Obviously my father speaks about the Peshmerga and his experiences in Iraq better than I could ever write here. But since not everyone gets to witness that I am going to make an attempt here in the next few entries.
In September of 2014, Ed went to Mahkmohr, Iraq to visit with the Peshmerga, to deliver care packages, medical kits, and to witness the life saving training class. This is a video highlighting the medical training process which is also on our donation page:
Peshmerga is a Kurdish word meaning “one who faces death”, a very accurate term. During this time the area was considered the front lines of the war against ISIS. The Kurdish Peshmerga were making a name for themselves in our news in America, and soon became known as the fiercest adversary of ISIS. Unlike the American army, the Peshmerga are mostly comprised of volunteer foot soldiers who face death with minimal training, outdated weapons, and quite often little access to food, water, and medical supplies. So that they have been succeeding in places where other highly trained and well advantaged army’s have failed is even more noteworthy. When Ed recounts the experience he says immediately he felt dynamic connection with the soldiers, and that he related as a father figure to the men. Ed’s small acts of encouragement where very appreciated. The soldiers spirits were uplifted by “an American who cared enough to go to the front line to provide them with kits to save the lives of their friends”. Ed also got to meet with some of the generals, who also shared in appreciation for the efforts made by Ed and the other C.R.I. responders. The officers told Ed they felt very isolated and were encouraged by Americans who would come to help them. They asked Ed to lend his voice, and request more support when he returned to America.
These are some pictures Ed took of a medical kit and it’s contents.
One kit is $25. If you’d like to help us send more medical kits to the Peshmerga please visit our donations page or click the link below to donate directly.
The Re-foundation Project 