think something could happen to you where you’re just literally put off in a corner and left (alone), I just can’t understand the world, that that could happen,” she said.

She’s committed to funding as many surgeries as possible.

And seeing the smiles - the glowing faces of women who have benefitted from those funds - is a great reward for Judi. She's heard from Shelley about how happy the patients are, even one day after their surgery while still recovering.

“It’s made such a difference in their life," Judi said.

Celebrating 100 Surgeries: Turngo's Story

Turngo was isolating herself from friends, family and community when she heard whispers of a place that could help her.

So she started walking.

It took her three hours to walk from her home to the Bucama Health Clinic. She didn’t want to tell her husband the real reason why she was going – a prolapsed uterus – so she said it was about a backache.

“I’m sick and I’m in pain,” she told her family.

Her fourth degree prolapse was so severe she spent 15 days at the clinic. Turngo’s uterus was hanging so far outside her body that she wore multiple pairs of underwear to try and keep it contained and allow her to walk normally.

When she spoke about her surgery to correct a prolapsed uterus, Turngo raised her arms and thanked God. Religion is a huge part of life in Ethiopia, and all of the women we spoke with told us of desperately praying for God to take away the pain and shame of the condition.

“The infection was very painful,” she told us. She tried washing herself, but the condition gave her a nasty odour. It filled Turngo with shame, so much so that she would turn away instead of greeting people.

It was heartbreaking to hear her describe this time in her life.

“I didn’t have anyone to help me,” she said. “With the smell, how can I go on? Even my body looked like not mine.”

The prolapsed caused her such pain that she resorted to crouching on all fours when she was cooking. It was the only position that she could bear. She was deeply depressed.

The surgery to correct her prolapsed uterus gave Turngo back her sense of self.

“I can wear what I want, I can go help where I want. I can talk to my neighbour.”

— Turngo, on the results of her surgery

“I can walk, I can even run. I can sit, I can stand. My body, I can control. It is my own,” she said.

And the operation helped her get rid of the odour that was causing such shame.

“Now I am happy to sit with people, to meet with people and greet them,” said the mother of seven.

She said her body smells like perfume.

“I can wear what I want, I can go help where I want. I can talk to my neighbour,” Turngo said.

“Everything is new. This life is new.”

Thank you, Turngo, for your perseverance, your courage, and your newly rediscovered zest for life.

Celebrating 100 Surgeries: Amarach's Story

“Now I am glad, I am joyful, I can do whatever I want.”

Amarach, 45, from a rural community near the Bucama Health Clinic outside Soddo, Ethiopia

Those are the words of Amarach, a 45-year-old mother of 11 children who suffered with a prolapsed uterus for a year. What she remembers most about the condition?

The shame, the pain, and the smell.

“I was smelling, it was not good. Even the wound was bleeding,” Amarach told us when we sat down to chat at the Bucama Health Clinic in Ethiopia.

No one understood what was wrong – but they could smell it. So Amarach hid herself away and share her suffering with anyone.

Her kids noticed something was afoot. But Amarach felt ashamed about what was happening with her body.

When her family asked what was wrong, she said, “oh, I don’t know.” Her husband threatened to leave her, and told her “there is no pain.”

Amarach was tired. She’d been leaving with near-constant pain. She felt so weak.

The nuns at Bucama tried to help Amarach, giving her medication. But three weeks later, the pain came back with a vengeance. She was referred to Soddo Christian Hospital. She needed surgery to correct her prolapsed uterus.

Without Mothers with a Heart for Ethiopia, the procedure would have been impossible.

“I had nothing, not even one cent, one birr,” Amarach said about paying for an operation.

She was overwhelmed with gratitude, thanking us profusely. Amarach raised her arms to the heavens to thank God for answering her prayers when she spoke about the surgery.

It gave Amarach her life back.

“Now I am glad, I am joyful, I can do whatever I want.”

— Amarach

“I am so sorry for those who did not have a chance to have this surgery like me,” she said.

Everything has changed for her.

“Now I am happy. My body smells like perfume – better than perfume.”

Thank you, Amarach, for your courage, your heart, and for inviting us to share in a moment of beautiful vulnerability. We are so thankful.