Adopting a cause

BAMYAN PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN

08.26.2010

Story by Staff Sgt. Whitney Hughes 

86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (MTN)

BAMYAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan – U.S. Army Spc. Robin Veazey barely had the door of the silver truck open before it was surrounded by a mob of smiling faces. No sooner had her boot hit the ground, then she looked down to see her hand clutched in the grasp of a raven-haired girl whose smile beamed up at her. Veazey had been “adopted,” and for the rest of the day their bond was unbroken.

Veazey, a medic stationed out of Colchester, Vt., attached to the Bamyan Embedded Training Team, was one of the ETT and New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team members who visited the Samar Orphanage here Aug. 26.

The orphanage, which is home to about 65 children ranging in age from 3 months to 15 years old, has been adopted as an unofficial project by the U.S. and Kiwi soldiers since they arrived in Bamyan Province about six months ago.

“I’m not going to lie, that was the best day I’ve had in Afghanistan so far,” said Veazey, who is also a mother of two.

This was Veazey’s first trip to the orphanage, but certainly not the first for the ETT and PRT soldiers who have visited about once every other week for the past six months. They picked up the project from their predecessors who had been involved with the project for about a year.

Although most of their involvement has been unofficial, during this recent rotation they were able to use $7,000 of their small project fund to help improve the quality of life for the Afghan children by building them a kitchen and new toilets, according to New Zealand Army Maj. George Tweedy, the development officer for the PRT.

However, that is not all the PRT soldiers have done. In the last six months, they have donated their free time to build a shelter for the orphanage generator, build a wall for the playground, rewire the entire compound, fix windows and add carpets.

“It’s good to see the kids as well, but at the end of the day, handing them out a few books, pens and pencils isn’t really going to improve their life,” said Tweedy. “Getting them a new kitchen, getting them new shelves, getting them new toilets and doing wiring for them; repairing a generator for them, and doing some of the infrastructure stuff – that’s going to have a real impact on their lives.”

In addition to their official efforts, donated time and skills, the soldiers’ families and humanitarian groups provide overwhelming support through their donations. When the soldiers showed up for their Aug. 26 visit, they had three pick-up truck beds loaded mostly with clothes and shoes for the children.

“Originally my bed was built up to put footlockers underneath it,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Fred Cost, the officer in charge of the Commander’s Emergency Response Program.

Now, that space is used for donations to the orphans. “The whole underside of my bed was filled up,” said Cost.

But it is not all work and no play for the kids or the soldiers. During their weekly visits, like the one Aug. 26, the soldiers handed out stuffed animals, yo-yos, and other toys, but most importantly to the children, they spent time playing and interacting with them, especially with their adopted pals.

Like Veazey, the first time Cost went to the orphanage he was adopted by a young boy named Quorbin who latched on to him four months ago when he first came to the orphanage. Without skipping a beat, Quorbin found Cost again and was at his side all day. The two spent the day tossing a football and breaking down the language barrier, with Cost flipping through his Dari to English handbook, and Quorbin looking over his shoulder.

“At first I thought it was going to break my heart, because I have two little ones back home. But they are all so positive, they all want to shake hands and say hi,” said Cost.

At first many of the soldiers shared Cost’s apprehensions, envisioning a mob of despondent malnourished faces. But the moment a person arrives at the Samar Orphanage, those grim images are shattered by a crowd of ear-to-ear smiles; and it is apparent that with some hard work and a lot of affection, a few Soldiers have made a large impact.

• Date Taken: 08.26.2010
• Date Posted: 09.03.2010 16:08
• Story ID: 55681
• Location: BAMYAN PROVINCE, AF