A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS GIFT

A few days ago I received an email from a lady in Great Britain. She had been googling Kurdish Orphans and my blog popped up. Now then, this is my Christmas gift for this year~ Her husband grew up just 3 hours south of Sulaymaniyah and speaks the dialect of the area. They have offered to help in any way which is so wonderful. One of the greatest challenges in the past several months has been finding a way to communicate with the people who operate the orphanage. I will be able to have that now with this wonderful couple in Britain. Thank you so much for your offer of help! You are going to be the ones who are my greatest liason!! This was definitely a "God thing"!!!

Where Have I Been ??

Hello to all of you who keep up with this blog. In July I travelled to Houston to be with, and help care for, my best friend who was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. She went to be with God on November 16. I chose to take a sabatical from the quilt ministry during my time in Houston but since returning to Kuwait this week, I am back in the full swing of things. The sewing machine is working overtime. Joe and I are trying to catch up on emails and communication with the orphanage itself. This is the most difficult task but we are doing due diligence with regard to this communication effort. We are still short about 15 quilts and won't make the trip until there are a total of 95. We only need 85 in total but want that extra 10 for matching age appropriate quilts with the kids. Please spread the word around about our quilt ministry and let's make this happen soon!

Some of the girls

Here are some of the girls who will receive one of your lovely quilts. They are standing with my husband Joe during his visit and tour.

The Younger Children

Here is a picture of the little darlings who are going to be receiving their very own quilt! And what a treasure it will be.

FROM NORTH CAROLINA

I am so thrilled to see the quilts arriving in my mail. My quilt group in Kuwait had a goal of 20 quilts and these fabulous ladies started and have committed to finishing a total of 33 quilts! How great is that! I am posting some pictures of the quiltathon they held in March. Thank you to everyone for all these wonderful hours you are spending to make a quilt for one special child in Kurdistan.

The Cottons are Coming!!!

It is unbelievable! The Kuwait Quilt group has embraced this quilt ministry and have just announced that 210 meters of cotton has been collected from local businesses. They are planning a big 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. quiltathon on March 24 and have a goal of 20 completed quilts by days end! Is that not fantastic!?? Again, from my heart ~~ thank you for your enthusiasm and help. It is going to be a wonderful spring in the quilt production world!! A special thank you to Susanna who forged ahead and was able to acquire so much cotton!

Quilts Coming from Everywhere!

I have had wonderful response to my request for quilts. The internet is a fabulous way to communicate such needs! Ladies have sent me emails from Ontario, Canada; Phoenix, Arizona; Conroe, Texas; Calgary, Alberta, Canada and British Columbia, Canada. Thank you to all! I continue to be humbled by the offers of quilts and cash to help the kids in the orphanage. July can't come soon enough so that I can make my trip north to meet these children and gift them with a quilt they can call their very own. I met a man on my flight home from Houston who has offered to get some soccer balls for the boys. He was in this area last year and noticed that boys everywhere were playing soccer! Thank you Ken!

Quilt Group Helps Out

The quilt group that I belong to in Kuwait have just set a date for a quiltathon. They plan to make 20 quilts for the kids. Isn't that wonderful! I will be back from Houston for the big day and can hardly wait to participate in this wonderful day! I'll post pictures of the excitement! I swear quilters are some of the most kind hearted people on earth!

Quilt Size

The size of the quilts should be approximately 55 x 75 inches. A little smaller or a little larger is fine. I sure do appreciate your help! I am targeting June 30 to have all quilts in Kuwait ready to deliver to Kurdistan.

THANK YOU!

Thank you! Thank you!
I continue to be humbled by the generosity of my friends and acquaintenances. The offers of financial assistance and donated quilts is overwhelming and my orphans will soon be wrapped in love by quilts made by loving hands and hearts. Your kind hearts are making a difference in their young lives! It will go far beyond a simple quilt - it will teach them that the world can truly be a loving place.

A story from Kurdistan

February 1, 2008
Joe has just returned from a trip north to Sulaymaniyah~ a city of 1.2 million people in Kurdistan which is the northern most province of Iraq. In my last newsletter, I talked about his trip to Erbil in September 2007 to participate in a business exposition that the Kurdish government was holding. After much organization, he was able to get one of his Burger King units on a truck and positioned in Erbil for the exposition (on the economy rather than on a military base which is where all of his units are normally positioned).
It was a successful 4 days and in keeping with the Burger King charitable philosophy, Joe and the company decided to donate the profits of the four days to a charity. The charity that was chosen is an orphanage in Sulaymaniyah, Kurdistan.
Skip ahead to late March 26, 2008 and please read on. I want to tell you about his experience on this trip and how I have become involved as a result.
After a night in Amann, Jordan (in order to make connections to Sulaymaniyah, connecting with his district manager in Iraq, Khalid and the Undersecretary of Defense from the Pentagon, Bob Love, the men caught their commercial flight to Iraq. They were greeted by a representation of city dignitaries -the Governors assistant, the President of the Chamber of Commerce and whisked into shiny white Yukon SUV’s and driven with police escort (sirens blaring) to their hotel.
After checking in and a short rest period, Bob, Khalid and Joe were picked up and shown around the city. They were taken to the top of the mountain that overlooks the city. Normally a beautiful vantage point but not on this day! Because it was snowing heavily, and near blizzard conditions, the view was limited and the men were cold!
After the cold trip to the mountain top, they went to a private club and were hosted by the Governor of Kurdistan and the Mayor of Sulaymaniyah for dinner. They were also joined by other city dignitaries and Chamber of Commerce representatives. The interpreter was ever-present and worked in the governor’s office.
After a long day, it was time to retire to the hotel. Joe got a kick out of the shampoo provided by the hotel… Little packets with the product name ands comment that read “Makes your hair black and shiny”. What would us fair haired people do! I might give it a try. Joe said Bob liked it and bought a bottle of it! I asked him if the room was okay – he said it was fine but he would be leaving his shoes on… I think the laundering issue is difficult because of the lack of electricity.
On the second day the police escort picked up the boys and off they went to the Chamber of Commerce building for meetings and a press conference which was to announce the arrival of Mr. Joe from Al Homaizi and Burger King with their charitable donation. Here, all of the representatives talked about the presentation and what it meant to the Kurdish people – more precisely – the orphans.
The Governor talked about Burger King who doesn’t have a presence in the region but care about the Iraq people. He said “ let this be a sign for the local people to do the same for their own” that Canadian Joe Petrusich and Burger King and Al Homaizi (Kuwait) have done for these children.
Joe presented a check to Rayala ~ the charity organization specific for this orphanage. After interviews, they were off to the girl’s orphanage and the boy’s orphanage. When they arrived at the girl’s orphanage, some of the girls were there to greet Joe. Others were away in class at a local school. Classes are in shifts because there isn’t enough school space so the children go in the morning or in the afternoon. They were given a tour of the girls orphanage and then it was over to the boy’s orphanage which was about a 5 minute drive from the girl’s. A half a dozen of the boys greeted Joe, Bob and Khalid and, like the girls, the others were in their school. Joe said it was a heart wrenching occasion and commented “if my wife were here, she would be trying to find a way to take them all home!”.
After touring the orphanages, the group went for lunch to another “club”. After lunch, it was siesta time. In the early evening the driver escorted the group for a tour of the city which included a stop at a museum and the market. Because it was so cold, the market was closed and the vendors were trying to stay warm somewhere. We have to remember that a city of this size still only operates on about 20% electricity. Joe says there is the constant hum of generators.
An interesting story ~~ one of the attendees at the Chamber of Commerce was the Chancellor and President of The American University of Iraq. Can you imagine!! This is something we don’t hear about in the press in North America! An American University up and operating in the Kurdish region (they stress the region and not “Iraq”). He said that he and his wife go jogging every night and live a “normal” life within this city. They are from the Seattle area. Have a look at the web site – or google University of Sulamiya, Iraq. Site ~ http://www.auis.org/newsflash.php
After telling you about this adventure/business trip/opportunity of Joe’s, please let me tell you how I have become involved.
For some time now, I have been “searching” for “my calling”. I knew once I got my first phone call from Joe while he was away on this trip that I had my answer. I now have “50 kids”. The young boys and girls of this orphanage in Kurdistan have become my passion and I have formed a quilt ministry. I love quilting, I have many friends who love quilting, and I have 50 kids who need warm bedding on their small cot-like single beds. Something to call there own! I have hardly slept since Joe arrived back home because my mind is busy planning how of this is going to come to fruition.
However, once I have 50 quilts, I will be hand delivering them to the orphanage and meeting the children. They are boys and girls age 5-15. Some of the stories of how they “arrived” at the orphanage are hard to bear but let me share just a few. ~~~ It isn’t uncommon for a mother to abandon her children when she remarries because her new husband does not want the “extra baggage” of her children. Sadly, on many occasions, the mother does keep the children and bring them into her new marriage, just to be physically abused by their stepfather.
For example, one little girl is slightly handicapped mentally because she was thrown down the stairs by her stepfather and became brain injured from the fall. The girls in the orphanage are very loving and protective of her. Another child showed Joe one of her arms that was scarred terribly from being purposely burned. She has little feeling in this arm and was asking Bob and Joe how she could get some help. Yet another young teen who matches the beauty of the Afghani woman featured on the cover of National Geographic many years ago, was like a magnet to the “westerners” trying to find out how she could get to university when she was older. Unfathomable dreams from these young children but like all of us – and despite their horrific stories – they still have dreams.
Many of the children are, of course, from the days of Saddam Hussein and the genocide which killed up to 150,000 Kurdish people. Many of these children were left without parents as a result. Some of them lost both parents in the other more dangerous cities (Baghdad, Kurkuk, Tikrit, etc.) and have been relocated to a safer, quiet Sulaymaniyah.
They have loving caregivers which is a blessing. Joe said when the ladies (caregivers) come in, all the children come running to them with hugs. They are like surrogate mothers – mothers they have long lost and possibly chosen to forget. Lovely women who love these children like there own but need more help.
So here is my request:
If you are a quilter, have a long arm machine and are willing to doing some quilting, like to piece and want to contribute a pieced quilt – please contact me at nowandthenworks@hotmail.com. I am going to get a blog started with some pictures of Joe’s recent trip to the orphanage. Pictures of some of my orphans/kids! Once I get some finished quilts and when I travel north to take “my kids” their very own quilt I will update the blog. Each quilt will have a red heart appliquéd on it to signify that it was made and contributed with a heart full of love.
If you are a business person and would like to contribute, there are many ways to help my kids. Donating some money to purchase the cottons and batting required for constructing the quilts, sending twin size sheets to an address provided by contacting the above email address, and finally, passing this email/newsletter on to those in your address book who might be willing to help in some small way. As things progress, I am anticipating asking for some clothes for the kids. You can well imagine how difficult it is to clothe 50 boys and girls! So save the clothes that your kids have grown out of and I will eventually ask you to send them on.Thank you for your ear! I wish you blessings and happy times