Support children with facial differences in Taiwan

“Everyone is wearing masks nowadays. But still, the most difficult thing for Tanivu is when she needs to take her mask off. People will stare and it makes her feel very uncomfortable.”

Tanivu’s mother

Twelve-year old Tanivu is a girl with bright eyes and a sweet smile. She belongs to the Bunun people and lives in a mountainous area of the eastern Taitung Township. Not long after Tanivu was born, her parents noticed obvious blueish and grayish marks on the right side of her face. As she grew up, the area covered by the marks gradually became larger, taking up 1/3 of the right side of her face before she was one year old. A doctor later diagnosed the marks as Nevus of Ota [1].

Her parents wanted Tanivu to receive treatment, but her family's livelihood relied entirely on her father's farming income, and the cost of treatment was a huge burden. Tanivu’s mother explains: "At that time, our three children were still young, and there were not many job opportunities in the mountains, so our income was very limited..."

Coupled with the lack of medical resources in remote villages, seeking medical treatment was not easy. "To go down the mountain, we have to borrow a car from others and drive for an hour to get to the city... Then there are the costs for seeing a doctor. Money was tight and we would rather try saving enough money to treat our child.”

Tanivu is a smart and sensible child who understood that the family was facing hardships. In order to reduce the burden on her parents, she would help with housework along with her two young brothers. She never asked her parents to buy her anything and she never let her parents worry. Her mother says: "She is very good, she always does her own things well. Her grades are also very good. She once represented our Township in an English competition in Taitung County. Can you imagine her competing against city kids who go to cram school? She is really smart."

After all three children began to attend school, Tanivu’s mother found a job helping to grow tomatoes, while her father drove a truck to transport vegetables and fruits to various counties and cities. Criss-crossing the rugged mountain roads is tiring and dangerous, but the couple never complained: "If you have a job, just do your best."

The two of them saved money little by little. Around the same time, Tanivu’s aunt read about Sunshine Foundation and contacted their service center. When the social worker learned about Tanivu's situation, in addition to helping the family by introducing them to doctors in Taichung for medical treatment, the foundation also assisted in providing financial aid to relieve the family's financial pressure, and finally allow Tanivu to receive treatment with peace of mind.

Last year (2021), Tanivu left her parents’ home and went to live with a relative in Nantou County, which makes it easier to travel to and from Taichung City for treatment. Even though she has to endure the loneliness of being away from home at a young age and the pain of laser treatment, Tanivu cherishes this hard-won treatment opportunity. Fortunately, the hard work finally is paying off, and her mother said with relief: "With treatment, the color is become lighter and the area covered by the marks is shrunking. Now the gray and blue look like the blue sky."

Tanivu’s family will continue to work hard to help their daughter and Sunshine will continue to provide financial and psychological support to make Tanivu’s journey towards recovery less difficult and less lonely.

On 2022 GivingTuesday, donate to help children with visible difference like Tanivu and their family!

GlobalGiving’s 2022 GivingTuesday campaign will last 24 hours, from 00:00:00 EST to 23:59:59 EST on November 29, 2022, and will have an Incentive Fund of $1,200,000 USD which will be distributed to participants proportionally based on final fundraising totals. Your donation will help us unlock a greater share of those bonus funds!

[1] Nevus of Ota is hyperpigmentation that occurs on the face and is caused by excessive melanocytes in the tissues.

I was born with a red birthmark on the right side of my face, from my eyebrow to my lips. I don’t like my birthmark. Because of it, people will often stare at my face, or they will ask what’s wrong with me.

Hsiao-Ching was born with a red birthmark on the right side of her face. Growing up, this birthmark attracted the attention of people who would often stare in an unwanted way, making Hsiao-Ching very self-conscious. Hsiao-Ching’s parent also worried that the birthmark was not fading away as previously thought, but instead was becoming bigger as their child was growing older. After searching online, Hsiao-Ching’s parents contacted Sunshine Foundation. They received information and discussed options with the foundation’s social worker, which facilitated the decision of Hsiao-Ching’s parents to seek treatment. That’s when they learned this was not a regular birthmark that would fade away by itself, but instead was caused by vascular malformation, which required surgical treatment.

Hsiao-Ching began receiving regular treatment when she was five years old. Over four years, she underwent close to a dozen sclerotherapy and laser surgeries, enduring the pain of long-term treatment from a very young age. Hsiao-Ching was afraid every time she underwent surgery, but with the encouragement of her parents and sister, she gradually lost her fear. Doctors and nurses praised her for being very brave.

Hsiao-Ching was often stared at by strangers who would even directly ask questions about the mark on her face. When meeting other children for the first time, some of them would sometimes call her names. Whenever she feels sad, Hsiao-Ching will express her emotions through painting, because she says: "I feel very happy when I paint, and I am very happy to be able to see my works!"

Her painting "Going on an Adventure in a Hot Air Balloon" was even selected in 2021 to be featured in Sunshine’s Foundation Little Sunshine Desk Calendar. Even though Hsiao-Ching is afraid of heights, she used vivid colors and lively brush strokes to depict the joy of flying in a hot air balloon with her family. Her painting also reveals the deep desire of children with a visible difference to break through the current situation, to be fearless, and not to care about the opinions of others.

Now Hsiao-Ching has learned to take the initiative to explain her condition to her new friends: "I have a hemangioma and a birthmark on my face. It was there at birth." She also wants to encourage other children with facial birthmarks: "Don't be afraid! Hurry up and get treatment."

Hsiao-Ching's mother said, in the process of accompanying Hsiao-Ching as she is growing, she and her husband often felt hesitant and frustrated, but their family gave the couple a lot of psychological support and was their strongest supporter.She also thanked the hospital’s medical team for always encouraging the children, providing quality treatment and always giving them hope. Hsiao-Ching’s mother also thanked Sunshine for being there and providing them with assistance. This includes providing medical information about treatment and discussing options with parents at the beginning, financial aid during treatment, and scholarships for Hsiao-Ching to encourage her in her studies. She says: “Every time we’re in contact with Sunshine, every consultation with the team is a form of care, and it makes us feel that the world is full of love and beauty."