Erin Wilson 
Earlier this year, we introduced you to Mouamin, the most determined 6th grader you’ll likely ever meet. Mouamin desperately wanted an education, despite the fact that he struggled hard to get to school. With a birth defect that left his legs malformed and poverty that kept him from getting proper treatment, Mouamin relied on his own grit and the kindness of neighbors to get to school.
The school year is over now, and we thought you’d like to hear how Mouamin is doing.
Because of the wheelchair you provided, Mouamin was able to get to school and continue his studies throughout the year. Along with his classmates, he experienced all the normal school-year milestones, including final exams. Mouamin and his classmates traveled from their satellite school for displaced children to a central educational center to take official government exams. Their results will be added to their educational record.
But the most exciting news about Mouamin comes from an art project carried out at his school this spring. Children in Iraq have few opportunities to access help processing trauma and grief. Part of their curriculum this year included simple art therapy. Teachers use art as a means to help students to express their feelings about their displacement, their country, and themselves.
Mouamin drew a picture of a boy in a wheelchair. Beside the picture, the text explains:
“I’m Mouamin. My legs will never prevent me from continuing my studying and fighting injustice with my pencil, wheelchair, and crutches.”
In a country at war, Mouamin speaks of fighting injustice with the tools available to him: his pencil, his wheelchair, and his crutches.
You are the reason Mouamin has his wheelchair. You are the reason he was able to get to school all year. You also provided him with warm clothes, and a heater for his family when the winter grew frigid. You provided resources for his studies.
Sometime during the school year, these gifts became so much more.
Mouamin, the most determined kid in Iraq. The soon-to-be 7th grader. The peacemaker
Thank you for helping to put Mouamin back to school, and changing his life.
