MINNEAPOLIS — Thirteen-year-old Mustafa Omar is described by loved ones as a bright, young student who loves to play sports.
"He was born and raised in Minneapolis area, played soccer; he's good at school," said Faisel Emil, Mustafa's father.
And for his family, it's been months of waiting.
"Since Sept. 5, and we don't know how it started, he got sick and a little confused, and he started seizuring, and went to a coma right away," said Emil.
The family was on vacation in Somalia when Mustafa fell ill.
"Then we decided to transport to Nairobi, Kenya," said Emil. "They recommended we take back home to Minnesota."
With the help of the community, including organizations like HARO — the Humanitarian African Relief Organization — the family was able to get Mustafa back home to Minnesota for treatment.
But now, the medical bills are stacking up, totaling over $300,000 and growing.
"It was heartbreaking to hear that a young Somali American was going through this back home," said Mohamud Awil Mohamed, Executive Director with HARO.
"It's very expensive. Health care is not covered there, and travel from there, so it's a huge burden on the family," said Yusuf Abdulle, with IANA.
Abdulle says Mustafa's story is not uncommon.
"This is not the first case and we have seen there are a couple of cases before that, and one of the kids died — the other one recovered," said Abdulle. "This is not an isolated event, it happens that the kids go back to Africa without being vaccinated, MMR and other vaccines, and they get these diseases and they suffer through that."
Now, they're hoping to raise enough money to support the family and raise awareness, as Mustafa continues to recover in the hospital.
"The community response is overwhelming and there's a lot of support for Mustafa," said Emil.
The community started a GoFundMe here to help with expenses.
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