Amazing Grace
Name: Dong Fook Mung, Nick
Date of Birth: 26 Sep 2006
Origin: Luoyang Orphanage
Adopted on: 26 Aug 2013
Present Home: USA
Diagnosed with: Multiple Joints Abnormalities and Severe Club Foot
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Nick was our very first case and he was adopted at age seven on August 26 2013, by an American couple. His story started when Starfish’s volunteers met him during their maiden trip to Luoyang Orphanage. He was only one month old and suffering from multiple joints abnormalities and severe club foot. The Board gave their approval to fund Jonathan’s surgery and medical treatment. The first three years of his life, Jonathan went through five surgeries and overcame a life threatening virus infection. The prognosis of his condition was not promising. The doctor said that his mental development and his ability to walk would be affected. Against all odds, he started to walk at age three and was able to speak Mandarin, Shanghainese and presently fluent English.
He is a healthy normal boy who can run and play like any other. He moves with a slight gait which is almost unnoticeable.
Name: Zachary
Year of Birth: 1stJuly 2012
Origin: Xinjiang
Adopted on: 13thMarch 2018
Present Home: USA
Diagnosed with: Severe cleft lip and palate, and congenital heart disease.
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Zachary in 2017
Zachary arrived at Starfish Feeding Home when he was one year old. He was tiny and his skin a greyish hue. He was grossly underweight and looked just like a 6 months old boy. His health deteriorated due to malnourishment and his heart’s condition.
Feeding Zachary was really a challenge due to his cleft lip and palate. In those initial days, he was fed with a syringe, a painstakingly slow but successful process, and he started to grow. Unfortunately, with his increased weight, his heart was put under great stress, and he was hospitalized for suspected epilepsy and other complications.
Zachary has gone through six operations, and now, he is a healthy happy little boy.
Name: Yeung Yuen Yuen, June
Date of Birth: 2nd Aug 2006
Origin: Yangzhou
Adopted On: 26th July 2011
Present Home: America
Diagnosed with: Spina Bifida
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She was abandoned at 5 months old, because of the lump on her back. Many hospitals refused to operate on her tumor as it was precariously located on her back and for fear that she might be paralyzed after the operation. During our Christmas outreach to the Yangzhou Orphange in November 2008, the orphanage sought Starfish’s help for June’s case. Her case was then forwarded to the Shanghai Children’s Hospital. Arrangement were then made for June to be sent to the hospital on March 20th, 2009. As the tumor was much bigger than other, several medical investigations had to be done before the hospital was sure to proceed with the surgery.
June was then operated on April 1st, 2009 and the whole surgery took 4 long hours. The tumor was removed and the operation was very successful. June’s case was broadcasted by the Yangzhou local news. They sent a whole team of production crew all the way from Yangzhou and followed through the whole process until she went home to the orphanage. Her case has touched many hearts in Yangzhou.
June was then discharged on April 14th, 2009. For the very first time in her life, June was able to lean back in the seat and sit probably.
She was adopted by an American family in 2011.
Name: Zhao Ziyang
Date of Birth: 26thSep 2014
Origin: Nanyang (Luoyang)
Adopted On: March 5th 2018
Present Home: Spain
Diagnosed with: Imperforate anus; Transposition of penis and scrota
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Ziyang in Spain
Zhao Ziyang, was 2--3 days old when he was abandoned in a critical condition as he was not able to defecate due to a birth defect called Imperforated Anus. Nanyang Welfare Social Center urgently contacted Starfish for help. Our staff flew from Shanghai to Nanyang to pick up Ziyang. As it was during the National Day holiday period, air traffic was hectic and the flight back to Shanghai was delayed. Hence our staff sat at the airport all night with Ziyang, only boarding the plane on the next day. After arriving in Shanghai, the staff immediately sent Ziyang to the Shanghai Children's Medical Center but was redirected to the Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital where he was successfully operated on. The timely operation saved his life as he was so bloated with toxin welling up due to his inability to defecate.
After his discharge from the hospital, our staff took special care to ensure he did not catch urinary tract infection. Ziyang had to follow-up with the hospital once a week to have his temperature taken and he was put on anti-inflammatory drugs. His recovery took a while and now he can defecate normally.
Ziyang slowly grew into a healthy and handsome young boy with a sunny disposition. He is very helpful and interacts well with other children.
In March 2018, he was adopted by a Spanish family. His parents and brother love him very much. His parents wrote to us mentioning that he has adapted well to his new life and environment.
Name: Yanghaixing
Date of Birth: 2011.02.26
Origin: Yangzhou (Jiangsu)
Adopted On: 2017.04.17
Present Home: America
Diagnosed with: Cleft palate
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In February 2011, a baby boy was found at the gate of the Yangzhou Social Welfare Center. Coincidentally, the Starfish team was in Yangzhou, helping out with a cleft lip and palate operation. As such, the director of the Yangzhou Social Welfare Center give the honor to our team to name this boy. And therefore he was named Haixing(which means starfish).
Our nurse fed him his first milk and during his feed, we discovered that he had a cleft palate. In 2012, Starfish operated on this boy, and after the operation he ate better and grew healthy.
In 2014, Starfish Feeding Home was set up in Yangzhou and Haixing was the first baby to move in. He grew into a very cheerful and eloquent boy. As he grew older, he was sent to the social kindergarten.
In April 2017, Haixing was adopted by an American family, and he is now very happy. Since then, he has returned to visit the Starfish team in Yangzhou once.