Amazing Juliet
by ACT
Juliet with her banner at the commemoration of the day of the African Child 2021
At ACT, our support for disadvantaged fatherless children and orphans goes well beyond just providing them with educational opportunities. Our support is holistic, it’s about body, mind and soul and this means ensuring that they also enjoy good health in addition to having access to education.
An important example of this is assisting with medical costs for a child that is undergoing health challenges. In many African countries, medical care, even though it is vital, is unaffordable for many families and much less so if you are from a poor household. State health care is limited, and private medical treatment is a luxury even for the well-off in society. Our ability to fund treatments when the children and young people we support have no other options can therefore be lifesaving in many cases.
One such child we have supported by paying her medical expenses for an operation is a young girl, Juliet now aged 16 and lives in Ipaja, in Lagos State, Nigeria. Juliet had odontogenic myxoma. This is a rare condition which causes the abnormal growth of benign tumours in the jaw area leading to a deformed jaw. Her condition was deteriorating to the point where it sadly became life threatening.
Juliet, the youngest of 5 children was 12 years old when her father died, leaving her mother Patience, to look after their large family. Patience, uneducated and with no special skill, earns a small living as a street seller and was unable to afford the medical costs of operating on Juliet. Following a request from our partners in Lagos, ACT stepped in to assist with her hospital costs at the private Critical Care Unit of LASUTH, the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital. This allowed for the tumour to be removed.
Thankfully the operation was a success and nearly two years on, we are delighted that Juliet is thriving. Pictured above at a protest for children’s rights, she has moved up to Senior Secondary school and continuing with her education. She is studying commercial subjects which places her on the path towards her dreams of becoming a chartered accountant.
Juliet remains very grateful for the support ACT provided for her medical treatment. After her operation we received a letter thanking ACT for the support. It is always moving to open letters like this, and it shows the wide-ranging and vital impact that ACT has on the lives of every individual child we support.
“I am writing this letter to thank you for all you have done for me. I feel better than before, happier than anyone. I can stand in front of anyone without shame. Thank you all for your help.”
Juliet
The determination and high aspirations of Juliet are remarkable, particularly considering the challenges she has faced growing up. But, without ACT support for her education and medical expenses, Juliet and her family would be in a very different position to the one they are in today.
ACT is for the people otherwise forgotten
Juliet was very fortunate to survive the tumour. Sadly, the high costs of medical care in many African countries means that for many children, conditions that are treatable can become deadly. Help us to support more disadvantaged children and orphans like Juliet. By sponsoring a child for just £15 a month you can enable them to reach their potential in life. They would not be alone should they be facing a situation like Juliet’s. Your donation means a lot to them. Please click here to sponsor a child or donate.
