Shunt Valves for Hydrocephalus children: Save a life!
0% complete
$7,325 raised of $7.5K
91 donations
Dear friends and family,
We are again raising funds for Fundacion Tricolor de Amor in Venezuela to support the purchase of 25 shunt valves for the surgical treatment of 25 hydrocephalus children in Caracas, Venezuela.
December 2025 Update:
This specific fundraiser was set up 2 years ago, and this month we reached our goal. Although the goal was achieved in one year, nevertheless, we have been able to provide Shunt valves for dozens of families with this fundraiser. More over, some of us organizers, are matching the donations given by you often. For our 2026 fundraising goal, we will do it via the same Gofund Me fundraiser by increasing the goal of this specific fundraiser from $5,000 to $7,500 to allow for the continuity of monthly contributions that some of you are generously providing. Thank you!
End of Update
In 2019, with the help of our friends and family, we started supporting the efforts of volunteer women at Hospital Perez Carreño in Caracas, Venezuela. After identifying the areas of greatest need at the hospital, these volunteers started an intervention program to help hydrocephalus children obtain the required treatment to alleviate this serious condition.
Hydrocephalus is a condition that causes swelling in the brain. 2 to 3 in every 1000 babies are born with hydrocephalus in Latin America. Their chance of survival without any treatment is 50%. However, with treatment, most of these children can live completely normal life. The barrier to providing treatment is the inability of their families to purchase a shunt valve that is surgically implanted to redirect extra fluid from the brain to another part of the body to drain the fluid. Each valve costs close to $200. We were so moved by the fact that with a relatively small amount of money, we could have such a dramatic impact on a child's life and their family.
In 2019 and in 2020 we raised enough money to provide valves for 15 hydrocephalus children and to perform all the necessary laboratory work required for a successful procedure. Since then, the relentless effort of these amazing volunteers has grown into Fundacion Tricolor de Amor (FTA). Currently, FTA aims to donate 20 shunt valves per year to hydrocephalus children waiting to obtain the surgical procedure to treat their condition. Unfortunately this year we are their only source of funds!
For this campaign, we are focusing on raising the funds to purchase the valves needed for a full year. However, the scope of FTA has grown much larger than providing support for the purchase of these valves. It includes providing medical supplies, food, diapers, formula, meals, school materials, Christmas presents and moral support to a very vulnerable segment of the population in the area where they operate.
For more information, please see the presentation in this link:
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