For the cost of a weekend getaway, Doug found perspective and purpose.
Doug, a donor from Sunnyvale, CA, recently expressed what he sees as the true value of giving. Doug discovered our work last year when we were recognized as a recipient of Nicholas Kristof’s 2024 Holiday Impact Prize. The annual award celebrates organizations working to make the world a better place.
Fistula surgery costs just $633, on average, across our global network of partners. For Doug, that was a meaningful but manageable investment. It’s thanks to the generosity of donors like Doug that women like Foster (pictured at right) can access care. Read on for Doug’s take on what it means to give a woman a new life:
“With so many large, intractable problems in the world, Fistula Foundation offers something rare: a way to do not just good, but great. A way to make a direct, tangible, life-changing impact.
“I donated to Fistula Foundation because with one gift, I can help restore a woman’s health and her connection to her community.
“Think about that. For the cost of a weekend getaway, I’ve helped a woman reclaim her life, and I did myself a favor. I gained perspective, purpose, and gratitude. I’ll never meet the woman I helped but I love that she now has a second chance to fully embrace her life and to reconnect with her family, friends, and community.
“As someone with privilege, I often wonder how to help beyond my immediate circle. But in the wider world, problems like war, famine, and homelessness often feel too big—too systemic—like they can only be solved by governments or government-sized foundations.
“But here’s something I can do that is concrete and measurable.
“Giving someone back their health changes their life—that’s not a sacrifice on my part; it’s profound and humbling.
“Thank you to Fistula Foundation for your vision and simple charter. You’re giving others life, while giving those of us with means a way to give back meaningfully. Yes—women’s health and futures are being restored. And in that restoration, we are renewed, too.”
Thank you, Doug, for your kindness and your commitment to helping women you may never meet. We are so grateful that you are in our community.
Published Dec 03, 2025