[D9640general] [eFlash_Rotary] Digest Number 588

[Garry & Anne Krischock]

1191: Donated miles help Iraqi woman's dreams soar 
Posted by: "Sunil K Zachariah" sunilkzach at yahoo.co.uk   sunilkzach 
Wed Jul 26, 2006 10:20 pm (PST) 
Donated miles help Iraqi woman's dreams soar

By Tonya Weger 
Rotary International News


Rotarians in the United States and Jordan united to make a 27-year-
old Iraqi woman's chances for a better future soar. 

Hana'a Thigeel lost the use of her legs after being struck by an 
Improvised Explosive Devise (IED) while on her honeymoon in Iraq. 
Unable to receive therapy in Iraq for her injuries, she needed to 
seek alternatives. That's when the Rotary Club of Greeley 
(Centennial), Colorado, USA, offered to help. Using the United 
Airlines Charity Miles Program, the club flew Thigeel from Amman, 
Jordan, to the United States for therapy. 

The club was able to raise 280,000 air miles and purchase two first-
class tickets - a retail value of US$14,000. "We wanted her to be 
comfortable," says club member Thomas Miller, "and for cultural 
reasons, she could not travel alone." 

Thigeel lost everything but her life when the IED detonated two 
years ago. She was newly married with a promising career as an 
assistant to the professor of veterinary medicine at Baghdad 
University. But that fateful day left her a widow and without means 
of support. 

" Baghdad University is not handicap accessible," explains Hope 
Cassidy, a Greeley club member and director of the Greeley Center 
for Independence where Thigeel receives treatment. 

Therapists at the Colorado facility are donating services through 
November when her visa expires, working to maximize Thigeel's muscle 
tone in the lower body while healing the emotional wounds she 
suffered. 

She also works with Paula Cowen, a disabled veterinarian employed by 
the United States Department of Agriculture. "Paula met Hana'a while 
in Iraq and told us of her story," Miller says. "She has since 
mentored Hana'a." 

In addition to raising the air miles, Rotary club members found an 
apartment neighboring the rehabilitation center for Thigeel, and 
they donated enough items to furnish the two-bedroom handicap-
accessible apartment. "Everyone has made me feel like I am in my 
home" Thigeel says. "I feel safe here." 

Rotarians have set their sights on doing even more to help Thigeel. 
Cassidy said the club hopes to do what it can to help Thigeel extend 
her stay so that she can pursue her interest in furthering her 
veterinary medicine education in the U.S. 

Thigeel is happy for the opportunity Rotary has given her. "This is 
my life, my destiny," she explains. "And I want to face it." 

Courtesy: eFlash_Rotary
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