Tesfaye's Story: A Journey of Hope

This is the story of Tesfaye Negussie Anagaw. Tesfaye,which means "my hope" in Amaharic,at the age of 8 was struck with TB causing his spine to collapse. In 2003, around 13 years old,Tesfaye left his village in Gojaam Ethiopia on a journey of hope to cure his back. Through getting to know Dr. Rick Hodes I learned of Tesfaye's story one night in Addis Ababa in March 2008,and after a long process Tesfaye arrived in Vancouver on May 20,2009 for surgery to straighten his spine on June 12th.

Friday, November 13, 2009

Tesfaye Updates - by email and telephone

Friday morning November 13th,2009:
Email - I woke up to an email from Tesfaye in which he apologized for the slow response to my last one. He said that when he thinks back to everything here in Vancouver he is sad and it seems like a "memory". He misses everybody and has seen almost all of our family in his dreams. He is also happy to be back learning at school, and started a new school on October 27th; next week he already has some exams.

Telephone call - In his email he gave me a phone number to call and Nanci and I did manage to reach him on our first try. The conversation was a little difficult because of a big delay or echo when you talk, but he sounded extremely happy to hear our voices - you could tell he had that big smile on his face as he talked to us. He is feeling good, sharing an apartment with another young man who had surgery, and working hard at school. We asked him how his eating is, and it seems that since he got used to eating a wide variety of western food here in Vancouver he now gets a little tired of a steady diet of Ethiopian Injerra meals; oh well, at least he has enough to eat. As we were talking he was just on his way to Dr. Rick Hodes' house for Shabbat dinner and was looking forward to it. We will talk again soon, and I said I will look into trying to get to Ethiopia towards the end of January to try to go with Tesfaye to see his family back in his village in Gojjam. We'll see.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

A newly discovered update from Tesfaye (photos added Dec.9,2009)

Monday November 2nd, 2009: The last couple of weeks I have been hoping for more details from Tesfaye when he sends us the occasional email. Well, today I kind of felt like I had come upon some rare old lost text, when upon reviewing an email from October 13th I saw two attachments that I had not noticed or read before, and which required the downloading of a program to convert it to a format my computer could read. Below is a summary of the two attachments and some extracts I have reproduced:

1. Reactions to Tesfaye's return: In one of the attachments Tesfaye said how happy he was to see his friends in Dr. Rick Hode's house, and

how excited they were about his return and how happy they all were about his successful back surgery. He also said that he met his best friend from the years when he lived in the "Mercato", and he couldn't believe how Tesfaye now looked; similarly, he met his nephew, a policeman in Addis, who also couldn't believe the change in Tesfaye's back. Finally, the same reaction when he visited his last school and saw his friends and the Director. When Tesfaye spoke to the Director of the school he asked if he could skip to Grade six, promising that he will study very hard; the Director seemed willing to allow it.

2. Beautiful farewell and welcome sentiments: In the second attachment Tesfaye reproduced the lovely Farewell message from my children, and included two Welcome messages from a couple of sweet younger housemates of his that I have had the pleasure of meeting. They both praise the miracles G_d performs, and express how much affection they hold for Tesfaye. I have reproduced those two Welcome messages below in their unaltered beautiful original wording and spelling:

A Note from Balemleye:

"Welcome to Addis My Brother.

God is always with you, God loves you very much, God mad surgery for you, you know what you are good person, God loves you. From Balemleye to my brother Tesfaye Negussie. You are truly very special and that's just why it is so wonderful to be welcoming you to enjoy together, the times that lie ahead, welcome."

A Note from Zemenay:

"A Hearty Welcome to Great Brother Tesfaye. From your Sister Zemenay.

A special welcome that has with it many good wishes for you; may you find everything absolutly wanderful and pleasant in every way. Tesfaye did you see what God mercail [sp.miracle]. Tesfaye, God mad you to straight, God is so kindness and lovely, you can't tell about God, it is so many you can't finsh. If you do good thing and if you listn he will make you care and straight, so there is no like God. I'm happy because you are straight. Tesfaye, I can't tell you, I'm mor than hapair. Are you? "

Lovely heartfelt sentiments for a special young man.

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Tesfaye's Life History

Tesfaye's path through life and mine have been very different, but fate has caused them to intersect. I met Tesfaye and learned of his plight while in Addis Ababa in March 2008 as a result of getting to know Dr. Rick Hodes and seeing first-hand the extraordinary humanitarian work he has been performing in Ethiopia since the mid 1980's.

Here is Tesfaye's story:

Tesfaye was born in the Gojjam region of Ethiopia to farmer parents.He grew up in a one-room, thatched roof, mud hut, which he shared with parents, four brothers and one sister. His mother and father farmed grains, mostly teff and barley. About nine years ago Tesfaye's father died, leaving his mother to farm and care for the five children herself.

Several years after his father's death Tesfaye decided to come to Addis Ababa with his oldest brother to seek medical care for his misshapen spine. His back problem began when he was eight years old, a result of untreated spinal tuberculosis. Growing up, his family took him to the local healer who blessed him with curative Holy Water, but the pain and deformity did not improve. By the time he was a teenager the pain was so acute that he decided to leave his village and travel to Addis Ababa in hope of treatment. Tesfaye traveled three days by bus with his brother, neither of whom spoke any Amharic, the national language and dominant language in the capital city. Tesfaye and his family are from the Agaw tribe, a small population in the north of the country that speaks their own language, known as Agaw.

They arrived at the bus station in the large market area, the Mercato, and went immediately to Black Lion Hospital, where the hospital staff told him they could not treat him, promptly sending him and his brother away. Talking to some street children Tesfaye and his brother heard that the Alert Leprosy Hospital may be able to help him. They went eagerly, but were turned away for a second time. The brothers rented a small room for 1 birr per day, about 0.10 USD and stayed in the capital hoping for a miracle.

One day a woman stopped them on the street and asked Tesfaye what was wrong with his back. He told her that he had no idea but that he was in a lot of pain and was trying to find treatment but no one was helping. She told him that the Mother Theresa Mission may be able to help him and described directions to the mission. Tesfaye went to the mission early the next morning and the nuns admitted him swiftly and without hesitation. For two months Tesfaye lived at the mission where he received tuberculosis treatment. After two months he was discharged from the mission but returned each day for the next six months to complete his eight-month TB treatment.

After leaving the mission Tesfaye shared a room with his brother who had begun work as a day laborer in order to stay in Addis with Tesfaye. To contribute to his brother's earnings Tesfaye began pushing around a wheel-barrow filled with various novelty items, such as BIC pens, Kleenex travel packs, sunglasses and chewing gum. He peddled-almost literally-his wares around the large market place earning between 5-10 birr per day, about 0.50-1.00 USD.

Several months later Tesfaye contracted scabies, likely a result of squalid living conditions, and went to the mission to ask the nuns for treatment. He was given the proper medication and was on his way out of the compound when another nun stopped him and asked him if he knew a Dr. Rick. Tesfaye replied that he did not know any doctors, especially not a faranje-or white-one. The sister told him to return the following Saturday to meet Dr. Rick, who, she explained, helped Ethiopians with bad spines. Tesfaye came early Saturday morning and waited patiently for his turn to meet with Dr. Rick, during his usual Saturday morning clinic. Dr. Rick not only accepted Tesfaye as a spine patient but later invited him to live in his home and send him to school.

In late 2006, Tesfaye traveled to Ghana with a group of eight other spine patients to be examined by renowned Ghanian surgeon Dr. Oheneba Boachie. Dr.

Boachie felt that Tesfaye was operable, and asked him to return in 6 months. On return, he was not operated due to lack of a ventilator. On a third trip, the Ghanian anesthesiologists would not anesthetize Tesfaye, and surgery was not performed. Dr. Boachie's FOCOS staff was highly impressed with Tesfaye's attitude, and the help he constantly gave to the other Ethiopian spine patients. Disheartened, he gave up and resigned himself to the fate of living his life with a back shaped like a Brontosaurus or Quasimodo.

In the world of Rick's house, Tesfaye is everyone's favorite person, if he were to run for office, it most certainly be a landslide victory. Tesfaye is kind, patient and helpful. He is always doing his homework or helping the younger children with theirs. In anticipation of his trip to Canada Tesfaye has been diligently attending English class four days a week to supplement his 5th grade curriculum. I asked Tesfaye what he is most excited and nervous about for his trip. He answered that he is most nervous about people making fun of his back and that he is most excited about being with people who show him love.

Last fall I took a social history of each of the children living in Rick's house, Tesfaye politely told me, "I do not want to talk about my history until I know what the ending will be, I still hope thanks to God, and Dr. Rick, that my back may be healed." Now, we pray, that time has come, and so, Tesfaye has shared his story with me. We all look forward to discovering the end of the story. I know he will live happily ever after.

by Chloe Malle

Note: Over the period 2008/2009 Chloe spent a year living in Ethiopia helping Dr. Rick Hodes carry out his work. Chloe was recently featured in the January 2010 issue of Vanity Fair:Chloe Malle, Bright Young Thing Entertainment & Culture: vanityfair.com

Donations in support of Dr. Rick Hode's humanitarian work in Ethiopia

Donations to support Dr. Rick Hodes’ humanitarian work in Ethiopia (which are eligible for a Canadian donation tax receipt) can be directed to:

Jewish Federation of Greater Vancouver
200-950 West 41st Avenue
Vancouver, BC V5Z 2N7
Tel.604-257-5100

Instructions should be provided with payment to direct the donation to support the JDC/Dr.Rick Hodes humanitarian relief efforts in Ethiopia. 100% of the funds so directed go to Ethiopia to support those efforts.

JDC (American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee) is an international relief agency which provides non-sectarian relief to Jews and non-Jews in more than 60 countries around the world, and which has been active in Ethiopia for several decades. http://www.jdc.org

Tesfaye's Story: A Journey of Hope

Friday, November 13, 2009

Tesfaye Updates - by email and telephone

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

A newly discovered update from Tesfaye (photos added Dec.9,2009)

Tesfaye in Vancouver pre-surgery

Tesfaye,Gary and Stephi on Granville Island

PRE-SURGERY DAYS IN VANCOUVER

Tesfaye with Haley eating Japanese sushi and using chopsticks for first time