“Unknown Diseases” are the number two cause of orphanhood for the children we lift up in our network. War and violence in warzones, of course, is the number one.
Unknown diseases are “unknown”, not necessarily because they are medical anomalies—like our documented cases of chemical warfare in Nuba affecting children in our network—but more often simply because there are little to no medical doctors or hospitals or autopsies. We simply—and most often—just don’t know the invisible killer because there is no way to find out.
A few nights ago, Ezekiel Ayub, indigenous director at Our Father’s Cleft in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan, messaged me that this silent killer had taken another life—this time it was the life of one of his students, Musa Shagon. As Ayub wrote, “He felt sick in the morning so we took him to our clinic and after to the hospital, yet, he didn’t recover till the last breathe. Prayers!”
Musa was enrolled in preschool and age 8.
Musa’s father died on the front-line while serving his duties as a soldier in 2013. His mother could not afford to take care of all of the children left behind due to little resources and, although Musa still lived at home, he had the opportunity to join our school in February of 2019.
As I shared recently, medical care is not the primary mission or focus of LUV, but in communities where extreme poverty thrives and there are little to no other options available we offer medical care freely to lift up the vulnerable. One of our aims in doing so is to address the web of human trafficking and how Poverty+ creates a perfect trap contributing to the vulnerable being most exploited and most at-risk. We address the medical inequities that those in South Sudan and Sudan face through both short and long term solutions. Together, with our indigenous partners, we deepen the preventative measures available to the vulnerable which are an essential key to breaking the cycle of trafficking and oppression.
We weren’t able to save Musa’s life… in the end we really don’t even know why he left the world so soon. We were able to offer him faith, hope, and so much love.
It reminds me, yet anew, that all of our days are a gift. In honor of Musa, and all whose days seem too short to bear, how will you and I live this day? How will you and I extend ourselves to make love our aim?
Let’s unite together to save more lives through the movement of LUV. Consider giving a gift in Musa’s honor. Remember his mother, siblings, and his OFC family in your prayers as they grieve the loss of another precious child, brother, and friend.
For they will know us by our love,
Audrey Moore
Executive Director