Changing Lives in Iraq with Food, Water, and Medicine

Last month’s declaration of military victory in Mosul was a major milestone. But after nine months of warfare, thousands are dead. Much of the city is in ruins. And ISIS remains a threat in Mosul.

You’ve continued to show up with love and support for weary families who were trapped until the end. You did this and much, much more in cities across Iraq, as families recover, repair, and rebuild.

Here are some of the highlights from the last month:

Emergency Aid to Mosul

The city of over one million residents has seen more than 800,000 people flee, but thousands remain inside the city limits—hungry and desperate for food and support. As soon as security forces gave permission get near the front lines in the Old City of Mosul, you were there providing nourishment to families who had not eaten in days.

You met people at way stations right outside the conflict zone. They climbed down from passenger trucks, away from fighting for the first time in months, and were met with sandwiches, nutritional biscuits, water, juice, and medical care.

You provided shoes for those who fled without any, who were suffering on the scorching pavement. The bread for sandwiches was provided by one of our small business grant recipients who has opened a nearby bakery.

Next, you showed up with a delivery of food packages to 1,400 families. Each pack contained over 85 pounds of food and included basics like flour, rice, tea, oil, cheese, lentils, and milk. These families will have enough to eat for the next several weeks.

Medical Care Across Iraq

The need for food and medical care go hand in hand, and you have been supporting locally-staffed health clinics around Iraq for almost ten months now. Last month you helped nine clinics care for whole neighborhoods. Seven of these are in permanent buildings. One is housed in a large tent, and one is a mobile unit that travels near areas still held by ISIS.

This team was instrumental in bringing wounded away from the frontlines of fighting. Together these clinics provided more than 42,802 medical consultations last month alone.

Your generosity provides things like renovations for damaged buildings, primary care equipment, staff salaries, and a host of supplies and medications. Some locations have specialty services like dentists, psychiatrists, and ambulance drivers. One particular need our teams try to meet: providing wheelchairs to elderly patients who have walked many miles from home.

One location provides polio and MMR vaccinations to young children. To date, 4,789 children have been vaccinated—and for many, this is their first chance to receive immunizations.

Four locations offer special counseling and care for women who have suffered trauma. Often, women will not seek help for themselves unless there is a tangible benefit to their families, so our centers also provide small food packages of rice, lentils, sugar, and milk powder to women who visit. To date, 100 of these smaller packs have been distributed.

Delivering Water to Thirsty People

Municipal water pipes in Mosul were destroyed in the fighting, leaving families without running water. Your love has repaired these pipes in several neighborhoods, but many are still waiting. Some families are so desperate that they dig holes in their yards and drink the muddy water. Dirty water causes serious health problems, including skin rashes, digestion problems, and cholera.

You have seen this dire need and responded.

For three months now, you have delivered fresh water on tanker trucks to 19 neighborhoods in west Mosul. We aim to provide each person with 10 liters of water per day.

Our delivery team works with local leaders to identify the adults and children in each home and give them vouchers to receive their share of water. Careful records are kept on the capacity of each truck and amount given to each recipient.

In some neighborhoods, water trucks go from house to house, filling individual tanks. In other places, they fill a tank in a central location so that families can bring cans to fill and carry back home.

Last month, we delivered 4,596,550 liters to families and 986,450 liters to medical clinics. Over 11,000 families were served—which means close to 92,000 individuals received life-sustaining water. We plan to continue regular water distributions until the city water supply is restored.

Thank you for your generous support that makes all of these things possible. Your love is making a difference to each family who receives care.


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