Please help Bobby receive the surgery he needs

My name is Jeff and I have lived here in the Philippines for a year but will return to the UK sometime in the not-too-distant future. I have 'family' here who looked after me for 5 months last year. They are humble farmers and labourers in a tough world where the average wage is about £5 for a hard day's work. They are the salt of the earth but this is a tough place to live and the nearest hospital is 4 hours from the village. The cost of most medical procedures must be borne by the patient so when something serious occurs they might not be able to afford any treatment at all. That's where Bobby comes into the story.

Bobby is a dad of 4 bright girls and the breadwinner of the household. He suffered a slow-speed motorbike accident in May this year and dislocated his elbow. It is still in the same condition 3 months down the line and he lives in constant pain and cannot use his arm to do the simple tasks that you and I take for granted. He is a manual worker, a farmhand, carrying out back-breaking work on the coconut plantations and rice fields around his village. Around here the average wage is less than £5 per day as I said earlier. It’s a tough life but he is a cheerful sole and gets through the day with a smile and a poor joke or two.

He is the breadwinner, as I say, for his 4 young daughters and wife, Eden, who depend on Bobby to bring in the salary to survive. But Bobby cannot do the things he used to do and manual labour is an everyday challenge. There is no government support here and not being able to work means no food on the table. Life is really tough.

Bobby needs an operation to correct his dislocated elbow.

Here in the Philippines the cost of surgery is high and out of reach for many Filipinos and he obviously cannot afford it; no money means no operation. I would like to raise money on his behalf so Bobby can undergo the necessary surgery and also to cover some of his living expenses as he recuperates in that period after surgery. Without surgery, he will be like this for the rest of his life and the family is already finding it tough through his inability to work. Believe me when I say Bobby is one of the hardest working people I know and there is nothing that would make him happier than to get back to work so he can care for his family properly.

I will also be riding some charity bike rides here to raise awareness. In the land of volcanos, what better than to ride a bike around an active volcano? I’ve completed two of these rides already but two larger volcanos await - the iconic cone-shaped Mt Mayon and another large volcano named Mt Bulusan both routes are 50 miles long and it is tough going in 35º C heat.

I will keep you updated on his progress (and mine) but at the moment his right arm hangs loosely by his side, muscle wastage is visible as he does not use it and it is a source of pain and discomfort. His family struggle daily without his income. This fundraising is as much about the impact this is having on them as it is about Bobby's health - aged between 9 and 16 years old their upbringing and education are important both of which are being disrupted by his inability to work.

I thank you for reading this far and thank you also, in advance, for any support you can give.

Jeff