Margil and Aljon thank you for their sight-saving surgery
Stories | September 3, 2024
Brother and sister Margil and Aljon had their sight restored in 2017, thanks to people giving on Miracles Day… and they want to say thanks!
When Campaign Manager Mariska Meldrum met Margil and Aljon in the Philippines in 2017, they were living in a tiny hut the size of a bathroom with nine family members.
“Seven-year-old Margil was painfully shy and couldn’t see at all. But her mum told me her daughter loved learning and desperately wanted to go back to school.”
Mariska says 12-year-old brother, Aljon told her he felt left out by his friends and dreamed of being able to play basketball with them. “He told me he was sick of sitting on the sidelines, listening as his friends had fun together.”
Margil and Aljon’s life changed when generous Australians helped give them surgery to remove their cataracts and restore their sight forever.
Being there as Margil and Aljon had cataract surgery was life-changing for Mariska – who now wants to inspire others to give the gift of sight to more people living blind from cataracts.
“It sounds unbelievable, but it’s true… if you can spare $33, you can give sight to someone blind from cataracts” she said. “It’s heartbreaking that people are living blind, when a 12-minute surgery costing just $33 could restore their sight.”
Five years after their surgery, CBM visited Margil and Aljon in the Philippines to find out how your support changed their lives.
Margil is now 12 years old and in Grade 5 at school. She’s passionate about baking and cooking, and once she finishes school, she wants to take a Hotel and Restaurant Management course. Aljon is now 18 years old. He’s got a great group of friends and his first job, which he’s proud of.
“If not for you all, my children would not be like this now. They can both see better, and Margil even goes to school. So, thank you, thank you really for helping us then. I will always be grateful for this,” says Margil and Aljon’s mum.
Give a $33 Miracle Gift of Sight now at cbm.org.au/miracles
https://www.cbm.org.au/stories/margil-and-aljon-thank-you-sight-saving-surgery
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