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DEL.ICIO.USGifts for the children of Ayn ash Shababit
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Ayn ash Shababit, Iraq — When the Humvees roll into the village, Anwar is one of the first to greet the soldiers from Georgia. Americans mean one thing to him: presents.
Troops passing out beanie babies and candy to throngs of Iraqi children is a cliched image of this war. But the public relations game is lost on Anwar. He just wants a new toy.
Louie Favorite
Cpl. Patrick Heffernan of Atlanta-based Company H dotes on the children of Ayn ash Shababit, Iraq. |
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Read Andie Heffernan’s blogs from the homefront
And today, there’s something special for the 13-year-old boy.
The soldiers of Atlanta-based Company H, 121st Infantry (ABN) (LRS) have adopted the people of this village, which sits hidden off the main road stretching from the city of Tal Afar, near the unit’s base, to the Syrian border.
A conglomeration of mud and brick huts connected by dirt paths and the odor of raw sewage, Shababit is home to about 100 families. They have been without electricity for 21 days. When the villagers do have power, it’s only for an hour or two a day.
The people here are desperately poor; many of the men are day laborers who will do anything to put food in their bellies. The children wear tattered hand-me-downs; dust cakes their faces.
Orphans of war
Abdul Hamid, an electrical engineer, says most of the children are orphans living with relatives. They lost their mothers and fathers to the bombs and bullets that perforated nearby Tal Afar, one of Iraq’s bloodiest cities before American forces quelled the insurgency in 2005.
Anwar, luckily, is not an orphan. He lives with his parents and four brothers and three sisters.
“IP, IP,” he says proudly, pointing to his older brother Hassan, who works for the Iraqi police.
In his dirty maroon sweat suit and girl’s sneakers, Anwar is anxious as the soldiers unload brown cardboard boxes from the trunks. He cannot wait to see the presents.
Maj. Thomas Burket’s wife, Judy, Cpl. Patrick Heffernan’s wife, Andie, and 1st Lt. Brooks Askew’s mother, Judy, collected the items in Atlanta and sent them to the unit at Forward Operating Base Sykes for distribution to the children. Heffernan, 30, a graphics designer from Atlanta, wants to have children of his own: two boys and one girl.
He says he is proud that his wife is so involved with the children of Shababit. Andie’s family fled Vietnam as refugees. So she gets it, he says.
“She does this stuff without me.”
Anwar hovers around the men. His heavily stained teeth look like those of an old man who has chewed for a lifetime. But Anwar probably has never felt the tingling sensation of toothpaste in his mouth.
Lined up for gifts
In the heat of the village, the soldiers order the children to form two lines behind a plastic outdoor table. When a language barrier causes confusion, the local schoolteacher helps line them up.
Anwar stakes out his place but cannot stand still. The youngster can hardly bear the excitement.
In the past, presents from Company H have included school supplies, clothes and candy. This time, the girls and boys will receive different gifts:
For the girls, stuffed animals.
For the boys, soccer balls.
Anwar is antsy. He must wait until the balls are inflated with hand pumps. Each takes a few minutes.
“This is why I joined the Army,” jokes Cpl. Ryan Hern, a mortgage broker from Roswell, as he picks up a pump.
Patience is not a child’s virtue. Anwar shuttles about the soldiers, begging, pleading. Heffernan tells him to wait his turn.
The mob scene is straight out of an out-of-control rock concert.
A stampede could occur at any moment.
When Heffernan hands out the first shiny black-and-white ball, Anwar leaves his place in line and runs to the front. Sgt. Billy Massingale, a former restaurant owner from Fort Oglethorpe, scolds him and sends him back to his place.
“America no good,” Anwar says.
“You’re going to the back of the line,” Massingale retorts.
“OK, OK, America good,” Anwar concedes.
Life not always fair
In Iraq, one learns to take sides out of expedience.
The children are on top of each other. The thrill of the moment lights up their faces. Some are so striking with flawless complexions, blue eyes and blond hair that they could be making television ads in America.
“I’d love to show these kids what life could be like,” says Spc. Sheppard Bowen, who works on his family’s ornamental landscaping farm near Cartersville.
The children of Shababit, however, could probably never even imagine Georgia. In this rustic hamlet, life has changed little over the years.
The young Iraqis attend schools that are short on pencils and paper. They don’t have Disney-themed bedrooms and toy bins filled to the brim. They don’t take dance lessons or go to the movies on weekends.
Pandemonium erupts as every boy fears the supply will run out before he gets his ball.
After 45 minutes, Anwar finally makes it to the table. Alas, the box is empty.
He picks up a beanie baby meant for one of the girls.
“All right, it’s either that or a football,” Massingale tells him. “Which one do you want?”
It’s a hard choice for Anwar. He is unsure the soldiers will bring out more soccer balls. If he doesn’t take the stuffed animal, will he end up with nothing?
Life here is always about taking a chance.
Anwar slams down the beanie baby and waits, his hands grasping the edges of the plastic table.
He is relieved when Hern arrives with another box.
At last, Anwar gets his arms around a soccer ball. It’s just a simple black and white ball, one of 250 sent to Company H soldiers, the kind you can pick up for a few bucks at Target or Wal-Mart.
But now, this is Anwar’s ball. It’s his pot of gold.
The sound of bouncing balls echoes through Shababit.
Anwar shows off his dribbling technique.
“I am sportsman,” he says in his broken English.
Then he runs home to put his treasure away.
When the soldiers leave later in the afternoon, Anwar is already at the entrance to his dreary village.
He is patiently waiting to wave goodbye.
Permalink | Comments (5) | Categories: Reports from Iraq
Comments
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By Tu
March 16, 2007 11:54 AM | Link to this
How can I donate kid clothes to these children in Iraq?
By MissP
March 16, 2007 11:58 AM | Link to this
My sister is cleaning out her and her children’s closets and we would like to donate them to families in Iraq…how can I make this happen?
By Amanda
March 16, 2007 12:15 PM | Link to this
Great story! Glad we’re finally hearing about the good things we’re doing over there.
By Vanessa
March 16, 2007 12:56 PM | Link to this
If you go to www.anysoldier.com, you can look up addresses for soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan, to send stuff to. You can filter it by soldiers from Georgia. This type of gift giving takes place where all the soldiers are at, and if they can’t use what you send, they will pass it on to a unit that can. Or, you could try contacting Cpl. Hefferman’s wife through her blog, which is linked at the top of the article. If you do send stuff, please remember to include some goodies for the troops too!!
By Andie
March 28, 2007 9:29 AM | Link to this
If you are interestd in donating, please send an email to iraqidonations@gmail.com and we’ll provide details on how you can do so. Thanks for your support!