A Father's Day Reflection: Rafael’s Prayer

As Executive Director of Mending Kids, I read every mission report, every stat, every summary, and often, I travel on missions myself. But once in a while, a story crosses my desk that stays with me long after I’ve read it.
 
The one below was written by one of our board members and lead cardiologists. What he didn’t mention, and probably wouldn’t, is that the volunteer who stood by this child every step of the way is also his wife.
 
They didn’t write it to be about them. But I’m sharing it because it is about the people who make up Mending Kids. The ones who show up. Who advocate. Who care.

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​Rafael’s Prayer: 
A Small Boy, a Big Heart, and the Power of Persistence

​“During a recent pediatric cardiac mission to the Jakaya Kikwete Cardiac Institute (JKCI) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, a non-medical volunteer met a young patient who would leave a lasting mark on her and the entire visiting medical team.
 
The volunteer was walking through the pediatric ward when a small boy, no more than four years old, ran up to her, gently took both of her hands, closed his eyes, and knelt in silent prayer. Surprised and touched, she asked a nearby nurse what he was doing. The nurse explained that the boy, Rafael, had lost his father at the same hospital just weeks earlier, and was praying for the health of the mission volunteers.

The volunteer was deeply moved and asked to learn more about him. She discovered that Rafael had a severe congenital heart defect causing advanced heart failure requiring prolonged hospitalization with no end in sight. The condition was operable, but his family couldn’t afford treatment. When the mission team arrived, Rafael had not been included in the list of children selected for surgery due to capacity limits — not enough time, not enough operating rooms, and too many urgent cases.
 
What struck the volunteer most was that despite everything Rafael had endured, he remained gentle, hopeful, and happy. She decided she couldn’t walk away without doing everything she could to help.
 
Over the next several days, the volunteer dedicated herself to advocating for this young boy. She badgered, bartered, and cajoled the Tanzanian cardiologists, the visiting surgical team, the hospital administrators, and social workers — anyone who would listen. Through her persistence, Rafael was eventually added to the surgical schedule on the final day of the mission.

However, one last obstacle remained: he had several infected teeth that had to be removed before surgery could safely take place. With no time or funding available, the volunteer located a pediatric dentist, paid for the procedure and medications herself, and ensured Rafael was cleared just in time for surgery the next day.
 
But the night before his surgery, two emergency cases came into the hospital from out of the country. With limited operating space, Rafael’s case was bumped from the schedule. The mission team had to leave, and Rafael’s surgery was once again out of reach.
 
The volunteer returned to the United States, heartbroken but not defeated. She promised Rafael’s mother that she would continue to advocate for him, and she kept that promise.
 
Less than two weeks later, the volunteer received a message: Rafael had undergone successful heart surgery, performed by the local Tanzanian team. He was stable and recovering well. A day later, she received a video call from the hospital — Rafael’s doctor, his mother, and Rafael himself, smiling and waving from his bed, still weak but visibly brighter.
 
While medical missions are often defined by logistics, schedules, and numbers, this is what they are all about!
 
Evan Zahn, MD
Director, Congenital Heart Program
Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Board Member, Mending Kids"

​As Father’s Day approaches, I’m thinking of Rafael’s dad, who didn’t live long enough to see his son mended. His love lives on in his little boy, who beat the odds because someone showed up, wouldn’t take no for an answer, and believed he was worth fighting for.
 
To all the fathers, father figures, and those who carry a father’s love into the world, this day is for you.
 
With gratitude,
Isabelle Fox
Executive Director, Mending Kids

In Honor. In Memory. In Hope.