26 Dec

I hope everyone had a good Christmas. Let me take a second and apologize for not getting this message posted in a timely manner. Communications were down for over 20 hours the last few days so getting on the Internet and/or making phone calls has been a real challenge. Obviously the comms are back up so I will hurry up and bring you up to date on my life in Iraq.
As I mentioned yesterday, Christmas came for me one day later than normal. As you can imagine there are no Wal-marts or Targets near by...ok - don't say it Gary jr - I know what you are thinking - you are the Target... Anyway, my point is instead of exchanging bags of sand among the personnel at my location we decided to focus our energy and give to those who need it most. Over the last few weeks the staff at my location collected donations and pooled together surplus and leftover items to distribute to the local primary school (grades 1-6). On December 24th we conducted a pre-operation brief and on the morning of the 26th we set out to deliver the presents.
There were numerous precautions taken to ensure our safety during the operation. We had undercover intelligence personnel on the streets surrounding our area, there were road blocks set up along the only entrance and exit into the school. Additionally, there were armed guards roaming the perimeter inside and outside the school grounds. And as if all that was not enough protection we were all fully suited up with our gear, weapons and body armor. We arrived at the school, situated in the center of a Muslim community, around 10:00 and quickly set-up shop. The medics established a first aid station to provide aid to the sick and injured children while myself, the senior Iraqi Officer and the LtCol's met with the school staff prior to visiting the classrooms.

About 2 minutes into our meeting with the school staff it was clear to us, by the rise in noise level from the children, that "Santa and his elves" had arrived. As the Col's conducted their business I accompanied a Sgt to the classrooms to begin handing out the goods. In a nutshell, every child got a tooth brush, a small tub of toothpaste, a bar of soap, come crayons or markers, a coloring book, and a toy or game. Every class received pretty much the same type of items except the 4th, 5th and 6th graders received pads of papers instead of coloring books. Additionally, each class received a nerf football, a soccer ball and a frisbee. Next, each child received a treat; either a candy bar, rice crispy treat or a package of peanut/cheese crackers. And to top it all off was a handful of candy to get them all bouncing off the walls before heading home for lunch.

There were a total of about 170 students with a 55% to 45% split in favor of the boys. The classrooms were simple, one chalkboard, and 3 rows of 5 desks with each desk being able to seat 2 to 4 students; each desk looked like one half of a picnic table. The rooms have no heat or air conditioning but they do have overhead lighting. The school had 6 classrooms, each grade has one classroom except for 5th and 6th grades which are combined into one room because there are only 26 students and only one teacher. As you can imagine, the town and the school are very poor - the scene reminded me of Tijuana, MEX. It broke my heart to see the conditions of the school bathroom and to imagine what these kids must go home to everyday - I am sure it is not milk and cookies. Some of the kids spoke a few words of English while others nodded and smiled when I handed them their items...if only I could do more.
The 1st and 2nd graders were very polite and calm in their actions, they were all cute and adorable. On the other hand the 5th and 6th grade boys were loud and pushy; I guess boys will be boys regardless of their nationality. The joy we presented to them will probably be the talk of the town for weeks to come but hopefully this visit is only one of many. We have already discussed what we would like to do for our next visit. Some ideas include fixing their bathrooms, getting space some heaters, pouring a basketball court and grading a section of the field and installing soccer posts. The wish list keeps growing.

Christmas for me this year was not full of presents or parties, or family or close friends but nonetheless through the gift of giving and a walk in the moonlight I have been able to experience Christmas like never before.

Several people have asked me what it is that I need - to be honest I have everything I need; I have food, shelter and heat/ac. If you would like to send something send something for these kids - they need more then what I can give them. If you would like a list of things to send please e-mail me. I think I have said enough for today...Happy Holidays.