ENCORE ON HARELIP REPAIR ASSISTANCE

Except for their relevance as human interest items, articles on harelip operation may now be considered drab considering the previous articles that were already written on this topic and posted on the Web. But the missus is now on her way again to Tagbilaran City leaving the aging lion alone in his den. With her are two harelips, a two-year-old boy named Ryu Simbajon and an eleven-year-old girl named Vicenta Jandayan, en-route to the city for their scheduled operation at the Ramiro Community Hospital. That counts them the sixth and the seventh harelips that the missus has personally assisted in this unique charitable project that she has voluntarily embarked upon in this definitely provincial and rural island where the famous blood compact of a Spanish conquistador and a native Boholano once transpired..

Of course, just mentioning statistics would turn irrelevant, because what difference will it make if the count reaches to an even thousand?! After all, with the many harelips being bruited about and after considerable lapse of time, the sponsor and Dr. Ronald Ramiro must have already exceeded this magic number. But consider these.

Ryu Simbajon’s father was also a harelip who was previously operated on, upon sponsorship of the same charitable organization, the Christian Service International, some eleven years or so ago. Still a young lad of about thirteen at that time, he could only remember the group of Americans that visited their barangay at the neighboring town of Candijay who offered his parents free harelip repair which they gladly and gratefully accepted. But that was way back in 1992, and when his son was born a harelip two years ago, he could only sigh and recall what the doctors said to him that this inborn defect, like diabetes, is hereditary. And what a distasteful and unwelcome genetic trait could a poor and unlucky offspring unexpectedly receive from his not-too-indulgent ascendants!

Vicenta Jandayan, like Ryu’s father, was also operated on some ten years or so ago, but has no way to remember how it was done as she was but nine months old at that time. Her mother managed to keep the post-operation instructions that were given by the doctor and from there we learned that it was the same Christian Service International that sponsored the harelip repair. To top it all, it was also the same Dr. Ronald Ramiro (a Senior DeMolay of the Leon Kilat Chapter in Dumaguete City) who conducted the operation, then but a budding professional who decided to embrace harelip surgery as one of his expertise in the field of medical surgery.

How Vicenta learned that the missus offers help to the needy harelips is in itself another story. Let me tell you about it.

The day after the missus returned home from Tagbilaran City after the successful operations on Ronald Casil and Roberto Hinampas, Jr. last August 14, three grade 5 pupils who are our neighbors approached her and asked if she could also help their classmate, a girl who also suffers from the same inborn defect. They explained that she was already previously operated upon but her manner of speaking is still defective. The best that the missus could say, therefore, was to advise them that the girl should come to our house so that she can evaluate for herself if indeed, help could be extended to the proposed patient.

The next day, Vicenta arrived and in a confident but slurred twang of her voice appealed for help. Apparently an honor pupil in her class, she could not top it because of her noticeable speech defect. If only something could be done to correct the way the sound that comes out of her dainty lips. And as she was making her poignant appeal, the missus patiently listened. Her mother, who was interviewed later, would narrate that despite her defective speech, she would boldly volunteer during class recitations, only, she would likewise often receive the scornful boos of impolite classmates who resented her innate talents.

And so when the date of the post check-up operation of Ronald Casil and Roberto Hinampas, Jr. came a week later, the missus immediately and promptly got the needed referral slip from Darin Goertzen and also consulted Dr. Donald Ramiro on the required second operation on the girl.

But the problem was not that easy to resolve, the good doctor said. Second operations are usually performed best if done within the year after the first is conducted. The lapse of ten years, while still medically feasible, will incur more than the standard medical fees and expenses because of the additional job to be done, and so the question was, would the sponsor foot the additional bill? Luckily, the missus already anticipated the problem and therefore had secured the sponsor’s acquiescence even before her shoes set foot at the hospital’s doorsteps. And the good doctor was sympathetic, Vicenta, after all, was one of his first patients. The said operation was therefore scheduled for the next week.

But it is not only the patients that deserve mention in this unique project. Darin Goertzen and Dr. Ronald Ramiro together with his medical staff undoubtedly deserve the lion’s share of the credit. There are also other kindhearted souls who made this continuing charitable deed possible. Among these are:

1.Judith, the rural nurse at neighboring Candijay town who referred Roberto, Jr. and Ryu Simbajon to us so that the required operation may be performed. We also learned she has a teenage son who embraced the spiritual world by donning the priestly habit.

2. A certain Mr. Fuentes, the school principal where Roberto, Jr. is enrolled, who took the cudgel of taking Roberto, Jr. and her mother to our residence early in the morning twice from their place at an interior barangay, so that together they can ride the van and proceed to Tagbilaran City. He also voluntarily gave the mother of Roberto, Jr. P200 pocket money.

3. The mayor of Candijay town who likewise donated P300 for Roberto’s miscellaneous expenses while at the hospital.

4. My good friend and brother VW Raffy (surname purposely omitted) who is out there in metropolitan Manila and who voluntarily sent in P2K to help alleviate the missus’ own expenses in shuttling to and from Tagbilaran City so that this project may not careen to an abrupt halt.


A village old-timer who is a cousin of the missus and who by now is acquainted with what she is doing could not help but quip: “I feel certain she will be remembered for this charitable deed. Doing something positive for those poor and young handicapped children will definitely leave an indelible imprint in the mind long after she is gone.”