We paid them a visit back in June and made plans for our work there. They had several problems: They had no electricity in the village. Their existing school was little more than a one-room mud and straw hut. Their water supply was limited because the exisiting water tank was cracked and finally, their roads were in terrible condition. So after making the necessary plans, starting in mid-August, about 25 of us dedicated the better part of a month working long days at Hamzan Village tackling these problems one at a time. We tore down the existing school and built them a sturdy concrete and block three-room schoolhouse with an additional office and bathroom (the only building with indoor plumbing in the village). We also installed a 25,000 cu. liter water tank and repaired the water lines. Finally, we filled and graded all the roads in and around the village.

On September 7th, we held a ceremony to commemorate the opening of the school. At the ceremony, we surprised the villagers with 6 large crates full of donated items from the Adopt and Iraqi Village Project. We also announced the purchase of a 75 kw generator, enough to power the entire village. It was a very rewarding experience that was extremely appreciated by the villagers. An old man there told me that they have been asking the government for these things for years and never got any results. He said that we are the only outsiders who have ever helped them. To realize we made that much of a difference in these people's lives helps to make our deployment here seem more worthwhile. Thanks to those of you at home who helped in this effort! (LT Adam Cote)  Click here for pictures.  |  Click here for an article on the Hamzan Village project by the Army Public Affairs Office.

August 12, 2004: Cham-Kurk Village
On Monday the 9th I met with the Mayor of Zakho to discuss needy villages in his area. He took me to Cham-Kurk Village, an area on the outskirts of the city that is extremely poor. We met with the Mokhtar and 31 families in the village -- a total of 241 people. We gathered the information regarding items they needed most and returned again on Thursday the 12th to deliver the donations. For each family, we delivered clothes, shoes or sneakers, kitchen and houseware items and for the kids, bookbags, soccer balls, toys and stuffed animals. The mayor also notified a local television station that was on hand to report the event. He said it is important for the people here to see the wonderful things the U.S. soldiers are doing. We also delivered several soccer and playground balls and a very large amount of school supplies for the village school. Afterwards, we joined the Mayor, the Mokhtar, the school principal and several ING soldiers that had accompanied us for some chai. When we were leaving, we noticed the kids had gotten into the boxes of donations: they were all out playing soccer and throwing around a Nerf football. They did, however, take a moment to cheer and wave as we drove away. Thanks to those of you at home who made this possible. (Lt. Adam Cote) Click here for pictures.

August 10, 2004
Today we delivered donations for the families of 15 more Iraqi National Guard soldiers. In the 15 families, there were a total of 113 people, mostly young children. We delivered the items to the soldiers so they could return home and give them to their families. (Lt Adam Cote)

July 28, 2004
We are also working quite a bit with the Iraqi National Guard, or the "ING" as they are called (after the change of sovereignty, the Iraqi Civil Defense Corps changed its name to ING). We have developed a wonderful working relationship with them and they have been invaluable in providing security and assistance for us in many of our efforts. Most of the soldiers themselves are very poor, have large families and live in many of the same villages that we have been visiting. I decided to follow the advice of one of our donors who wrote to me and asked if we could give things to the parents "so that they may know the feeling of giving a gift to their children." Our relationship with the ING seems like the perfect opportunity to do just that, so we have set up a program whereby we offer donated items to the ING soldiers and their families. We will supply items for 15 different ING soldiers per week, hopefully for as long as we are here. (Lt. Adam Cote)