Renewed hope once again for Heart-to-Heart Foundation Beneficiary

15 years ago Levis Maina Njoroge met the one person that to this day gives him hope. He had been suffering from an unknown illness and after almost 8 years of back and forth from various hospitals in the country, he met a man that would refer him to what he still calls ‘My Hope’.

Levis meets Dr Betty Gikonyo 15 years after having open heart surgery

 

Levis at the age of 9 met Dr Betty Gikonyo, a paediatric cardiologist that at the time was working at the Kenyatta National Hospital. “For almost 9 years I had suffered. My hair was grey, I would cough all the time, I was always weak and sick. The other doctors would treat me for diabetes, malaria, malnutrition, but nothing seemed to work. I was referred to Dr Gikonyo by a doctor at the Moi Hospital in Voi” Levis said.

With only 2 brothers left, Levis an open heart surgery survivor says he regained his lost nine years after visiting Dr Gikonyo. Though now orphaned with no one to give him support, the 25 year old found refuge in believing that his one hope will give him hope again.

“I went looking for Dr Gikonyo at Kenyatta National Hospital, but I did not get her there. I decide to look her up on Google, just for me to see that she is now a CEO. I instantly felt the lost hope grow back in me. I quickly rushed to the Karen Hospital to get a chance to meet with her, I never got the chance instantly, but I got that hope filled call to come and here I am, with my hope.”Levis continued.

At that same age, Levis was diagnosed with a heart condition whose surgery at the time could not be performed in Kenya. With the help of his grandmother, some well wishers and the heart-to-heart foundation, he was among three that travelled to India for an open heart surgery. The surgery was successful and he recuperated in India for about six months and returned home in January of 2000.

Levis gets the chance to chat with his role model and mentor Dr Betty Gikonyo at the Nairobi Heart Clinic in Karen Hospital

According to Levis his grandmother was a fortress in the family. Having lived without knowing his mother, his grandmother played the role perfectly, nursing him in his illness and even selling all her investments so that he could get treatment in India.

“My grandmother had invested in a Kenya based airline and she had to sell all her shares to get sufficient funds to travel. The airline on hearing my plight assisted my father and I with tickets to Bombay, India. My family gave a lot for me to get treated; my brothers even gave up their education just so that we could get funds for treatment. I am in debt to them. When my father past away just two months after our trip, I was struck with a lot of worry. My grandmother was getting older and now had to be our sole provider. She gave a fight and managed to take me through both my O levels and A levels, but she could not fight anymore and just before my last exam she succumbed to illness and passed on. I felt a really big blow, because now it was clear, I was orphaned, with no one to fall back on and no one to look up to.” Levis added.

Levis gets a chance to meet Dr. A.K Gikonyo, Resident Cardiologist at the Karen Hospital

 

His quest to seek audience with Karen Hospital CEO and founder of the Heart-to-Heart Foundation Dr Betty Gikonyo saw the beginning of a new dawn for the aspiring musician. After having met with the team from the institution, Levis confessed that by this time he knew his orphan days were over.

“I just wanted to renew my hope again, and I felt that if she had done it before; given me the life that I had given up on, she could do it again. Life has not been easy since grandma went away. I have been subjected to harsh conditions even living on the streets of Mombasa with my brothers. We do casual jobs to survive and so far we have managed, but street vices have manifested themselves in my brothers. I almost went in that direction but that little light given to me by Dr Betty Gikonyo those many years ago, would not allow me to.” Levis reiterated.

Levis travelled to Nairobi from his home in Manyani in Coast Region in search of a reason to live; he said that he found it once he stepped into the Karen Hospital compound. The aspiring artist that has had his music played in a local radio station said that he ventured into music after giving up on drugs and overcoming depression. He further stated that after winning a rap competition in one of the promotional activities of a radio station, he knew that he had a talent that he could make use of.

Levis on arrival at The Karen Hospital with Communications Team Leader Mercy Nyakio

“When I remember how she encouraged me and gave me life again, I feel inspired. She told me that we will one day live to see our dreams come true, I feel like she has achieved hers, and she deserves to be where she is. Mine are still in progress and she remains my role model. I remember, I told her I wanted to be a doctor, and whenever she saw me in the ward, she called me Dr Maina, that has formed the foundation of my life. I am not yet a doctor but who knows, with this hope I have now, I believe in me.” Levis concluded after having had a short chat with Dr Betty Gikonyo at the Heart Clinic in Karen Hospital Nairobi.

Levis chats with his 'hope' Dr Betty Gikonyo