Tej Bahadur is a 20 year old boy living in Rolpa, Nepal. He was born in a family of six, son to low-income farmers. Agriculture is the only source of income in the family.

During the earthquake in Nepal on April 25th 2015, two of this family members were killed when their house collapsed. Tej survived the earthquake, but both his legs got crushed when the tin roof of the house fell on his legs. He suffered two comminuted fractures but his parents could not take him to a hospital, because they did not have financial means to pay for the treatment. Tej received first aids for the open wounds on his legs, but the family was incapable of providing him any further care.

After a number of weeks the infections on his legs had not healed yet. The family were compelled to take Tej to the hospital for a check-up. In the hospital doctors found that the comminuted fractures and the infections on his legs had caused the blood supply to parts of the bone tissue to be interrupted, which had evolved into gangrene. His legs were damaged beyond repair, leaving no other choice but to amputate them.

After the amputation Tej was admitted in the Khagendra New Life Home, established by the Nepalese Disabled Association in Jorpati, Kathmandu in 1965. This organization provides treatment and rehabilitation services, training and education, employment, standard lifestyle and human rights to disabled people. To provide all these services, the Khagendra New Life Home relies partially on financing of the disabled patients themselves, but Tej’s parents have difficulties to finance his further treatment and education.

Tej is a down to earth and soft spoken young man, with a whole life in front of him. He has reached class XII and wants to continues his studies towards a master’s degree, in a college of good reputation. Prosthetic legs would allow Tej to go back to school, and continue a normal life.

The Himalaya Club gave Tej Bahadur two new prostheses legs so he can have a normal and happy life.

Rinchen Dorjee was born on December 20th 1999, in the village of Khasadrapchu, Bhutan.

He lives in a small hut in the cold mountain tops of Khasadrapchu, with his mother Dorji Lhamo and 14 year old brother Jigme. Their hut is made from steel plates, hardboard, paper and tape, and hardly has any furniture inside. It has always been a very cold place to live, until very recently electric heating was added, in December 2016.

Many years ago, Rinchen’s parents got divorced. After the divorce Rinchen’s father disappeared. Since then, Rinchen’s mother has been sustaining the family with a very modest income, around 25 euro per month, which she acquires as a cleaning woman. When we met Rinchen, the family was in debt, being unable to pay the modest house rent since several months.

Since his birth, Rinchen has been suffering from malformed hands and legs. Year by year his condition has been getting worse, until his legs were damaged beyond repair. In 2015, Rinchen’s left leg was amputated above his knee, and his right leg was amputated under his knee. Six months later he received prostheses legs and revalidation from the Gidakom Hospital in Thimphu.

Unfortunately, at 8 kilogram per piece these prostheses are too heavy for Rinchen to use. Every night his stumps are irritated because of the weight of his prostheses. Lighter-weight prostheses are not available in Bhutan, unless the patients pay for the prostheses themselves. Rinchen’s mother has no means to pay for lighter-weight prostheses.

The Himalaya Club decided to give a donation to Rinchen’s family, to give him two new prostheses legs so he can walk again and lead a happy and normal life.

End of January 2017, Rinchen received new light-weight prostheses at the Prostheses Foundation in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Besides all expenses necessary to give Rinchen new prosthetic legs, the donation also included electric heating for their house, clothing, and funds to pay off the family’s debt.

Mr. Ronald Stok recommended Rinchen to The Himalaya Club for sponsoring, after meeting Rinchen in Bhutan in November 2016. Mr. Stok took care of all practical matters of the procedure.