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WE HAVE KIDS IN SURGERY RIGHT NOW! THROUGH THESE STORIES WE'RE INVITING YOU TO BE A PART OF THE NEXT LIFESAVING SOLUTION. GET TO KNOW THESE KIDS & PLEASE GIVE WHAT YOU CAN FOR THE NEXT GROUP! |
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Shkar recovering from successful surgery!
August 12, 2008 by bobby · 1 Comment
Shkar underwent 2 surgeries in the past few days to fully correct the problems with his heart. After many long hours in surgery and his mother pacing the halls, Shkar is now recovering and able to walk around a bit. Today, Shkar and his mother called their family back home in Iraq to tell them about the successful surgery. The outlook for Shkar is so bright and he and his mother are so thankful for everyone who has been part of this hope-filled journey!
1st Day at the Hospital- Hevi and Shkar
July 23, 2008 by bobby · Leave a Comment
12 year old Hevi and 6 year old Shkar have arrived safely in Israel and are undergoing the initial tests and preparations for their heart surgeries. These kids and their parents have been through a lot in just a few days: leaving their families in Iraq, travelling all the way to Israel, adjusting to a very foreign place and then undergoing lots of medical tests. This is has been a long process for many just to get to this point. There is a mixed sense of relief and yet apprehension to finally be at the hospital and be one step closer to the actual heart surgery. And yet Hevi and Shkar both had smiles to show after their blood tests, injections and echocardiograms. These kids are so resilient! What a privilege for us to be part of this journey with them.
Covering costs of past surgeries
May 20, 2008 by bobby · Leave a Comment
BSSL was just given a great opportunity to be able to cover the outstanding costs of 3 heart surgeries that had been done back in February and March. The bills for these surgeries were still awaiting payment and we were thrilled to be able to cover them! So meet Sarah, Shayan and Najeeba! All 3 kids are already back home in Iraq and enjoying the new life their healing hearts have brought them.
Here’s a recap on these little guys:
Sarah- 4 years old- Had surgery on February 20th. Sarah returned to Iraq on April 30, 2008 with a healthy heart. We saw pictures of her in the airport before she returned to Iraq playing “doctor” for a number of strangers. She’s been through the ringer and come out a healthy, happy little girl!
Shayan- 1 year old- We helped send Shayan to surgery on February 20th. He and his mother returned to Iraq on March 26, 2008 with an amazingly powerful little heart. Before he left the guesthouse to return home he was seen chasing balloons around the room and laughing big belly laughs… true signs of a healthy heart!
Najeeba- 4 years old- Najeeba successfully underwent surgery on February 20th. Sarah returned to Iraq on March 26, 2008 with a thriving heart. At first Najeeba had difficulty understanding why her mother would take her away from her home and let the doctors open her heart. But as she healed and was able to enjoy being a kid again, it seemed she was able to grasp the degree to which this surgery has improved and, in fact, saved her life.
Hussein’s heart strong, while mother worries about unrest in Iraq
April 24, 2008 by bobby · Leave a Comment
Last week Hussein was given the official clearance to head back home to Iraq! He had a bit slower recovery than the other kids have and required a pacemaker to maintain the health of his heart- but he’s pulled through like a champ! Hussein and his family are excited about his healthy heart, but are also bearing a great weight of concern about the safety of their city in Iraq. Our partner staff in Jerusalem wrote about Hussein’s mother:
“She had an emotional departure from our house in Jerusalem two days ago, and it was obvious when we visited them last evening in the apartment here in Amman that her heart was still full of conflict about leaving the people and the place where Hussein had received the help he needed. She spoke of how wonderful the people are, that there are many good people in Israel, and how thankful she is for the help they have received. And it is clear to those of us who first met her at the echocardiogram screening in October that the experiences they’ve had have changed the heart of both the mother as well as the son.”
The day Hussein and his mother flew back to Iraq:
“Hussein’s mother was quietly emotional during the time we spent together this day. They return to a very dangerous area of Iraq, and it is beyond the comprehension of most of us the extreme contrast she is experiencing at this time. While with us, she so enjoyed the freedom to go about the city and know she was safe… now she returns to the reality of a life I honestly cannot imagine. She was carrying so many things in her heart! I felt as we rode home from the airport it was as if a revolution was being birthed within her, one which perhaps represents the desires of many others in her nation who have not had the opportunity to experience the things she has. Please join me in praying for this beautiful mother and her son, and their family, as well as for the peoples in the land in which they live, to fulfill the good purpose God had when He created them.”
3 heading home with healed hearts!
March 31, 2008 by bobby · 1 Comment
Aria, Juliana and Rebar all returned to their homes and families in Iraq on March 23rd after having successful heart surgeries and recoveries in Israel!
These kids are returning home as totally new little people! The blue tinge to their skin is gone. They can run and play like all the other kids. They can breathe normally and have boundless energy! The outlook for their future is bright!
We’re all part of something huge here- bringing hope for life to kids and their families and a whole country that desperately needs it. Thanks for being on board with us! Who ever thought shoes could be part of something this amazing?
Hussein’s recovery slow, but steady
March 31, 2008 by bobby · Leave a Comment
Four year old Hussein’s heart surgery one month ago was a success, but his heart has not been able to maintain a steady beat. On March 12th the surgeons placed an internal pacemaker into Husseins chest to regulate his heartbeat and to ensure that his heart continues to function properly.Hussein’s mother has been burdened with a lot of worry and stress as her son went through yet another surgery (this time for the pacemaker) and then they received news about increasing conflict in their hometown in Iraq.Our partners in Israel wrote, “Hussein’s mom looked very drained while we were talking, and after a little while of sitting with her, she got a phone call from her husband that made her upset. He told her that there was a great increase of conflict in the city where they live in Iraq, that it was dangerous in the streets and on the paths leading into the city. He told her that he feared for the timing of her return with Hussein. This was very upsetting news.”As Hussein’s heart is healing and being cared for in very tangible ways, we think of his mom and the burdens on her heart. And since it’s nothing that surgery can fix, we pray for peace in Iraq and for the hope that Hussein’s healing heart carries to spread throughout that country.
this is what recovery looks like:
February 29, 2008 by bobby · Leave a Comment
catch up
February 27, 2008 by bobby · Leave a Comment
We’ve got lots of news to catch you up on. Four of our kids have undergone their heart surgeries in the past week! On February 18th both Juliana and Rebar had their turns. Then Aria on the 21st and Hussein on the 24th. And all of them have come through with flying colors!
Juliana (pictured below- calling family back in Iraq) underwent a 7 hour surgery to repair multiple heart defects that were risking her life- narrowing of the vessels and a hole in the interior wall of the heart. In her second day after surgery she already looked better, with the blue tinge in her skin gone!
Aria has had a little more difficulty recovering than most of the other kids do. But he’s now looking better, beginning to eat more normally and being monitored closely for some blood pressure problems.
Rebar was transferred out of the intensive care unit only 2 days after his surgery and has been recovering at rapid speed. And Hussein as well has had a smooth recovery and is on his way back to normal health. These kids seem to bounce back so quickly that it’s hard to remember how severely their heart problems were affecting them before.
Four surgeries. One week. And lifelong impact that no one can count.
“Thank you for not giving up on my son!”
February 5, 2008 by bobby · 1 Comment
Staff with our partner organization at the hospital in Israel wrote about Baveel on January 2nd:
“The doctors knew when they invited him that Baveel is a ‘borderline’ case, and it is possible the catheterization will show that Baveel is inoperable. These doctors, however, like to take the cases other doctors might not take to give a child a chance to live… and I praise God for every one which is now living because of this.”
After that, Baveel was amazingly approved for surgery!
During his surgery on January 13th to fix multiple problems with his heart, Baveel’s mother shared that not a single hospital had been willing to take Baveel until he came to Israel. She had been turned down in three other Middle Eastern countries!!! She is sincerely grateful to the surgeons and staff from both organizations involved for “not giving up on her son.”
We can’t really imagine the frustration and hopelessness that Baveel and his family have faced. Each child and each family come into this with their own stories, their own burdens, and we get to become part of a really bright chapter in that story!
Baveel now bears a scar that tells a story of hope and healing. And we all know that the people of Iraq can use a lot of that right now.
headed home with new hearts
February 1, 2008 by bobby · Leave a Comment
Today both Aras and Delshad dashed through snow in Jerusalem, loaded into a bus with their mothers, and began the journey to travel back home to Iraq. This day marks a very eventful journey for these 2 boys!
Just a few months ago both boys were plagued with heart problems that were holding them back from living the normal life of a rowdy young boy (not to mention threatening their very lives!) and burdening their families greatly with worry. Here they are today with healthy, healed hearts, heading home to start a new chapter in life.
We’re speechless, really, to be involved in restoring health (and so much more!) to these children. Keep spreading the word, because, as you can see with your own eyes- it’s so worth it!
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