wfn.org | Network Helps Woman Overcome Deformity

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

CONTACT: 	Tim Tanton
(10-21-33-71B){111}
		Nashville, Tenn. (615) 742-5473	       Feb. 25, 1998

Filipino woman gets fresh start
through global network of friends

				  	A UMNS News Feature
				  	 by Tim Tanton*

Donna Bella Agaser only wanted what most people take for granted every
day: a face.
Now, with the help of a network of people whom she barely knows, the
young Filipino woman is getting a fresh start on life. The severe
deformity that has hung from her face for 19 years is being removed.
It is an opportunity that probably seemed inconceivable even a year ago
for Agaser, who lives in a remote area of the Philippines. But United
Methodists linking arms from Nashville to Manila have made the
inconceivable happen.
"It really shows the connectionalism of the church more than anything,"
said Ronny Perry, a videographer with United Methodist Communications in
Nashville, Tenn. Perry was instrumental in getting help for the young
woman.
Agaser lives with her parents on a farm in Isabella, a rural area north
of Manila in the Philippines. Her deformity had largely been regarded as
a condition that she simply had to live with.
That changed when Perry and senior producer J. Fred Rowles arrived in
Isabella in February 1997 to film a segment on an after-school youth
program. Agaser, along with a group of area boys, was brought out for
the filming.
When Perry and Rowles saw Agaser, they thought their eyes were out of
focus. Then they learned about her deformity.
	"I came back, and I couldn't sleep," Perry said. The young woman
reminded him of his own daughter, Amy.
He downloaded a photo of Agaser from his video footage and started
sending it out over the Internet. For the next several months, he
contacted 50 groups but had no success finding one that could help
Agaser. For many organizations, her deformity was too extensive to
correct.
"Everybody turned me down," Perry said.
Then he discovered Fresh Start Surgical Gifts Inc., an Encinitas,
Calif.,-based organization that provides reconstructive surgery free of
charge to children and teen-agers. Fresh Start wanted to learn more
about Agaser.
Perry and Rowles had built up an e-mail relationship with United
Methodist Bishop Daniel Arichea in the Philippines. Arichea shared their
fervor for helping Agaser, and he sent more photos to Perry, who
forwarded them to Fresh Start.
Agaser's condition, called neurofibromatosis, involves the growth of
tumors of nerve tissue on the face. It is not uncommon, but cases
usually are not as severe as Agaser's, said Dr. Dennis Nigro, founder of
Fresh Start.
"I've been a plastic surgeon 21 years," he said. "I've never seen
anything this bad. I've never seen a face this distorted."
The condition pulled down on her eyes and influenced her nose and her
breathing. Agaser's mouth and teeth were on one side of her face, he
said.
	"This growth hung down from her face," said Allison Saxman, a
registered nurse and the medical program coordinator for Fresh Start.
"It's like nothing you've ever seen before."
Fresh Start, founded by Nigro seven years ago, treats about 100 children
annually at no charge. The organization is a volunteer project for
Nigro, who has a big cosmetic surgery practice.
Last year, Fresh Start donated $781,000 worth of services and supplies,
Saxman said. "Our goal this year is $800,000."
Agaser's first procedure represented $33,000 of care, Saxman said.
When Fresh Start agreed to help Agaser, Perry and Rowles turned their
energy toward travel arrangements. Arichea helped obtain visas for
Agaser and her adoptive mother, Estelita Guerrero -- the young woman's
biological aunt. Philippine Airlines provided free tickets to the women.
Arichea was a crucial ally in helping Agaser.
"Without him, it wouldn't have happened," Rowles said.
And without the e-mail channel to Arichea and other people around the
world, helping Agaser would have been difficult, Perry said.
Arichea worked with the Rev. N. Adiel de Pano of First United Methodist
Church in National City, Calif., to set up a support network for Agaser
and her mother once they arrived in Southern California.
San Dieguito United Methodist Church in Encinitas also became involved.
A church couple provided an apartment for the women, and church
administrative secretary Terrea McCoy drove them to Nigro for medical
visits.
The women arrived in California on Jan. 15, and Agaser underwent surgery
two days later. It was successful.
"Now she has a mouth and a nose," Nigro said.
A second procedure, set for March 7, will involve bone work and further
revision of Agaser's face, the doctor said. Work will be done on her
cheekbones, nose and jaw. More operations will follow between then and
June.
Agaser's and Guerrero's visas expire in March, but Saxman is helping get
extensions. "Usually we haven't had any trouble with that," she said.
At the center of all the activity is a very quiet woman known as Donna
Bella to her friends. She is in her second year of college, focusing her
studies on agriculture.
In a recent interview with United Methodist News Service, she let
Guerrero speak for her.
Guerrero said she didn't realize until the outreach effort began that
anything could be done for her daughter.
That outlook changed, however.
	Now, Guerrero said, "We are very excited."
After the surgery, McCoy said she started seeing a glint in Agaser's
eyes, and noticed that the young woman didn't need her mother to hold on
to her.
When the bandages were removed from Agaser's face in early February, she
began getting out in public, visiting a mall, the zoo and several other
places.
Nigro also allowed Agaser to go to National City, where de Pano is
providing housing for her and her mother. De Pano's congregation is
largely Filipino, so Agaser and Guerrero are drawing support from people
who speak their native tongue.
"She's a very strong girl," Saxman said of Agaser. "She got on a plane
and came out here and was very determined to be here."
Agaser will probably be able to return to the Philippines around August,
the doctor said. From that point, she will continue to need follow-up
medical attention, but possibly no more frequently than one visit to the
doctor a year.
"We expect her to be able to walk out into public without a great deal
of difficulty," Nigro said. "That's my expectation. I fully plan that to
happen."
Guerrero said she is grateful to Fresh Start, the United Methodist
Church and the people who have helped her and her daughter.
She smiled as she described her faith that God is with her and that He
has a plan for her daughter. 
"I know that God will work for her."
				# # #
For more information on Fresh Start, call (760) 944-7774, or write to
Fresh Start, 1010 South Coast Highway, Suite 108, Encinitas, CA 92024.
*Tanton is news editor for United Methodist News Service in Nashville,
Tenn.

United Methodist News Service
(615)742-5470
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