Sergio - La Piedad, Michoacan (Mexico)Sergio’s mother, Maria, was very young, and already had a three year old child at home, when she gave birth to Sergio. The sickness, the discomfort and even the anticipated pains of birth are overshadowed by the joy that will come the moment she lays eyes on her child. She remembered the joy of her first son’s birth.
But, when the doctor brought Sergio to his mother, he told her; "Accept him as he is." In other words there is no hope of changing his birth defect condition, so learn to live with it. Maria's first response was an indignant, "Why shouldn't I accept him as he is, he is my son!" This moment may be one of the greatest testimonies of a mother's love. Baby Sergio was born with a cleft lip, and would need special care and attention to survive. The doctor had to put a feeding tube into little Sergio because he couldn't swallow. He then taught Maria how to feed and take care of Sergio, and sent them home.
For four months she barely left his side because he had to be fed one drop at a time. When Sergio was only nine days old Maria heard a radio broadcast about some doctors coming to her area that would perform free plastic surgery. Maria went to the clinic, but was told that her son was too young, and she would have to wait until Sergio was at least, 12 to 18 months old.
She didn't know if they would ever return to her area again. She began to ask everywhere she went if anyone knew where she could get the help that Sergio needed. Everything seemed to be a dead end. She became so desperate that she began to go door to door asking if anyone could help her. It was a very unpleasant time for her because many people made her feel that she and her son were like lepers and they did not even want to get close.
Hostility began building day by day in Maria's heart. The stares and unkind remarks that were being made on buses or in the marketplace, made her a very angry person. She was ready to strike back verbally and with nasty looks, and often did. She felt the whole world was against her and her son Sergio.
One day while walking the streets in La Piedad, Mexico, Maria’s home town, Little Sergio and his mother met a nurse, who had worked in the past with CCSS's International Field Programs, from San Diego, California. Seeing little Sergio's cleft lip, the nurse told Maria that her baby could be helped. She said that she knew of a program that would help. Maria's first response was, "I know it can be done, but I have been told that it is very expensive and I don't have the money, and it is a long way to San Diego, California, where the hospitals and Doctors are."
The nurse told Maria all about the Children's Corrective Surgery Society, and
their programs, that would also help in many other areas of Maria’s needs. This
sounded like a dream to good to be true, to Maria. For the first time in a long
time Maria had hope again. She ask the nurse to help her any way she could, and
said that she would be willing to do anything, if little Sergio could get the
help he needed.
The nurse contacted CCSS's home office, and a plan was made to bring little Sergio and his mother to San Diego, for corrective surgery. The pictures of Sergio before and after his operation tells a great story, but for the CCSS Volunteers and staff the rewards that they receive, is being the first ones to look into the new little face, and seeing the great smile on Maria’s face as she sees what a great and wonderful job the Doctors and staff did.
Can any one imagine the lifetime of pain and suffering little Sergio has avoided? I don't think so. Thank God for the nurse who stopped Maria on the street in her home town, and started it all, also thanks to the Doctors, operating nurses, staff, and office help, that volunteered their time and services, to help Sergio not to face a life time of despair.
