Forsythe Rabeharivelo is a 33 year old Malagasy man who badly needs a hip replacement. I met him last May when I was volunteering as a physical therapist on Africa Mercy in Madagascar. He is a volunteer pastor on the ship. I noticed that he had a large leg length difference (a whopping 7 cm!!) I offered to try to help him to get a shoe with a lift to try to make up some of the difference so that he could walk better. I worked with one of the ship's engineers, Job Schot from the Netherlands, to do this. We were able to have a shoe made for him, but even though he does not allow it to show, when you see him walk it is clear that he is in pain all of the time

Turns out that he has congenital hip dysplasia with the femur dislocating through the pelvis. My friend Job is raising money in the Netherlands, and I am doing it here in the US. We hope to be able to send him to Mauritius to have his hip replaced. The estimated cost of his surgery, travel, accommodations and rehab will be ~ 12000 euros ( $13800. USD) Job has raised 5000 of that cost in the Netherlands.

Sythe works every day on Mercy ships to help other Malagasy people. Unfortunately, they do not replace hips on Mercy Ships.

Would you like to help make a true difference in someone's life? Every contribution helps!

Thank you so much for any support that you can offer! We hope to be able to help him as soon as possible.

Best Regards

Ann Greenan Naumann PT