Rusty gets MRI in Manila

Here is a shot of Rusty Eugenio as he enters the MRI lab at the De Los Santos Medical Center in Manila, Philippines. After getting the MRI he returns to Baguio where his doctor will plan the next stage which will be back surgery. Rusty injured his back in a job related accident and wasn't able to get medical attention because of no money. This was a year ago. Since loosing his job and his health things have gone down hill. Rusty cannot bend over and can't work at all now. He is in constant pain. When he did take some pain killers the medication combined with his depression over his situation messed with his mind and started to become aphasic. He has a wife and three children but they have had to move out because he behaves like he's mad all the time now.


The first doctor that looked at his case (see earlier blog on Rusty http://larriji.blogspot.com/2008/05/blogging-for-rusty.html) determined through the x-ray and exams that he had indeed broken his back and it healed off center. So Rusty will need back surgery. Fortunately Raine (Rusty's sister) found a hospital in Baguio that only charges for supplies and medicine, all the doctors are free. So the back surgery will not be so expensive. So the results of this MRI will allow the surgeons to know how to proceed. We are seeking assistance from anyone who can donate even a dollar to help with the medical and travel expenses for Rusty. As well there will be physical therapy costs after the operation. Please give what you can.

Please send a dollar to help Rusty!

This donate link above will take you to paypal where you can pay with your paypal account or use a credit card. Your gift will go directly to our WSU paypal account where it will then go to the recipient via XOOM, Western Union or by direct handoff. These services (including Paypal) charge a fee but there is no other operations fees that takes away from your gift. Our paypal account is managed by our Philippines treasurer Kaye Malibiran. Please note : World Sisters United is not yet a legal 501C3 non-profit - so your gifts are not tax deductable. The good news is that we are close to having the articles of incorporation and IRS forms ready to process. We should be a legal registered non-profit by the end of 2008

Blogging for baby Christian

Baby Christian is three months old, born to WSU director Ate Joana, who is struggling to feed her two children without any support from a husband or boyfriend. Joanna is a cybersex worker who is wishing to leave that life behind. But with no education and no money even for food she is stuck in a difficult situation. She lives on the dirt floor of a shack in a Manila squatters village with her two children who have chronic health problems. The difficulties become compound with the lack of proper nutrition, wet conditions, rats, mold, added to all the fevers and diseases that her children get exposed to. The difficulties of a single mom raising kids in such poverty is unimaginable for those of us who living in the US. For the last two years I have been visiting the Philippines and know this squatters village that Joanna lives at. It's basically a swamp where people have built shacks out of scrap materials. The tropical storms typically tear off the roofs and flood their dwellings and you can imagine the mosquitoes that swarm the marshes that surround the village.

The cliche "when you're down, you're down" is confirmed here in this Manila ghetto. But still as you can see the picture above that this beautiful young women and her beautiful baby has a great deal of happiness and hope that their situation will improve. World Sisters United is working with Ate Joana and trying to help her finish her education and to purchase for her a small farm. So far we have purchased four small farms and built 12 sari sari stores to help other single mothers like Ate Joana. We are seeking people who would be interested in sponsoring her by contributing only five dollars a month. Joana's monthly needs are around us$250 a month. So it doesn't take that many people to supply her needed budget. And what will Ate Joana do while she is being supported by you and forty-nine other kind souls? She will finish her school so she can get a job.

Getting a job in the Philippines is not easy. Firstly, the employees require background checks and health reports that cost about 80 dollars. Secondly, they require a high school diploma for entry level retail jobs and college degrees for any decent paying job with good advancement possibilities. So we will be trying to assist Ate Joana get somewhere in her life against all odds. Most young women in her situation end up as bar girls prostituting to sex-tourists from the US, Europe, Japan and China. Ate Joana deserves better. Please help her out. Helping her out is helping baby Christian out. Every child we help out with their nutrition will help lift us all up. Proper nutrition at that critical infant stage insures proper brain development. Thus, helping out this baby with early nutrition will possibly give us that next great genius who creates that next great invention that helps us solve one piece of our sustainability problems.

Please send five dollars to help baby Christian!

This donate link above will take you to paypal where you can pay with your paypal account or use a credit card. Your gift will go directly to our WSU paypal account where it will then go to the recipient via XOOM, Western Union or by direct handoff. These services (including Paypal) charge a fee but there is no other operations fees that takes away from your gift. Our paypal account is managed by our Philippines treasurer Kaye Malibiran. Please note : World Sisters United is not yet a legal 501C3 non-profit - so your gifts are not tax deductable. The good news is that we are close to having the articles of incorporation and IRS forms ready to process. We should be a legal registered non-profit by the end of 2008

Update on Glen

This is the most recent picture of Glen eating dinner. Its clear to see that his stomach has swollen up again to an alarming level. The saga of Glen has been very difficult because the doctors have not come to any conclusion as how to proceed further with his case. We raised thousands of dollars to get elaborate tests done in the finest medical facilities in Manila. But after the MRI, CT Scan and Angiogram tests the doctors on his case simply could not come to any conclusion. So the current status of Glen has not really changed in over a year now. His organs have failed him and his body does not process toxins so they build up and after a couple of weeks he needs to have the toxic fluids drained. His girl friend, Anna Salas, has been aggressively seeking government services and that has helped but the costs still run around US$120 each time Glen needs to be drained. And along with those costs there is medication costs that can be really expensive. So we are seeking funds to help Glen once again with medication costs and paying for his draining costs. As well if there are any medical specialists out there that can give some advice on this case it is much appreciated.

Please send a dollar to help Glen!

This donate link above will take you to paypal where you can pay with your paypal account or use a credit card. Your gift will go directly to our WSU paypal account where it will then go to the recipient via XOOM, Western Union or by direct handoff. These services (including Paypal) charge a fee but there is no other operations fees that takes away from your gift. Our paypal account is managed by our Philippines treasurer Kaye Malibiran. Please note : World Sisters United is not yet a legal 501C3 non-profit - so your gifts are not tax deductable. The good news is that we are close to having the articles of incorporation and IRS forms ready to process. We should be a legal registered non-profit by the end of 2008

Blogging for Lola Gloria

Pictured here is Lola Gloria from Malasiqui, Philippines. I met Lola Gloria for the first time in 2006 and then again last year in 2007. She is a lovely person who is very spirited and kind. Below is a letter from her granddaughter Waynie telling us how her Lola (grandmother in tagalog) is having mental problems and desperately needs medicine. The family has sold all their farm animals and is spiraling deeper into debt trying to pay for the help their dear Lola needs. We are asking for your support to help us with medicine she dearly needs. We will be getting notes from her doctor to understand more about her mental disorder. But as we all know it's fairly common for the elderly to suffer from any number of chemical imbalances of the brain. Please help out in any way you can. Even a dollar will help. Here is bunso Waynie's email to me:


Hi Kuya kuya Larry, i wrote this letter and i want you to help us because my lola Gloria had a Mental Psychology seem 2006 almost a 2 years and a months from now, it is start a simple cold, then she sick , then my mother decided to comfined it in Hospital because of the high temperature, then the times goes by my lola become a wild. the Doktor said, my lola is already had a mental psychology because of wild atittude. all the animals like carabao and goats of my lolo Graciano will saled it because we need to buyed medicines dicstrous to used everyday and for the hospital bills. first we comfined my lola in emergency Hospital in Bayambang she stayed a 3 weeks and the doktors said that we transfer in hospital in Urdaneta because the medicines needs lolas is completely in hospital in Urdaneta, she stayed a months and the doktor said that the findings is desame findings of hpospital in Bayambang. when we payed the bills my lolas doktor he said that dont stopped to take my lolas medicines and vitamins to become strong but the needs of my lolas we dont have to support it because the crisis of my philippines
Bunso Waynie

Please help Lola Gloria with the medication she needs!

This donate link above will take you to paypal where you can pay with your paypal account or use a credit card. Your gift will go directly to our WSU paypal account where it will then go to the recipient via XOOM, Western Union or by direct handoff. These services (including Paypal) charge a fee but there is no other operations fees that takes away from your gift. Our paypal account is managed by our Philippines treasurer Kaye Malibiran. Please note : World Sisters United is not yet a legal 501C3 non-profit - so your gifts are not tax deductable. The good news is that we are close to having the articles of incorporation and IRS forms ready to process. We should be a legal registered non-profit by the end of 2008

Congrats to Bunso Maria for opening ATE EATS restaurant!

Pictured here is a restaurant in Angeles City that has been dubbed ATE EATS! It is owned and run by Bunso Maria, World Sisters United Director for Magalong Chapter near Angeles. Maria and her family served up an amazing feast while I was there in 2007. I learned that Maria's dad had been a chef in a 5-star hotel in Manila years before. So it made sense for Maria and her family to go into the restaurant business. Maria scouted out a place and I loaned about a thousand US dollars for her to get it started. Maria dubbed the name ATE EATS. It will be what they call "fastfood", but will still be home cooked Filipino, American and Chinese food. If this is successful Maria will be standardizing the menu and we will be franchising this operation to provide jobs for other WSU members there in the Philippines. This is an exciting business adventure - wish us luck!