"It all started with my son. He fell ill and we went to a local hospital. A patient touched my baby and he was contaminated after 2 weeks. We did not know it was Ebola; we were ignorant. We went to another general hospital and after 2 days, my baby died. In November 2018, my wife fell sick and we thought it was poison. We went to see a traditional doctor, who tested her and confirmed to us it was poison. He tried to cure her, but after one week, my wife died too. After this, my mother became sick, as she was close to my wife. We started doubting it was poison. At that point, friends working for the response intervened. My mother did the swab test and they found out she had Ebola. But by that time she was very sick and died in the hospital. At this point, my dad and I went to the Ebola Treatment Centre and found that we both had Ebola, too. We stayed 17 days. We both survived! I saw other lullaby singers helping parents with children, and that's when I decided I also wanted to help others. I have been working as a lullaby singer for 6 months now and I am proud to do this work, as many babies have come to the Centre. I work 6 days a week; it's a difficult time for me, but caring for babies gives me a purpose in life and I feel very proud." - Kasereka Miyisa Jophet, Ebola survivor from Butembo, North Kivu, in the north-eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Read more on the United Nations Ebola Response in the DR Congo, where 1,000 survivors have now returned home to their communities: http://ow.ly/HK0U50wBMF3 UN Photo/Martine Perret
