1st Lt. Adam Buchanan
Company D, 1st Bn., 64th Armor Regiment
BAGHDAD, Iraq - The "Black Knights" of Delta Company continuously looks for ways to build trust with Iraqis and show U.S. Forces are here to help rebuild this maturing democracy.
One of the most rewarding experiences for First Platoon (Red), Delta Company, Task Force 1st Battalion, 64th Armor Regiment, attached to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), are the frequent visits with the children in the cancer ward of the Iskan Children's Hospital.
While the Iraqi army and Coalition Forces partner to maintain the rule of law and improve essential services for the citizens of Mansour, life goes on for the residents. Iskan Children's Hospital is one place where this mundane existence doesn't have the luxury of being taken for granted.
Only a few hundred meters to the north of a joint security station sits the Iskan Children's Hospital. This is the largest medical facility in the area and is an important part of the surrounding community.
D Company facilitated many inspections by civil affairs teams and one by the Strike Brigade Surgeon in an effort to help open a dialogue between the Iraqi Ministry of Health and the Iskan Children's hospital. Now the MOH is more responsive to the needs and supply requests of the hospital.
The number of patients in the cancer ward at Iskan Children's hospital has fluctuated in the past due to the simple life and death battles these children wage with leukemia every day. In an effort to bring a little light into their world, the Soldiers of Red Platoon bring candy and toys to these patients whenever possible.
Some of the children are at first scared and taken aback by Soldiers in uniform; but when the faces of the children light up at the sight of American Soldiers bearing candy, toys, and smiles, everything suddenly makes sense and seems worthwhile to the Soldiers. It is an overwhelming yet rewarding perspective.
"It tears me up to see what these kids go through," said Sgt. 1st Class Andrew Deunger, native of Austin, Texas, and Platoon Sergeant for Red Platoon. "I have a two-year-old son at home who is healthy, but I can't imagine what I would go through if I had a child sick."
In the bigger scheme of things it may just seem like superficial help to a much deeper problem, but the Soldiers see it as more than that. "You can tell which ones are not going to make it, but we still try and bring something good into their lives as best as we can while they are still with us," Okeechobee, Fla. native, Staff Sgt. James Slayton remarked. "These kids don't have many reasons to smile and we try and give them some."
Alamogorde, N.M. native 1st Lt. Jeremy McCool, Platoon Leader, has family and friends send care packages to him from the United States filled with toys specifically for these kids. McCool, usually quick to share the contents of his care packages, is protective of the toys and candy sent from home for the leukemia patients, whom he refers to as "his children."
As hard as it is to see the struggles of these children and their parents -- struggles they don't always win -- Red Platoon will continue to visit the cancer ward at Iskan Children's Hospital for the remainder of their deployment. These Soldiers have forged a lasting bond with these children, bridge the cultural divide and the angst of ongoing counter insurgency operations.
| Date Taken: | 12.14.2007 |
| Date Posted: | 12.14.2007 14:42 |
| Story ID: | 14708 |
| Location: | BAGHDAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 506 |
| Downloads: | 467 |
This work, Red Platoon forging lasting bond with children at the Iskan Children's Hospital, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
LEAVE A COMMENT