Photo By Staff Sgt. Amanda Tucker | Spc. Marisol Riley, a driver for the 164th Military Police Company and Riverside,...... read more read more
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By Amanda Tucker
3rd Sustainment Command
JOINT BASE BALAD, IRAQ – Military police sponsors, a chaplain and one huge-hearted civilian reached out to help the local community in Balad, Iraq, by giving two handicapped Iraqi children wheelchairs, August 9, 2008.
Members of the 164th Military Police Company based out of Fort Richardson, Alaska, and currently commanded by 18th Military Police Brigade; go in sector on a daily basis, patrolling surrounding areas and helping to improve the capabilities at Iraqi police checkpoints. However, the company does much more than that. The MP have become a part of the community and felt the need to help two children who cannot walk.
Capt. Matthew Norris, commander, 164th Military Police Company, 728th MP Battalion, 18th MP Bde., and Phoenix native started looking for a wheelchair after he discovered an Iraqi police chief's son who had a hole in his heart, causing the 2-year-old boy to have muscle weakness.
Once other Soldiers in the unit heard about the commander's idea, they began to inquire about the need for a wheelchair for an 8-year-old Iraqi girl near another checkpoint in Balad.
According to Sgt. Keith Banks, military police team leader, 164th MP Co., his squad would go out to a checkpoint in Balad where the girl was at regularly. The little girl would always peak out of her house from her gate in curiosity at the MP.
"At one point, I got a good look at her and saw that she was walking on her hands; so that brought concern to us," said the Malvern, Ark., native.
Norris went to multiple organizations trying to acquire the wheelchairs. He finally succeeded when he talked to Capt. Jay Clark, chaplain, 728th MP Bn. Deployed from Schofield Barracks, Hawaii and N.D. native, about his predicament.
Clark was able to provide the wheelchairs with the help of Brad Blauser, a humanitarian volunteer and Dallas native who started the Wheelchairs for Iraqi Children program. Clark and Blauser had initially met on a prior deployment when the two met in a dining facility on Contingency Operating Base Speicher, where Brad told the chaplain about the program 'Wheelchairs for Iraqi Children.'
"We went through... ins and outs of trying to get it all connected but once we did, Brad was excited to take the project on and I was excited to be here for it," said Clark.
Norris, Banks, Clark and Blauser delivered the wheelchairs in the hot Saturday afternoon. Blauser showed the parents of the children how to properly adjust the wheelchair to accommodate the child as they grew. Sweat dripped off of the civilian's nose as he worked, but it was nothing in comparison to the smile that seemed to never fade as he put forth the effort.
"I was ecstatic. The little girl's father was speechless. Just to be able to see her now be able to maneuver around with her sister out there... it was great," said Norris.
According to Blauser, Iraq has the largest population of handicapped people in the world with 10 percent of Iraq's population is disabled. Iraq has more than 28 million people, with roughly 3 million people disabled, and if just five percent of that 3 million are children, it's 150,000 kids who need a wheelchair. Thanks to combined efforts of the military police, chaplain and a humanitarian volunteer, two children in Balad no longer have to wait for one.
| Date Taken: | 08.04.2008 |
| Date Posted: | 08.16.2008 09:45 |
| Story ID: | 22568 |
| Location: | BALAD, IQ |
| Web Views: | 106 |
| Downloads: | 64 |
This work, MPs, civilian donate wheelchairs to Iraqi children, by SSG Amanda Tucker, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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