Give Prostheses to 35 Maimed Colombian War Victims

This adventure started on July 5^th, throughout 53 days Carlos Franco ran 2.500 km through 8 countries (Norway, Denmark, Holland, Germany, France, Spain, Sweden, and Belgium) with the purpose of helping Colombian people with physical disabilities. His journey has filled us with joy, every single step was an achieved goal. Passing through each country was the beginning of a new story that was weaving many memories related to promoting United for Colombia’s cause through Europe. With perseverance, discipline, effort and the kindest heart Carlos achieved the goal to support 10 Colombian landmine victims.

Thank you for being part of this campaign! With the support of all of you, United for Colombia will be able to help these survivors to keep walking towards the path to achieve their goals!

We would like to share some stories of some of our beneficiaries…

Darley is 11 years old and lives in Chocó, Colombia with his mom and 3 siblings. He is in 5^th grade and dreams of becoming a professional soccer player. When Darley was 3 years old, during a fight between the Army and a guerilla group, an explosive fell into his house. As a result of the injuries, his right leg had to be amputated above the knee. 

Harlen  lives in Medellin with his wife and daughter. He is an intern at the biggest Colombian coffee producer and loves to run in athletic races. In May 2008, during a military operation against a guerrilla group, Harlen stepped on a landmine field and lost both legs.

Lina is 16 years old, she is in 11th grade and aspires to become a model. At the age of 4 months she was victim of a lost bullet due to a gunfight between the Colombian Army and Rebel forces near her house at Loboguerrero, close to Buenaventura, Valle.

Luz is married to a policeman and lives in Medellin with her 2 daughters. She studied haircut and makeup in a renown beauty academy and owns a small beauty shop. When she was 11 years old, she was recruited by FARC (a guerilla group). At the guerrilla camp she was in charge of cooking and servicing the commanders. At the age of 14 she was sent for water at a nearby river and stepped on a landmine.

Luis and Salomon are from Ituango, Antioquia. They lived in a small farm with their older brother. In 2009 while Salomon was herding cattle, he stepped on a landmine. Luis came to rescue him but unfortunately stepped on a landmine too. The two brothers receive support from UFC since 2018.

Links:

• Video Running across Europe

• Running_across_Europe.pdf (PDF)
  

As a child, Edwin lived with his parents and siblings in the town of Quipama, 65 miles North East of Bogota. One day, when walking from elementary school to his home, he found a metal item which, to him, looked like a toy. He picked it up and took it to his house. The device exploded and Edwin suffered severe wounds in his body and lost his left hand.

United for Colombia foundation provided him with a highly functional prosthetic hand, continuous rehabilitation therapies and counselling support.

His ambition of being a professional cyclist became a reality when he joined the Colombian Cycling Paralympic Team. He participated in various international championships winning medals and trophies. In 2016, he won a bronze medal at Rio’s Paralympic Games in Brazil and aspires to participate in the next Tokio Paralympic Games 2021.

Today, Edwin is recognized as one of Colombia’s most promising national sports figure.

Please click the link to know more about Edwin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vsAoumUELt8

• Report_2nd_quarter_2021.pdf (PDF)