In 2018 Fidele returned to South Sudan Villages Clinic to meet with government officials to provide medicines and to hire village employees. To his delight qualified medical personnel (P. A.s, nurses, mid-wives) within walking distance of the clinic applied for the positions. With a staff of ten and a budget of $18,000 a year, the clinic opened April 1, 2019!
Where once stood a lost boy who mustered the courage to run away from home emerges an adult with the vision to heal suffering villagers by returning to his native land. 4 years later: 56,000 patient visits, 998 maternity patients, 50% of the patients under the age of 5.
But the staggering story behind the South Sudan Villages Clinic is missing another protagonist: You.
Through your generous contribution, life-saving basic healthcare can be administered to hundreds of children and adults in 2019 and beyond. A full 96 percent of your gift goes directly to the clinic.
To send a donation, Donate Online at www.paypal.me/southsudanclinic or call 315-374-3426 or email ginnydonohue99@gmain.com for Ginny Donohue, Board Chair, or 716-715-5840 fideledhan@gmail.com for Fidele Dhan, Founder, or mail a check to: South Sudan Villages Clinic - P.O. Box 1226 - Buffalo,NY 14240-1226.
Donate Now +1 716-715-5840 +1 315-374-3426
fideledhan@gmail.com or ginnydonohue99@gmail.com
The Lost Boy of Sudan Brings Healthcare Home:
South Sudan
Villages Clinic
A victim of Sudan’s Civil War runs away from home as a child only to come back years later bringing the first form of healthcare to his village.
They flee, thousands migrating in a desperate panic under the piercing hot South Sudan sun searching for pockets of water, trying to outrun the bullet of a gun and the grip of deadly disease.
They’re not roaming antelope or grazing buffalo. They’re the small feet of lost children. Walking for 4 months to escape enslavement, 9-year-old Fidele Dhan was one of those fortunate to escape the clutches of North Sudan militia to a refugee camp. But around him, children were still dying from something their small feet couldn’t flee from anymore: malaria, respiratory illnesses and cholera.
A kaleidoscope of gut-wrenching memories from Sudan’s Civil War in 1987 followed Fidele like a shadow, even when he was eventually able to relocate to Buffalo,N.Y through the help of a Catholic priest.
Years later, graduating from University at Buffalo with a psychology major, Fidele knew he needed to return to his home village of Koiyom. In 2006, he saved up enough money to secure a plane ticket and reunite with his siblings and mother.
“When I arrived home, villagers would come to me late at night with their sick children seeking treatment thinking I could somehow help, that I practice medicine,” said Fidele. “No one in my village has ever met a doctor.”
The mountain of pleading medical requests weighed on Fidele as he stared out the plane window on his flight back to Buffalo. Something must be done.
“‘But who will hear me? ’I thought.” A compelled Ginny Donohue and a willing Father Ron Sajdak did. Father Sajdak and Reaching Out 2 Africa took on the tremendous challenge of constructing a seven-room clinic to develop the Koiyom Clinic, the South Sudan Villages Clinic.
Although construction was complete, for 5 years the seven-room facility hadn’t opened due to a lack of staff. Through research and various resources, Fidele and Ginny are prepared to combat the challenge of hiring employees. By examining other successful health initiatives in South Sudan, a solution was found. Due to the dedication and skills of medical personnel near Koiyom, the clinic opened in April, 2019 with a staff of 10 and an annual budget of $18,000. 96 people waited for medical care on Day One. Most had never seen a doctor until that day.