Love Them All’s amazing story started in 2016 when Racheal arrived in Iraqi Kurdistan for the first time. With the desire to make a difference she said yes to an opportunity; to help one family facilitate their child’s travel abroad for heart surgery. One child soon became hundreds. Not long after, Love Them All was established, and efforts have expanded into facilitation of local immediate medical care and training for local hospital staff. Racheal is now vice president of Love Them All in the USA and president of Love Them All in Iraqi Kurdistan. She began working there, helping children receive the medical care they need since she first arrived and is now bringing others along with her. Love them all endeavors to expand its vision and dream big, leaving no stone unturned in the pursuit of healing for every child so that no child suffers because they did not have access to the highest quality medical care. Love Them All’s friendship with the Raparin Teaching Hospital For Children and other medical centers in Iraqi Kurdistan has helped facilitate the transfer of hundreds of children to places where they received the care they need. We have seen the miracle of children in desperate need receive emergency life saving medical care and there is no turning back.
Love Them All began its journey as a charitable organization in 2019 when it received 501(c)(3) status in the United States and recognition as an NGO by the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG). Love Them All has recently reached the next big step in its journey by achieving charitable status in Canada with charity number 776242869RR0001. Both US and Canadian chapters exist with the same purpose and goals with Canada being given the leadership role.
RACHEAL’S STORY
It was in 2016, on a quick two-week trip, when Racheal first saw the devastation of years of war and the refugee crisis in Northern Iraq. Being moved by the stories of so many who lost everything they had and everyone they loved, Racheal was compelled to relocate to the area and find a way to help.
Soon after moving she was faced with a sick child in need of life-saving surgery but with no one to advocate for them. She visited this child in the government hospital and saw the reality of the medical system firsthand – many of the children in the hospital who have developmental or physical disabilities or are in need of surgery do not survive – and many are neglected entirely.
Racheal knew this was an injustice that she couldn’t stand for, but with no medical background or training, she started with small steps and began to work with hospital staff and the patient’s families to get their most basic needs met – providing food, clothing, toys, and bedding. Over time, Racheal realized she could provide further assistance to these families by purchasing infant-sized oxygen masks and nasal cannulas in the US and bringing them over in her suitcase (the hospital’s resources are limited and they were using adult masks/cannulas on infants). She helped the families purchase oxygen tanks so they could take their precious babies home, away from the desperate conditions in the government hospital.
Later she made a connection with an organization in a nearby country that made arrangements with the hospitals and surgeons in that nation to perform some of the life-saving surgeries many of these precious ones needed. The organization also helped with the process of obtaining passports and visas, as well as helping to raise some of the funds necessary for the travel and surgery costs.
From there, Love Them All was founded and Racheal’s mission has developed into what it is today; Liaising with local hospital staff, families, organizations, and medical staff in a nearby country to facilitate training and get as many kids as possible life saving treatment. Racheal’s work continues to include meeting patient’s most basic needs but Love Them All is growing their vision and their reach.