Adeola’s mother was only 16 when she became pregnant by a man in her village. When her family confronted the man, he denied the accusations and left town. Due to the stigma of teen pregnancy, the girl was no longer welcome in her school and became isolated from her peers. Her father refused to allow her to live at home, so she moved into her aunt’s house. When she gave birth in her aunt’s home alone, she soon recognized complications and called her elder brother for help. When he finally arrived, he found that his sister had already passed away.
Her baby girl was alive and wrapped in blankets at her side.
For 3 months, baby Adeola was cared for by various family members. When a neighbor noticed her size and incessant crying, they told the grandmother about our clinic. The grandmother did not have money for transportation into the city, so she waited until she was able to find someone to loan her the cost of the ride.
Baby Adeola arrived at our clinic earlier this month at 3.5 months old and 2.8kg (or 6.1lbs). She was frail, lethargic, and severely malnourished. Her grandmother reported having bought 2 cans of formula for her since she was born, heavily watering it down. If properly nourished, she would have taken 35 cans in that amount of time.
Baby Adeola had endured such brokenness in her short life. Our hearts grieved with her as we mixed and measured her first ever complete bottle. She was too weak to suck, so we switched to a syringe and watched as she began to eagerly awake in search of nourishment. Her second meal was an hour later. She got the hang of the bottle and even gave us a smile of relief.
We admitted baby Adeola in a local clinic for a few days to be monitored and placed on I.V.
She was discharged with the diagnosis of “severe malnutrition” and the need for continuous support. We took her as a client right away. To our amazement, she has continued steadily on this path to recovery. She has gained incredible weight over the last few weeks. She is one of our most joyful clients.
God has allowed us to be in a unique position as we offer lifesaving nutritional support alongside the Hope of the Gospel to a population in crisis. We have close to 100 clients in our current care.
We need your help.
