MARKO NIKOLIĆ ON A HUMANE MISSION FOR THREE LITTLE ONES: He will climb Aconcagua, run through the desert and across a frozen lake! (PHOTO)

Humanitarian Marko Nikolić from Vranje traveled to Argentina a few days ago, where his largest and most important mission will begin on December 26.

For the lives of little Pavle, Ognjen, and Vuk, he will climb Mount Aconcagua, run through the Atacama Desert, then across frozen Lake Baikal, and finally pull a car for a full 60 kilometers!

This project is named “With a Heart for Three Lives,” and in this way, Marko will try to animate people to donate funds to help the toddlers who have been fighting serious illnesses since birth.

Stage 1: Aconcagua 6,962 meters

– The highest mountain in the Southern and Western Hemispheres. A mountain that is not conquered by technique, but by the head, patience, and character. I am not going by the classic route. I am going by the 360-degree route. This means I enter from one side of the mountain, go around it in almost a full circle, climb through the Vacas Valley and the Plaza Argentina base camp, and descend the other side – through Plaza de Mulas and Horcones. The 360-degree route is longer, harder, and more demanding. There are no shortcuts. There is no easy way. Only altitude, wind, cold, and days of struggle. This is not just a climb to the summit. This is an encounter with the mountain – from all sides – Marko explains.

Stage 2: Atacama

– One of the driest deserts in the world. A place where there is no mistake, no shade, and no mercy. 500 kilometers of running. Day after day. Sun, salt, wind, and a silence that breaks you. Here you don’t fight against the terrain. You fight against thirst, exhaustion, and the head that asks: “Why?”. This is the second stage. After the mountain – the desert. After the altitude – fire. There is no stopping. Because the goal is greater than the fatigue – states this humanitarian.

Stage 3: Lake Baikal

– The deepest lake in the world. In winter – a sea of ice, 500 kilometers of running on frozen water. Below you – ice. Below the ice – depth. Minus degrees, a wind that cuts the face, and a silence that deafens. Here you don’t run for speed. Here you run for endurance. Every step is a test of trust in the ice. Every day – a fight with the cold, fear, and oneself. This is the third stage. After the fire of the desert – the ice of Siberia.

Stage 4: Pulling a car 60 km

– The last stage. No mountains. No deserts. No ice. Only asphalt. Weight. Pain. I pull a car with my own body for 60 kilometers. Step by step. Meter by meter. Not to prove strength. But to show how far a man can go when fighting for someone else’s life. This is the end of the endeavor. But not the end of the struggle – Marko stated.

Marko is fighting for these children

Pavle Stojanović

Pavle Stojanović was born on June 3, 2024, three months early due to the leaking of amniotic fluid in a high-risk pregnancy. After detailed examinations and diagnostics, the following diagnoses were made: convulsions, epilepsy, fourth-degree brain hemorrhage, chronic hydrocephalus, hemiparesis, and cerebral palsy.

Treatment so far includes hospitalization after birth, neurological check-ups, physical therapies, VP shunt surgery, rehabilitation with the goal of improving motor skills and reducing staticity, as well as regular check-ups with ophthalmologists and strabologists due to strabismus and farsightedness.

Funds are needed for the continuation of intensive physical therapy, specialized rehabilitation centers and clinics, and regular neurological and ophthalmological check-ups. All necessary treatments, aids, interventions, medications, supplements, and further treatment are planned.

Pavle’s tomorrow is in our hands!

Ognjen Vučić

Ognjen Vučić was born on July 3, 2022. He came into the world from a second orderly and carefully monitored twin pregnancy, which ended in an emergency cesarean section in the 31st week.

Weighing only 2,200 g, he began his little life at the neonatology department in Višegradska, where he bravely fought his first battles for a month and where he was diagnosed with periventricular leukomalacia as a result of oxygen deficiency. Ogi emerged from that fight as a little winner, but his twin brother unfortunately did not.

The lack of oxygen left permanent consequences – Ognjen has cerebral palsy, CVI, and multiple developmental disabilities. Ogi does not speak, does not walk, but despite everything, he is a child of immense joy who loves long walks, the company of children, tickling, and he has a special love for his older brother.

Since birth, the family has financed Ogi’s treatment themselves, but due to high costs, they are no longer able to continue without support. Ognjen needs funds for daily treatments by special educators, speech therapists, typhlologists, physiotherapists, spa rehabilitation, BDA treatments, hippotherapy, as well as specialized treatments abroad that would provide him with a new chance to develop greater independence. Funds are also needed for fibrotomy surgery using the Ulzibat method as well as strabismus surgery, orthopedic aids, travel costs, and accommodation costs during treatment.

For Ognjen’s progress!

Vuk Jelenković

Vuk was born on June 19, 2025, as a full-term baby from an orderly pregnancy. In the ninth month, an excess of amniotic fluid appeared. Labor started naturally but ended in an emergency cesarean section. At birth, Vuk did not cry immediately and received a score of 6/10.

Due to the need for oxygen, on the second day of life, he was transferred from the Knjaževac health center to Niš, where he was placed in intensive care at the neonatology department.

That’s where Vuk’s three-month-long struggle begins. Due to not passing his first stool and abdominal bloating, a bowel biopsy was performed, which revealed that Vuk has Hirschsprung’s disease of the large intestine. Due to dependence on a respirator, a tracheal cannula was implanted in Vuk after two months. Due to the combination of the manifested signs of Hirschsprung’s and hypoventilation syndrome, Haddad syndrome was suspected, which was later confirmed by genetics.

The disease is very rare and there is no cure for it, but with adequate medical care, he can be provided with a normal life.

Vuk is a child who needs to be under constant monitoring by either parents or doctors. Regular check-ups and supervision by a pulmonologist for current ventilation support, monitoring of growth and progress with regular check-ups by a pediatric surgeon and gastroenterologist, periodic check-ups by a cardiologist, blood pressure, glycemia, monitoring of psychomotor development, and early stimulation treatments.

Funds are needed for treatment in the country and abroad, for the procurement of medical supplies, speech therapists, physical exercises, travel costs, and accommodation costs.