A Letter from ICF’s Incoming Chairman, Grant Felgenhauer

March 2021

Dear ICF Friends, 

It is a tremendous honor to write to you as the incoming Chairman of the Iraqi Children Foundation (ICF). Our organization has flourished under the leadership of outgoing Chairman, Mohammed Khudairi, and I want to extend my sincere thanks on behalf of the entire ICF community to Mohammed for his years of service.

Since its founding 12 years ago, ICF has provided critical assistance to Iraq’s most vulnerable population: its children. In the course of this work we have remained laser-focused on those discrete areas where we can have the most significant impact. Despite the operational challenges posed by the pandemic, ICF continued to fulfill its programmatic mission over the course of 2020. Our two Hope Buses in Baghdad provide early childhood education, psychosocial care and a nutritious meal to over 100 youth in Iraq’s capital city on a daily basis. The Street Lawyers program delivers legal representation within the juvenile justice system to Iraqi orphans and street children, including obtaining the official state identification papers that are required to access the Iraqi public health and school systems. In tandem with the Street Lawyers, our social workers provide critical support for children and families; mediation, mental healthcare and connections to opportunities to work and go to school. Finally, we are particularly excited by the early traction of additional programs launched during 2020, notably a child anti-trafficking program within the Street Lawyers project. We believe each of our programs represents meaningful local action that will pay nationwide dividends over time. 

In addition to maintaining these essential programs in 2021, I am looking forward to the thoughtful expansion of our footprint in Iraq over the coming year. Some highlights include the upcoming refurbishment and reopening of a school in Sinjar, the underwriting of a community center for adolescent girls in Mosul and the commencement of a bus service for Hope Bus graduates to and from regular school in Baghdad.

Our mission at ICF remains the same: to intervene with compassion and hope in the lives of children who are vulnerable to abuse, neglect, and exploitation. By pursuing this mission, we envision a world where vulnerable children in Iraq have a voice and are empowered to reach their full potential. In doing this work we will continue to rely upon a trusted network of local partners in Iraq, with a view to developing a sustainable, locally-led infrastructure for the delivery of social services on the ground. 

We sincerely thank you for your ongoing support as we work together toward a better and brighter future for Iraq’s children.

With thanks, 

Grant Felgenhauer
Chairman, Board of Directors
Iraqi Children Foundation