Felix in Zambia
When Felix was born, his parents Sydney and Evalyn had two surprises. Expecting a girl, they had bought pink clothes for the arrival of the baby. Even more surprising was Felix’s feet that were twisted from clubfoot.
At first, Sydney stood by his wife and son, but four weeks into treatment, he abandoned them leaving Evalyn to deal with Felix’s treatment all alone. When the staff noticed her coming late to each appointment, they asked why. Evalyn explained she had to walk for two days just to get to the weekly clinic visits to have her son’s casts changed. Hope Walks staff, through the aid of a transportation grant, provided support to help pay the cost of getting to the clinic.
Coming to the clinic weekly was a great encouragement to Evalyn. She would see all the other children born with clubfoot, and she knew she was not alone. She would see older children further along in the process and knew there was hope for Felix’s future.
Once Sydney heard his son was walking normally, he tried to come back to the family. For now, Evalyn is reluctant to return to her husband. “If he could not stand with me in difficulty,” she said, “he cannot share my joy.”
Evalyn is so relieved to see her son walking. Her family is very appreciative of the help they received and are so happy with the treatment progress. Now she has the hope to believe Felix will get an education and live a normal and productive life.
