Like the lame man at the pool of Bethesda (see John 5:1-9), Masae Tunavasa of Samoa spent years praying for the chance to walk again after losing her leg.
Thanks to a mobile prosthetics clinic led by senior missionaries Elder Matt Bracken and Sister Nylene Bracken, that prayer has finally been answered, as reported by the Church’s Pacific Newsroom.
And the Brackens aren’t doing this alone. With the help of young missionaries and a nonmember physical therapist, dozens have been given the chance to walk again.
While the Brackens’ official mission began in August 2024, the inspiration behind the mission began on a trip to Samoa in 2013.
A mission 11 years in the making
While visiting in 2013, Nylene Bracken met a young sister missionary whose prosthesis wasn’t suited for the warm island climate, causing her prosthetic foot to disintegrate. Due to the pain that this caused, the missionary was scheduled to go home the following day.
While missionaries held a special fast, Matt Bracken fashioned a new prosthesis for the missionary so that she could continue her mission.
The need for prosthetics in Savai‘i
In Samoa, there are two main islands, Upolu and Savai‘i. Two years ago, Elder Bracken learned that of those receiving amputations in Upolu, half of the amputees are from the island of Savai‘i. Elder Bracken discovered that most Savai‘i amputees don’t return to Upolu to get fitted for a prosthetic; for most, it’s too expensive.
From that moment, “I knew exactly what our mission would be,” Elder Bracken said.
A custom-made mission
Elder and Sister Bracken said that with a lot of moving parts, the first step was to find a place to fashion prosthetics, starting at home in Utah a year before their mission.
After a prompting, Elder Bracken transformed a 27-foot trailer into a mobile prosthetic clinic.
Elder O. Vincent Haleck, an emeritus General Authority Seventy and a native of American Samoa, helped Elder Bracken find a way to ship the trailer to Samoa. Fiji water company offered to ship the 15,000-pound trailer for free.
As the Brackens began collecting the prosthetics they would use, they reached out to a number of organizations for help.
ROMP donated six 50-pound boxes of prosthetic feet that the Brackens could use for their amputees.
Limbs for Life donated dozens of expensive knee prosthetics. Each knee would have cost about $2,500.
Arriving in Samoa
In their first week in Samoa, Elder and Sister Bracken fit a woman with a prosthetic. She had spent the past five years with only one foot and no way to get around.
In Samoa, many live in simple homes called “fales.” Elder Bracken shared that in this woman’s fale, there was “no furniture, no beds” and just a “little hot plate to cook with and a small refrigerator-freezer.” The bathroom for most fales is found outside, often on the other side of their property.
Elder Bracken explained: “She had to crawl across about 20-25 feet of lava rock just to get to the bathroom every day.”
As he prepared to fit her for a prosthetic, Elder Bracken felt the Spirit say, “Now you understand why I had you sacrifice so much to be here.” Elder and Sister Bracken had spent $60,000 to $80,000 of their personal money to make their mission a reality.
Sister Bracken testified, “The Lord blessed us so that we could afford it.”
The Savaiian protocol
In the first seven months of their service, Elder and Sister Bracken helped nearly 60 individuals.
Creating prosthetics is a detailed process, from casting the limb to forming the socket. The mobile clinic allows for on-site manufacturing and personalized adjustments
But the work is just beginning when an amputee receives their prosthesis. Ideally, patients would begin rigorous physical therapy immediately, but In Savai‘i, that’s just not possible.
That’s where the help of young missionaries comes in.
“I’ve developed this Savaiian protocol,” explained Elder Bracken. “I fit them, and then I have the young sisters or elders come, and they stand on each side of them and hold them in a position like they are crutches.”
The missionaries visit patients each day, walking with them for 30 minutes until they gain the strength to do it themselves.
Epenesa Young, a Samoan physical therapist, has also donated her time helping Elder Bracken’s patients.
“She sees what we‘re doing with the elders and sisters, and at one point she said, ‘These kids are angels,‘” he explained.
Though Young is not a Latter-day Saint, Elder Bracken said she is “a miracle worker. We‘ve had her come in and teach people how to stand and walk.”
And as a native Samoan, she can speak the language. Sister Bracken explained, “She knows how to walk into a house and assess exactly what that amputee needs.”
Elder Bracken added: “She says she‘s in awe of what I do, but I’m completely in awe with what she can do.”
Walking to serve
Masae Tunavasa, who now has a prosthetic leg and is exercising each day to be able to walk again, explained that she looks forward to regaining mobility so that she can serve others in her congregation and community. Her desire to serve has propelled her through the challenges of the “Savaiian protocol.”
“I want to walk again so I can serve,” Tunavasa said.
Like Christ’s disciples from every dispensation, Elder and Sister Bracken are healing God’s children — one person at a time.
The Brackens have started a Facebook page where they share stories of individuals they help.
