Photo By Capt. Stephen Short | A Babil province child is helped into his new wheelchair he received at the Babil...... read more read more
AL HILLAH, Iraq – The handicapped people of Babil province have more challenges to face than most, but life became a little easier for them when they received new wheelchairs donated by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints at the Babil Rehabilitation Center, Feb. 19.
Guests from the community, the Iraqi government and several aid organizations from the United States gathered at the center to present the new wheelchairs to 25 of the neediest patients from the area.
"There are 2000 total wheelchairs that will be distributed," said Capt. Pam Foley, U.S. Army Civil Affairs at the Regional Embassy Office.
There are 1500 wheelchairs called "Rough Rider", which are the rugged terrain wheelchairs and 500 that are the standard type used for recovery in hospitals. Disabled individuals in the community will receive the 1500 "Rough Rider" wheelchairs while the hospital will receive the standard wheel chairs.
The rehabilitation center's wheelchair committee selected persons from a list of 6,000 names as recipients of the new wheel chairs.
Grateful wheelchair recipients presented flowers as tokens of appreciation to leaders in the community and smiled as they departed the stage. Some of these had no wheel chair at all, and this was their first time using one or not using crutches.
"I would like to thank the coordinator of the Provincial Reconstruction Team in Babil province, Mr. Ken Hillas for this occasion and we value your efforts in this province," said the Governor of Babil, Salem Saleh al-Maslamawi. "We have high hopes that the Americans and other officials in Iraq that are committed to alleviating suffering will pull together our efforts to end their suffering."
"I believe that anyone who helps these handicapped people will be rewarded from God, and I thank all the staff from the bottom of my heart in this center, from the highest administrator to smallest employee for all the efforts they have exerted," al-Maslamawi added. "We hope they continue on their path of giving,"
Dr. Ossama Abedul Hassan, provincial council member in Babil, said the government worked together with the PRT on several projects in this province, and he believes in the local government and in the importance of this project.
"There are 25 percent of these people who require wheelchairs as a minimum treatment requirement," said Lt. Col. Doil O'Steen, commander of the 413th Civil Affairs Battalion. "Therefore, the donation of wheelchairs will go a long way toward helping the disabled of Babil province interact with the world around them and to lead productive lives."
O'Steen quoted statistics that there are nearly 8,000 disabled men, women and children in Babil province, which are coping with amputations, spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy, brain injuries and developmental disabilities. The wheel chair project is only part of the long and close partnership the PRT has with the provincial council and the director general of health to address the needs of Babil's disabled.
Bringing 2000 wheelchairs from the United States to Iraq was not easy and required several organizations to be a part of the plan.
"The PRT of Babil recognized the need for wheelchairs here, and we at International Relief and Development decided to fund the shipment costs to bring the wheelchairs here," said Wayne Tolme, project director of International Relief and Development in North Babil. "The wheelchair donation project has been in planning for about six months and should be completed in April at the latest."
| Date Taken: | 02.19.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 02.24.2009 09:57 |
| Story ID: | 30374 |
| Location: | AL HILLAH, IQ |
| Web Views: | 147 |
| Downloads: | 125 |
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