Ambassador of Iraq Speaks at SICF's Washington DC Benefit for Iraqi Orphans

The Honorable Samir Sumaida’ie , Ambassador of Iraq to the United States, spoke movingly about the plight of orphans and children in Iraq at a special benefit art auction held  November, 4, 2010, at the Iraqi Cultural Center in Washington, DC. The event, which was covered by Iraqi television, featured a silent auction of drawings by Iraqi orphans and children, with proceeds going to fund a creative new “community care worker” initiative to help extremely vulnerable orphans with trauma and PTSD.

Dr. Jeremy Kohomban, President and CEO of the award winning Children’s Village of New York, outlined the vision of the community care worker initiative and how one tool – the LifeBook – has been used successfully in helping other children deal with the loss of parents. The Children’s Village is the lead partner with SICF in launching the community care worker training for Iraqi NGOs caring for orphans.

Professional framing for all of the children’s artwork was generously donated by Palm Gallery and Custom Framing , Palm Beach, FL.  Palm Gallery is owned by the mother of SICF’s Vice President Jonathan Webb who served with the US Army in Iraq.