PLC does so much more than just heart surgeries; they truly care for the Iraqi people and work to show them that they matter. I was astounded to see how much is invested in the lives of the children and their families and how big of a difference it really makes.

HELP PLC IN THEIR ADVOCACY ON BEHALF OF IDREES BY GIVING TO HIS SURGERY IN HONOR OF A FRIEND BELOW:

	Idrees is slated for surgery in January 2010. PLC will be collecting money for his life-saving surgery throughout the Thanksgiving and Christmas season. What a chance to make a profound difference in the life of a child and his family!
	GIVING IN HONOR OF ANOTHER In honor of a friend or family member, donate the amount of your choice to fund a January surgery for Idrees by entering it in the field below. PLC will send you a Christmas card about Idrees along with a Preemptive Love Coalition “Hope for the Holidays” magnet as a physical expression of your gift on behalf of another. Donation:

Cayla Willingham came to Iraq in October 2009 as a supporter and friend of the Preemptive Love Coalition because she wanted to see first hand what the work was all about. When not vacationing in lovely countries like Iraq, Cayla and her husband, Matt, live in Thailand where they live under the patronage of the Royal Princess.... and yes, it really is as cool as it sounds!

An Interactive Graphic Overview of What We’ve Been Up to for the Last Few Years

August 23, 2009 by Jeremy · Leave a Comment 

Drag and drop and click and scroll and comment and push and play your way through some of our [online] activity from the last year.

Special Features of Note:

Be sure to Click on Map>Play Events for a Worldwide Conversation of Sorts Between Our Offices Around the World

View fullscreen below for more room to play around!

Jeremy Courtney lives and loves in Iraq as a co-founder and Executive Director of the Preemptive Love Coalition. He's also the father of two spectacular children, and married to the lovely Jessica Courtney. When not absorbed in PLC work he can be found writing songs and singing about hope and future.

Banquet & Carnival in Iraq Celebrates Hope & A Future for Twenty of Our PLC Alumni Kids

August 20, 2009 by Jeremy · 1 Comment 

Eight year old Ahmad was on the brink of death when we met him. Now he’s rambunctious and carries his little sister all around the place!



Turkey Director, Scott Bertrand, with Hospitality Coordinator, Abby Bertrand, and Rezhin’s family.



Physical Therapist and Family Advocate, Ruth Simpson, at the banquet.



Executive Director, Jeremy Courtney, with Roman and his father amidst the fun and games.



PLC 2009 Summer Intern, Joshua Gigliotti, and Mohammed

Dear Preemptive Lovers,

In the midst of our most recent series of life-saving surgeries being conducted in Istanbul, Turkey for Iraqi kids we wanted to pause on the drama and reflect for a moment on what you’ve helped us do in the past year together. To date you’ve helped us give 44 children the surgeries they so seriously needed and we’ve raised/given away over $250,000.

In celebration of this we hosted our second annual PLC Alumni Kids Banquet on July 17, 2009 in Iraq for all of the children we’ve served between August 2008 and June 2009. We had over twenty families in attendance, a small team of volunteers from a church in Texas that helped fund the banquet, and 8 summer interns from all over the U.S. We also had special guests from the local community, including renowned artists, political players, and medical professionals.

But the stars were, of course, the children themselves. What a joy it was to see little boys with brand new soccer balls - a gift that would have previously been something of a cruel joke for most of these boys. The girls came decked out in the party attire and the children were showered with thousands of dollars in gifts from supporters in the States.

It’s been a great year (we just missed announcing our second organizational birthday amidst the flurry of activity) and it’s hard to believe that we’re able to live out this dream. And we wouldn’t be able to without you… So here’s to you and the kids you’ve helped. It’s a joy to be a facilitator of your love and kindness in the world.

For Hope & Future,

Jeremy Courtney
Executive Director

Jeremy Courtney lives and loves in Iraq as a co-founder and Executive Director of the Preemptive Love Coalition. He's also the father of two spectacular children, and married to the lovely Jessica Courtney. When not absorbed in PLC work he can be found writing songs and singing about hope and future.

All Smiles as Children leave ICU

February 19, 2009 by Jessica · Leave a Comment 

This is a visual post to let you all see how much the children are enjoying their newly repaired hearts. It is amazing to see pink cheeks and big smiles where we once saw withdrawn scared little faces. So here they are. Enjoy these images and thank you on their behalf for all you have done to help them get to surgery.

Jessica Courtney lives and loves in Iraq as a co-founder and Family Services Director of the Preemptive Love Coalition. She is also a mother of two children and is married to PLC's Executive Director, Jeremy Courtney. When not absorbed in caring for Iraqi children and sharing life with Iraqi families, she enjoys sewing and scrapbooking.

Taban Comes Through Her Surgery!

February 16, 2009 by Ruth · Leave a Comment 

Yesterday at 0900 Taban underwent a 3 hour surgery to close the hole in her heart! Our staff in Turkey emailed last night to say that the surgery went well. We called her family to let them know and they sounded so excited! We’ll update you when we hear more!

You can follow Taban’s progress on Twitter or via RSS here.

Ruth Simpson is a Family Advocate for the Preemptive Love Coalition in Iraq and a certified physio-therapist. Ruth also hails from Ireland, though she's slowly losing her amazing accent amongst all the Americans. When not sharing her life with PLC's kids in Iraq, she's most often serving some other constituent group with her rehabilitative skills and compassion.

Taban is in Turkey!

February 14, 2009 by Ruth · Leave a Comment 

Yesterday afternoon we had one final meeting with the families before sending them off to Turkey very early this morning. Scott and Abby are travelling with them and we just heard from Scott that they are on the bus on the way to hospital. More to come later!

Ruth Simpson is a Family Advocate for the Preemptive Love Coalition in Iraq and a certified physio-therapist. Ruth also hails from Ireland, though she's slowly losing her amazing accent amongst all the Americans. When not sharing her life with PLC's kids in Iraq, she's most often serving some other constituent group with her rehabilitative skills and compassion.

The Great Eight (Taban)

February 12, 2009 by Erin · Leave a Comment 

After only 2 weeks in Iraq, working with families who’s children need heart surgeries to grow into adulthood, it was an exciting day to come face to face with two of these families and their children. Both families, whose children are 11 and 13 years old have known since birth that their children have serious heart conditions.

It was wonderful to be the bearer of such great news and tell Taban’s family, who has been waiting for 13 years to find a way to help cure their daughter, that she will be able to leave for surgery on Sunday. In just a few short days she will be on her way to Turkey where she will receive the heart surgery she desperately needs. I have been very touched by the kindness and devotion of these families to do whatever it takes to help their children get the surgeries they need. They are willing to entrust their children, their futures, and even invest their hope in us, The Preemptive Love Coalition.

As we shared several glasses of tea with them, they took the time to welcome me to their country and their village and thank me for leaving my home in America to come and help their children. Although these two children urgently need surgery, the Doctor reviewing their cases is very hopeful that their surgeries will be successful.

Not all of the children we have seen this week have as much hope for a full recovery, or even that they are eligible to receive surgery. And even in the midst of being the potential bearer of wonderful or terrible news for these families, I would not choose to be anywhere else in the world than here in Iraq sharing in the joy,

sorrow, hope, pain, and healing of these children and their families.

Erin Priour is a Family Advocate with the Preemptive Love Coalition in Iraq, mother of one, and married to our Buy Shoes. Save Lives. Director, Jeff Priour. When not visiting PLC families in their homes, Erin is most likely to be found spending time at home with family and - whenever possible - reading a good book.

Meet Taban

February 10, 2009 by Ruth · Leave a Comment 

Two days ago Erin & I made a trip about an hour out of the city to visit Taban in her village. Taban is 13 years old, she’s the youngest of 8 siblings! Taban’s a sweet but shy girl. Her family live on a small wheat farm. When you walk out of the back of their house all you see are fields all around, very different from the city where we are living. Taban helped her older sister and her mom serve us drinks. We ended up having lunch with them too as they said that they couldn’t let us leave without feeding us! Her family can hardly believe that the time has finally come for her to have her heart surgery. She said that she’s not afraid and is looking forward to having a good heart.

Taban leaves along with 3 other kids on Sunday morning - Hunyar, Ranu and Ahmed. Taban and her mom, who will accompany her, haven’t spent much time out of their small village so I think that seeing the sites of Istanbul could be quick a shock for them! I’ll blog again soon to keep you updated on her progress.

Ruth Simpson is a Family Advocate for the Preemptive Love Coalition in Iraq and a certified physio-therapist. Ruth also hails from Ireland, though she's slowly losing her amazing accent amongst all the Americans. When not sharing her life with PLC's kids in Iraq, she's most often serving some other constituent group with her rehabilitative skills and compassion.