Update. From the Hassan Family Fund newsletter:
You may recall that Rakan was the 12-year old boy who suffered a
seemingly superficial wound in the incident that killed his parents. In
fact, this wound was a "through-and-through" gun shot wound that did
structural damage to his spine, but did NOT damage the spinal cord.
This has resulted in his being immobilized and unable to walk. However,
surgery in a well-equipped hospital can repair his spine and get him
walking again, Praise God for that.
The challenge is how to get a 12-year old boy out of Iraq to a nation
that has the medical resources to help him. For some time, we discussed
possibly taking him up to Turkey, which is a Muslim nation; we thought
perhaps that would make him more comfortable, and his travel would not
be as arduous. However, Marla helped us to find a better alternative
overall.
She realized that, since this wound was the result of US action, Rakan
could be taken to Walter Reed Hospital in the US, and possibly even
taken by military transport. While a farther distance, this would
probably be easier to manage, because it would involve less liaison work
and less international coordination.
Since her death, we've been working with some people in Iraq to get
Rakan his visa and figure out who from his family can escort him to the
US for the surgery. As this progresses, we'll post more information on
the website.
The funds collected are first being applied to this need, including room
and board for whatever family member travels with Rakan. After that, we
will look into getting some form of home purchase going in Iraq with the
remainder of the fund. If that is successful, we will probably not have
much money left, but the remainder will be used to set up a scholarship
for the children in the family. If the home purchase is not successful,
all the remaining funds will be put towards a scholarship, with a
portion possibly going to help establish an orphanage in the name of the
parents.
Marla is Marla Ruzicka, from Civic Worldwide, who was killed by a car-bomb in Iraq on April 16, 2005.