Henry Reider's Family

Hi, my name is John Green. I'm an author and YouTuber--and I'm also friends with an extraordinary young person, Henry Reider. Henry survived multidrug-resistant tuberculosis after over two years of hospitalization, and today is cured of TB, living with his mom, and attending university in his home of Sierra Leone.

During Henry's treatment, his family was forced into profound impoverishment--his mother Isatu lost her business and her home to support Henry through his treatment--and while he has the support needed to attend school, his mom has not been able to restart her business due to lack of capital. Henry dreams of helping his family escape poverty by giving his mom the start-up money to rebuild a business providing basic food provisions--items like macaroni, cereal, and sugar--to people at a market in Freetown. To do this, Isatu needs both the funds to rent a market stall and the money to buy her first round of supplies. If we raise more than the goal, Isatu will buy new clothes and shoes for Henry and then invest more in her business.

As his doctors have told me, Henry is a special person because of his attitude, his commitment to education, and the way he lifts up the people around him. I'm hoping that we can lift him and his family up in return. Thanks.