Guyanese-Canadian charity helps eight Guyanese children with surgery

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The Guyanese children and officials of the foundation before they left for India

A Guyanese-Canadian charity group, Three Rivers Kids Foundation, has sponsored eight Guyanese children who underwent heart surgeries in India.

The eight Guyanese children were flown to Toronto, Canada from their home country for an overnight connection, and then to New Delhi, India to have their surgeries performed at the Max Heart and Vascular Centre.  The surgeries were undertaken over a staggered period of two weeks with the last one completed just a couple days ago.

The Three Rivers Kids Foundation was established in 2005 by Guyanese-Canadians in the greater Toronto area.

Since then, 86 patients have had a new lease on life in successful operations through the organisation’s initiatives. The organisation, headed by retired nurse Jeanette Singh, supplies medications, wheelchairs, prescription eye glasses, hearing aids, etcetera on a regular basis to Guyanese patients. This time, it has sponsored a larger mission to India following up on a medical mission to India last year.

The organisation engages in fundraisers in Toronto and other parts of Canada where Guyanese reside, and the proceeds are used to help offset its expenses for the medical charitable causes. In mid-February, a large amount of funds were raised by the organisation at a fundraiser in Brampton. A similar fundrasier was held in Kitchener. Some Cdn$17,000 was realised from Kitchener and deposited into the TRKF account.

Despite all the beneficiaries of the foundation are Guyanese, the Brampton’s fundraiser event was attended not only by Guyanese but also mainstream Canadians, Indian and Caribbean nationals.

Guyanese Chris Mohan of Maple Wheel Chairs, donated Cdn$65,000, while popular attorney, Dhaman Kissoon donated Cdn $10,000.

Many other Guyanese also gave smaller cash donations. Last year, the organisation was able to raise enough funds to cover the overall expenditure for 17 patients which amounted to Cdn$170,000. This year, the cost is estimated at about half that amount for half the number of patients, and the organisation has raised enough to cover the costs of the medical treatment.

Up to press time, critical surgeries were being conducted on the patients in India with follow up medical assessment. The patients are recuperating well and are expected to return to Guyana via Toronto soon if all goes well. Of the eight persons who received medical treatment in India, one was for kidney; one for eye; one for skin; another for medical reassessment and the others for open heart surgery, all of which could not be done in Guyana.

Those who went to India on this trip for medical attention were: Anasazi Narain, four; Kara Hardy, five; Tanesh Ali, nine; Chandini Persaud, nine; Tomaisha Samuels, 11; Alvin Ramkumar, 15; Mark Singh, 18 and Damianti Gayadin. They were accompanied by Jeanette Singh.

Guyana High Commissioner to Canada Harry Nawbatt and Consul General Sattie Sawh, thanked the Guyanese diaspora for supporting this and other charitable causes in Guyana, and encouraged them to continue to do so. Jeanette Singh thanked Nawbatt for his assistance in overcoming some of the “red-tape” in Guyana to expedite visa applications and other hurdles.

Singh revealed that many of the relatives of the kids when contacted in Canada to assist with the airfare and accommodation “bluntly refused to do so, citing petty differences and family issues”.

She, however, pointed out that “a small number of relatives in Toronto warmly responded to the request”. Singh thanked the organisers of the fundraisers and donors for enabling the organisation to sponsor the surgeries.