[Update: Today John went to the hospital to talk with the doctors who are
caring for Melbourne and to pay the bill. The child is still in isolation so John
couldn't see him in person but they did tell him that he will recover and that he
will be okay, so that is good news. He will be released on Friday and we will have
more information.]
From Original Post
We have an emergency among our little children in Ghana. Little Melbourne's mother,
Agnes, left him unattended and while she was away he drank some kerosene. He is
currently in the hospital. Not even his mother can go in to see him. John was told
to come back on Tuesday for an update and to pay the bill for his treatment. I don't
know his condition but obviously it's not good.
Melbourne was born in early August of 2021. His was another difficult birth and we
helped to pay for the mother's care during delivery. We also helped with the baby's
Naming Ceremony, so little Melbourne is someone we care about and we have been
helping from before he was born.
Melbourne's father, Collin, drove taxi for a living but his taxi license expired.
He was caught driving without it and wound up in prison, where he remains to this
day. This left his wife and Melbourne and his other children in extreme difficulty.
Unfortunately we haven't helped them as much as we should have. We just haven't had
the money to help everyone, and Agnes and her children have often wound up on the
short end of the stick.
They have been going through very hard times. Some time ago Melbourne wound up in
the hospital briefly from malnourishment as his mother was feeding him the only
good she had, though it was things a baby couldn't digest. They also lost their
home when the Buduburam Refugee Camp was bulldozed to force people out.
Agnes shouldn't have left Melbourne alone with only the other children to care for
him but her foolishness has hurt an innocent child. It's not Melbourne's fault and
we don't want him to be the one to suffer for it.
We have set up a GoFundMe account for anyone who wishes to help.