Help Lydia Stand Tall

Kathy Bratkowski is organizing this fundraiser to benefit Foundation of Orthopedics and Complex Spine Inc (Focos).

Tax deductible

UPDATE:

Thank you so much for your generous donations to Help Lydia Stand Tall.

Because of several anonymous donations outside of Go Fund Me, we have collectively raised enough money for Lydia’s surgery!

Lydia is completing her college studies in computer science before traveling to Ghana for the difficult surgery and long recovery. She will be the main support to her family in Kenya once she graduates. This young, bright woman will change many lives because of your support.

We are closing the Go Fund Me site to donations but will continue to keep the page active for updates.

If you wish to help other young people like Lydia, visit the FOCOS hospital website at www.orthofocos.org to donate and to learn more about the life-changing work of orthopedic surgeon Dr. Oheneba Boachie-Adjei.

God bless you for your loving support and generosity.

Cindy and Ken Wright
Kathy and Charlie Bratkowski

LYDIA'S STORY:

Lydia has a birth defect that causes severe scoliosis and she has difficulty walking. Everyday tasks such as gathering water from the river are
extremely hard for her.

Lydia is so grateful to have an opportunity to be healthy and graduate from college.

Lydia lives with her mother, grandmother and three siblings. She will soon graduate from college. In high school she was ranked #3 in her class of 24 students.

Through donations, Lydia recently traveled to Nairobi for extensive medical testing. After reviewing her records, doctors at Shriners Hospital in St. Louis recommended she undergo surgery at FOCOS Orthopedic Hospital in Ghana, the leading spinal surgery hospital in Africa.

Her surgical team is headed by Professor Oheneba Boachie-Adjei.

Dr. Boachie served as Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College and as Chief of the Scoliosis Service at the prestigious Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York. He was also an Attending Orthopedic Surgeon at both HSS and New York Presbyterian Hospital. He recently returned to Ghana to fulfill his dream of bringing state-of-the-art spinal surgery to underserved patients in West Africa and beyond.

Professor Boachie-Adjei has helped many other patients live normal lives. Just one example is the story of Francis Delina from the Phillipines.

FOCOS has agreed to do Lydia's surgery and provide six months of orthopedic outpatient care.

You can learn more about Professor Boachi-Adjei and FOCOS hospital in the video below or on their website.

Thanks to your help, Lydia's life will change and she can live to her full potential.