How a Mother’s Faith Helped Save Her Son’s Future

“My husband and I thought our child was cursed. But I learned to accept,” said Memory, Lushomo’s mother.

Two-year-old Lushomo was born with a bilateral cleft lip and cleft palate. A congenital condition in which his upper lip does not form properly on both sides, leaving noticeable gaps that extend toward his nose. And an opening or split on the roof of the mouth. In communities with limited access to medical education or specialised care, such a condition is often misunderstood and heavily stigmatised.

For Memory and her husband, Aphet, the birth of their first son was meant to be a joyful moment. Instead, it was met with shock and fear. “We didn’t understand it. We had never seen anything like that before. My husband and I thought our child was cursed. But I learned to accept,” said Memory.

Aphet, overwhelmed and unsure of what to believe, turned to traditional beliefs. He believed that it was a spiritual problem. “He started looking for spiritual healers, people he thought could remove the curse.” Aphet was convinced that only traditional powers could help their son. “These are powers beyond medicine,” he told Memory. “We need to deal with this spiritually.” But Memory had her convictions. “I didn’t want anything to do with supernatural powers,” she said. “I just wanted my child to get better.”

 

The months that followed were filled with struggle. Lushomo had difficulty feeding, which led to severe weight loss. He couldn’t latch properly, and every feeding became a desperate attempt to ensure he continued growing. Memory, heartbroken, wrapped her son’s face in cloth whenever they left the house to avoid stares and whispers. The stigma in their community was harsh. But hope arrived close to three months after Lushomo’s birth.

Finding the Help They Needed

While visiting a local clinic, Memory spoke with neighbours and health workers who mentioned Beit CURE Children’s Hospital. They explained that the hospital specialised in the surgical treatment of conditions like Lushomo’s and that care was at zero cost to the family, thanks to CURE’s generous donors as well as CURE’s strategic partnership with Smile Train. Memory agreed to visit the hospital, although Aphet was skeptical. “What will these doctors do that spiritual healers cannot?” he asked. However, he chose to accompany them.

At CURE Zambia, Memory, Aphet, and Lushomo were welcomed with warmth and respect. Medical staff explained what a cleft lip and palate is and how it can be corrected through surgery. For the first time, Lushomo’s condition had a name, a solution, and a path forward. But the night before the scheduled operation, Lushomo fell ill with diarrhoea. The procedure had to be postponed. The delay reignited Aphet’s fears, so he opted to take them back home to the village without getting treatment. Months later, Memory returned to CURE Zambia. She was very excited that her husband finally agreed to have Lushomo go for such surgery. “He supported me this time around,” she said.

 

A day later, Lushomo was ushered into the theatre receiving bay, where Lushomo and Memory met CURE Zambia Ward fellowship coordinator Pastor Mwewa Jitanda, who took a moment to pray with them, asking for peace, strength, and God’s guiding hand over the surgical team. Not so far off on the theatre list, Lushomo was called in for his turn, and the theatre team quickly swung into action. They performed cleft lip repair surgery on him, led by CURE Zambia’s Plastic surgeon, Dr Meredith Workman and by the grace of God, the operation was done successfully.

A few months after healing from his cleft lip repair, Lushomo returned for cleft palate repair, and as God would have it, the procedure went well, and he was later discharged to heal from the comfort of his loving family.

 

Living in an Answered Prayer

“I remember how I was judged, and how people didn’t believe my son would be okay when I first brought him here,” she said. “But look at him now.” Today, Lushomo is thriving. He can eat without the spillages that once made feeding so difficult, and his family is in awe at his transformation. Memory says that seeing her son healthy and happy with a brand new smile has brought joy to their entire family, especially his father, who never imagined that his son’s condition had a solution.

 

What began as fear, misunderstanding, and stigma has turned into healing and restoration. Thanks to the care he received at CURE Children’s Hospital in Zambia, Lushomo now has the opportunity to grow up healthy, confident, and full of possibilities.

His story is one of many. Across Zambia, countless children are still waiting for the life-changing surgery that will allow them to eat, speak, smile, and live without stigma.

Because of the generosity of CURE’s partners and donors, children like Lushomo receive life-changing surgery, compassionate medical care, and spiritual support at no cost to their families.

You can help another child experience the same transformation.

Learn more about cleft lip, cleft palate, and how CURE Zambia is restoring hope to children and families.

Give the gift of healing by sponsoring surgery for a child who is still waiting for the chance to smile, eat, and thrive.

Your generosity can change a child’s future and give a family hope when they need it most.