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Super Bowl Winner Malcolm Jenkins Speaks Up (A Few Months Ago!) For Iraqi Kids
February 10, 2010 by Jeremy · Leave a Comment
Our congratulations to the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts for a great game and a hard season. Special congratulations, however, go to cornerback Malcolm Jenkins for using his platform as an athlete to speak up on behalf of those whose voice is scarcely heard or heeded. Malcolm - along with many others who never won the Super Bowl - is like a megaphone for the kids of Iraq…
What about you? What are you up to for the kids of Iraq? If you’re a college student or post-college student, might we suggest our Summer Internship? There are still a few weeks left to apply!
Let us hear from you!
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
Two Great Pictures of Mohammed’s Surgery by 20-year-old PLC Summer Intern
July 24, 2009 by Jeremy · Leave a Comment
A few pictures from the middle of Mohammed’s surgery with Dr. Sertaç Çiçek and Dr. Ahmed Arsalan taken by one of PLC’s summer interns, Benjamin Landis.
Follow 11-year-old Mohammed on Twitter: @mohammedgaelan. Subscribe to Mohammed’s updates via RSS here. Follow Mohammed’s thread of longer stories (with pictures) on the PLC blog here.
Preemptive Love Coalition Summer Internship 2009
July 20, 2009 by Jeremy · Leave a Comment
This post has been a long-time coming… We are excited to introduce you to the PLC Internship class of 2009!
This year’s interns have been phenomenal and have brought a lot of thoughtfulness and passion to work each day. They’ve put in long hours and gone the extra-mile in nearly every way imaginable. To hear them talk about the ways in which their previously held perceptions of Iraq, Islam, Kurds, Arabs, etc have changed has all been very refreshing. But more than changing the way they think about others, it seems this summer has helped us all change the way we think about ourselves.
PLC is extremely grateful to Ben, Josh, Jeremy, Nathan, Christin, Audrey, Ashley, and Angel for all of their hard work this summer. We’re better people for knowing you. And we’re especially excited that our journey together doesn’t need to end here.
Looking forward to years of friendship and journey together…
Preemptive Love Coalition Staff
Ranu Giving Others Rides on Her Bike After Her Successful February Surgery
June 29, 2009 by Abby · Leave a Comment
Yesterday, PLC Family Advocates and Summer Interns visited Ranu, one of our heart surgery kids from February.
She looks so different, we almost didn’t recognize her! Not only does she have a new hair cut, but she looks much healthier. While we were there, she was running and playing, which she was unable to do before her surgery. Prior to her surgery, whenever she was tired, she just laid down wherever she was. Now, she is able to run and play like any other 5 year-old. In fact, she was so active, while we were there, she gave kids rides on her two-seater bike.
Bruska Ready for School in the Fall After Successful Heart Surgery Last January
June 27, 2009 by Ruth · Leave a Comment
Yesterday, PLC Family Advocates and Summer Interns went to visit Bruska. Bruska was all smiles while we were there. She really wants to go to school next year with her older sister. You can tell she really loves her family and that she enjoys being around people. As our physical therapist, Ruth, worked a little with her, her face lit up - especially while playing with her doll.
She is doing well since her heart surgery in January.
Roshna Surprises All by Passing Her Classes In Spite of Many Absences Prior to Surgery
June 26, 2009 by Ruth · Leave a Comment
Yesterday, PLC Family Advocates and Summer Interns visited Roshna, a sixteen year old girl who had heart surgery in February, who seems to be doing well.
When asked about how she now feels post-surgery, she says that her lips no longer turn blue from lack of oxygen and she is able breathe much easier. She is happy, making jokes and laughing during our visit.
Roshna had exciting news for us: She passed her school exams, which was quite an accomplishment because she had missed three months of school this year due to her heart condition. The school threatened to not allow her to take her exams because they said there would be no way she could pass them, but she proved them wrong! We are all very proud of her!
Now that she is on summer break, she enjoys drawing and watching TV. She showed us several of her recent drawing which she had copied free-handedly.
She’s excited about the future and looks forward to going to college and possibly being an engineer.
Heart surgeries for Iraqi kids is so much more than it often sounds. These life-saving heart surgeries are game changing, allowing kids to complete their school and aspire to the highest fields of work in the land.
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