Name: John Kurt
Age: 7 years
Country: Cebu, Philippines
"He would cry, but never hit back"
John Kurt's mother Rhea:
”John Kurt has always been very shy because he's felt different, so he's mostly stayed indoors and played with his younger brothers. They're nice to him and have always tried to protect him when anyone's been nasty. I always get very upset whenever it happens. He's been teased so often, by both other children and adults. The children cried 'bungi' (cleft lip) and hit him. He would cry, but never hit back. Sometimes, he'd still be crying when he came home.”
"Now after the surgery life is different, although there are still many children who tease him, both at school and in the neighbourhood. But the adults who said nasty things before and called him 'bungi' don't do it anymore. Now they tell the children off if they hear them bullying him. We tell him to stay home to avoid them, but now he wants to go out. So even though he's still quite lonely, there's a big difference. John Kurt is doing much better and he looks so handsome now!”