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In A Word: “Mend”

November 30, 2011 by Lydia · Leave a Comment 

To see more by Polish artist/cartoonist Pawel Kuczynski, go here.

Lydia Bullock wrote and photographed for us during the 2010 summer internship and then again for 7 months in 2011. She documented surgical missions in northern and southern Iraq. See more of her excellent work on our Flickr stream, or follow her on Twitter: @lydiabullock.

In A Word: “Thanksgiving”

November 23, 2011 by Lydia · Leave a Comment 

Miles outside of Sulaymaniyah, a man gives thanks and prays as the sun sets behind him.

Lydia Bullock wrote and photographed for us during the 2010 summer internship and then again for 7 months in 2011. She documented surgical missions in northern and southern Iraq. See more of her excellent work on our Flickr stream, or follow her on Twitter: @lydiabullock.

Photographer Farewell

November 22, 2011 by matt · Leave a Comment 

A photo of Lydia with Nivar after her lifesaving surgery.
Friends, today is a sad day. After 7 months of working together, we’re saying goodbye to our photographer, Lydia O’Neil. She’s headed home to finish her last semester at the Corcoran College of Art + Design.

If you’ve spent time exploring any of our online real estate, you’ve probably admired her photos. We’ve received countless messages from people saying how much they enjoyed her Daily Squares on Facebook, her photos of children, and her work on our Flickr stream.

So, while we’re sad to see her go, we’re excited to see what her future holds. If you’ve admired her work, head over to her personal website and tell her so. I’m sure she’d appreciate the encouragement! You can also follow her on twitter here.

Goodbye, friend! We miss you already and hope, insh’allah, to work with you again soon!

Much love,

The PLC Staff

As PLC's Press Secretary, Matt Willingham is bent on leveraging words and media to connect hearts and minds to Iraqi children in need. On the side, he likes reading old books, devouring the great food his wife cooks up and dabbling in DSLR video work. He's also mildly obsessed with Twitter: @mehtin.

Remedy VII Sends Us Along With 24 Healthy Children Home!

November 20, 2011 by Cody · Leave a Comment 


Writing the closing post for a Remedy Mission feels a little bit like writing an acceptance speech for the Oscars (Or at least it’s how I imagine it would feel!).

It’s simply overwhelming thinking back over the past two weeks, remembering all the smiles and the stories of the 24 children we witnessed being saved, the 20 hour work days that the surgical team gave, the thousands of hours of teaching that were given and received, and the joyous families who left the hospital with their healthy children in tow.

While there are so many things to focus on and so many thank yous that could be given – you are the one person I don’t want to miss thanking.

Because, without you, we wouldn’t have been able to bring our 7th Remedy Mission to Iraq. Without you, we would still know some of the best doctors and nurses in the world, but we would have no way of actually bringing them to Iraq to save lives. Without you, we would continue to meet families all over Iraq with sick children, but we would have no remedy to offer them. Without you, we wouldn’t have just witnessed our most successful, most lifesaving mission yet.

And, without you, we wouldn’t be just weeks away from our next Remedy Mission.

So in case you haven’t noticed the pattern here. We don’t like doing this without YOU!

Dramatic things happen when you give. This Remedy Mission was only more proof of that. Thank you for generosity. It’s saving lives all over Iraq and for that I can’t thank you enough.

Our 8th Remedy Mission is just around the corner, and we want you to be a part of it.

To begin assembling the next medical team and to start gathering a new group of children who need to be saved from all over Iraq, donate here to make it happen in time for our next mission!


Our Partners:
Iraqi Ministry of Health International Children's Heart Foundation Living Light International

Cody Fisher is the co-founder and Development Director of the Preemptive Love Coalition. He moved to Iraq in 2007 where he met his wife and since then they've been waging peace and mending hearts across Iraq. His passions are photography, peacemaking, and food that doesn't come out of a can. You can follow him on Twitter: @candmfisher.

After A Successful Surgery, Fatima Is Now Recovering In ICU!

November 18, 2011 by matt · Leave a Comment 

Fatima resting up after her successful heart surgery!
If you’ve been following Fatima’s story, you’ll be happy to hear that her surgery was a HUGE success! Her mother was right: this was a gift from God. She may not seem energetic now, but in a few days she’s expected to be as joyful and fun as ever.

As of today, the grand total of heart operations for Remedy Mission VII is 24! That’s the largest number of lifesaving operations ever provided during a single mission, and it also puts us over 200 total!

These are big milestones, and they’re proof that you and I–along with the rest of the Coalition–are capable of truly blessing hundreds of families in Iraq. Right now, 24 families in southern Iraq are on their way home to celebrate new life. Thank you for giving them that reason to celebrate!


Our Partners:
Iraqi Ministry of Health International Children's Heart Foundation Living Light International

As PLC's Press Secretary, Matt Willingham is bent on leveraging words and media to connect hearts and minds to Iraqi children in need. On the side, he likes reading old books, devouring the great food his wife cooks up and dabbling in DSLR video work. He's also mildly obsessed with Twitter: @mehtin.

The Mobile Photo Booth: Why Can’t All Hospitals Be This Fun?

November 18, 2011 by Lydia · Leave a Comment 

Lydia Bullock making silly faces for the camera with two kids from Remedy Mission VII.
As the PLC photographer, my job breaks down like this: 98% smiling kids, 2% me clicking the shutter, right?

Cody Fisher flashes a HUGE smile for the camera at Remedy Mission VII.
But since I spend a lot of time with the kids and staff, I’m always looking for ways to make their days at the hospital a little less hospital-y.

An Iraqi girl shows off her smiley-face and mustache for the camera.
After a few hours with some cardboard and a sharpie, the “Mobile Photo Booth” was born!

With props in hand, ICHF volunteer medical trainers post for a photo.
I spent the last couple days walking around the hospital handing kids and nurses their secret identities!

An Iraqi nurse shows off her oldschool 70s (cardboard) spectacles.
Check out the Daily Square on our Facebook page to see more!

An ICHF staff member makes a silly face for the camera.

Jack from ICHF's surgical training team leans in for a shot in our mobile photobooth.


Our Partners:
Iraqi Ministry of Health International Children's Heart Foundation Living Light International

Lydia Bullock wrote and photographed for us during the 2010 summer internship and then again for 7 months in 2011. She documented surgical missions in northern and southern Iraq. See more of her excellent work on our Flickr stream, or follow her on Twitter: @lydiabullock.

Mohammed’s New Heart…and Handlebar Moustache

November 17, 2011 by Cody · Leave a Comment 

Mohammad from Pakistan tries out a handlebar moustache in our Remedy Photobooth.
If you’re a child in a hospital waiting for a lifesaving heart surgery, your days are going to be crazy. There’s no way around it.

You’ll be whisked away from one appointment to the next. The cardiologists want to look at your heart, the nurses want to understand your blood, the doctors want to get their hands on your medical reports, and your parents are being walked through the actual procedure that will be performed on your heart. For sick children, life in the hospital is chaotic at best.

But Mohammed isn’t sick anymore. He experienced the rushing of the days leading up to his surgery, but now that he’s no longer sick his days are pretty boring!

The doctors don’t need to see him anymore. The cardiologists have seen all they need to see to know Mohammed’s heart is in great shape. The nurses have no reason to run more tests or prescribe medicine. His medical reports are now stamped “CURED” and are a thing of the past.

There’s no reason for healthy children to be in the hospital and there are less and less reasons for Mohammed to stick around any longer!

But we’re taking advantage of our down days with Mohammed – playing soccer, going on walks and trying out moustaches.

What do you think of this one?

We knew you’d like it.


Our Partners:
Iraqi Ministry of Health International Children's Heart Foundation Living Light International

Cody Fisher is the co-founder and Development Director of the Preemptive Love Coalition. He moved to Iraq in 2007 where he met his wife and since then they've been waging peace and mending hearts across Iraq. His passions are photography, peacemaking, and food that doesn't come out of a can. You can follow him on Twitter: @candmfisher.

Just Hours Before Her Surgery, Fatima’s Mother Says, “This is a gift from God!”

November 16, 2011 by Lydia · Leave a Comment 

Fatima and her mother smiling for the camera at Remedy Mission VII.
I had the hardest time deciding which picture to use to introduce you to Fatima. This last week she’s been such a star for the camera—aka, exactly the kind of kid I love! In fact, if you didn’t see her in Remedy: The Flipbook you should stop reading and go do that here. But Fatima’s charm goes beyond her camera antics. There’s no way to describe it except this: she is so full of JOY. She’s here with her mother, and the two of them just fuel each others laughter all day long. It’s been so much fun having the two of them around.

I got some of the back-story on Fatima and her mother–want to hear it? Fatima is the youngest of four. Her father is out of work, and her mother works from home as a seamstress to make ends meet. When Fatima was born, the doctors told her mother that the hole in their daughter’s heart was the fault of the war. A remnant of the violence of the foreign countries who had attacked their homeland for so long.

Like so many other families, their only option would be a costly trip abroad. But at a seamstress’s salary, she knew she could never pay for this trip. “We could only give it over to God,” she says.

Several months ago they saw an ad on TV; foreign doctors were coming to her! Forget leaving the country—she wouldn’t even need to leave her city! She couldn’t believe it, but “This,” she says, “this is a gift from God.”

Fatima is just hours away from her life-changing operation. Why don’t you use these next few hours to share her story with a friend?

Lydia Bullock wrote and photographed for us during the 2010 summer internship and then again for 7 months in 2011. She documented surgical missions in northern and southern Iraq. See more of her excellent work on our Flickr stream, or follow her on Twitter: @lydiabullock.

Introducing Remedy: The Flipbook!

November 14, 2011 by Lydia · Leave a Comment 

Many of you have asked us what a typical day is like around the hospital during a Remedy Mission. Watch the video to see snapshots of surgeries, paperwork, and best of all: playing with the kids!


Our Partners:
Iraqi Ministry of Health International Children's Heart Foundation Living Light International

Lydia Bullock wrote and photographed for us during the 2010 summer internship and then again for 7 months in 2011. She documented surgical missions in northern and southern Iraq. See more of her excellent work on our Flickr stream, or follow her on Twitter: @lydiabullock.

Meet Sara, Our Youngest ICU Nurse

November 13, 2011 by Lydia · Leave a Comment 

A nurse in southern Iraq, Sara Khaled, smiles for a photo.
There aren’t a lot of 17 year-olds working in intensive care units.
But for Sara, it was all she’d ever dreamed of. Now, two years later, she’s still the youngest person on “the unit” and loving her job more than ever.

She hurries around the ICU, checking on her patients and helping make them as comfortable as she can. Our international staff brag about how enthusiastic she is each day and how quickly she adopts new procedures. In a busy environment that can quickly overwhelm, Sara thrives:

“I’ve only ever worked in the ICU, and I don’t want to work anywhere else!”

She couldn’t stop smiling as she told me about her love for nursing. Especially caring for children and babies. “When a baby cries you can hold it and comfort it until it stops…I love that.”


Sara Khaled sits on a hospital bed with one of her patients.
But she’s also just so excited about the local heart center. She’s excited about being part of something that’s growing in her hometown. She’s one of the first to be part of a new kind of nursing for Iraq, and we’re honored to be working alongside her!


Our Partners:
Iraqi Ministry of Health International Children's Heart Foundation Living Light International

Lydia Bullock wrote and photographed for us during the 2010 summer internship and then again for 7 months in 2011. She documented surgical missions in northern and southern Iraq. See more of her excellent work on our Flickr stream, or follow her on Twitter: @lydiabullock.

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