Ghana Family Brings Boy, 3, To Columbus To Save His Hearing

COLUMBUS, OH – Three-year-old Elroi Sad has come a long way in his short life. He was born without opened nostrils and needed immediate surgery in his homeland of Ghana so he could breathe. Now, after several surgeries for other conditions, he and his family have traveled halfway around the globe in hopes he might get his hearing.

Elroi's family also are hoping online donors can help him. A GoFundMe campaign has been arranged to raise $50,000 to pay for cochlear implant surgery at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus. The surgery would enable him to hear. By Wednesday, donors have already contributed $19,783.

Elroi, according to his GoFund Me campaign, has undergone heart surgery, and has been diagnosed with a combination of medical conditions that include heart defects, choanal atresia, growth retardation, genital abnormalities and ear abnormalities.

To help Elroi overcome his profound hearing loss in both ears, he has gone through several trials and speech therapy with two fitted hearing aids. The doctors in Ghana have concluded that a cochlear implant would be the best solution for him to hear. They also recommended that he have the procedure at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

His family has already paid some $6,000 for doctors in Columbus to reassess his needs, which have confirmed that Elroi is a candidate for a cochlear implant. The surgery costs $50,000, and the hospital wants payment before the procedure is done. His family also notes that time matters.

"The further we delay, the further Elroi’s speech development is impacted negatively," wrote his mother Naya Sad. "A lot has been committed so far to get us to this stage and your benevolence will be greatly appreciated to give our little miracle the needed hearing required to complete his full cycle development."

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Image via GoFundMe