Late update, and LINKS!

Hey friends,

So when I said "tonight" in my last post I actually meant "next week." I promise that I will be more regular on my updates when I'm overseas and the real work starts.

I've been strung out between preparations, finals, lab reports, etc. -And that's all the complaining/excuses I will make because I know no one wants to hear it!

Fundraising has been going great! Thanks so much to all of you who have contributed. Really every bit of financial support means so much.

Please check out the pages of my new friends and fellow interns:

Sophie Pappas: preemptivelove.org/sophie /// sophiepappas.tumblr.com

Lauren Sawyer: preemptivelove.org/lauren /// laurendeidra.com

Lydia Bullock: preemptivelove.org/lydia /// lydiabullock.com

Esther Perez: preemptivelove.org/esther

Claire Baker: preemptivelove.org/claire

Preston Wright: preemptivelove.org/preston

Daniel Buckley: preemptivelove.org/daniel

Josh Thompson: preemptivelove.org/josh

(interns if you have something I haven't linked send it to me!)

Also, everyone please check out and follow the PLC blog:

http://preemptivelove.org/blog/

And next time you are looking at buying some new shoes, why not help save a live in the process? - http://buyshoessavelives.com/

Profits fund life-saving heart surgeries for Iraqi kids.

Quick update

Hey everyone,
Just a quick update before class. I've been super busy between preparing for this summer and fundraising and schoolwork, so I haven't been able to post much yet, but I did make this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBwanQicn-k

Tonight I'll provide a longer update of what is going on right now!

Guest Posts

Occasionally there may be posts on this blog from a best friend of mine who will be traveling and studying in Turkey, and later, Palestine. Until we know more about this person's arrangements and security situation they will just be referred to as M (yes, like the old lady in James Bond).

M's posts may also include personal stories, thoughts, sights, etc.

M's internet access will be more variable than mine so they may occasionally transcribe past written journal entries here for you all to read.

First Post: About this blog

Hey everyone!
This blog will serve as an online journal of my time preparing for, during, and after my internship in Sulaymaniyah (Silêmanî), Iraq, and Istanbul, Turkey. I will be working for the Preemptive Love Coalition to help Kurdish and Iraqi children with congenital heart disease (CHD) recieve life-saving heart surgery which must, at this time, be performed in Istanbul. PLC also works to facilitate dialogue and reconciliation between what have been traditionally "at-odds" groups. You can read all about PLC's goals, values, and methods on their website.
In conjunction with the goals of and concurrent with my internship at PLC, I will be conducting anthropological research on how the local community percieves CHD, and what the local perspective is about the lack of access to medical resources for treating CHD. My research is under the guidance of the fantastic Dr. Cassandra White of Georgia State University.

This journal will primarily be a space for me to share personal experiences, thoughts, sights, and stories from my time as an intern with PLC. I will also be posting links to the blogs, journals, or websites of other interns, PLC, and even some of the kids we work with! I may post limited updates on the progress of my research as well.

I hope that you will continue to check back often and that you will find this journal to be both educational and an enjoyable read!