American Soldiers Make Friends, Save Lives with Teddy Bears

The American Health Association plans to ship another 5,000 Guardian Angel Teddy Bears, dolls, and stuffed animals to Baghdad, Iraq this month.

(PRWEB) June 12, 2005 -- The American Health Association is continuing their quest to help the children of Iraq with their "Orphans of War" campaign. Over 50,000 Teddy Bears, dolls and stuffed animals have been donated to the charity from all over the United States and have been shipped in increments of five thousand per month through Lt. Colonel Steve Stewart and the Iraqi Assistance Center, Humanitarian Assistance Program, Green Zone in Baghdad, Iraq.

Besides bringing joy to these innocent youngsters, these Teddy Bears have a direct effect on keeping many American troops safe according to Stewart because "these kids have repeatedly forewarned our humvees and convoys where these Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) are, and these are the very same explosives that are killing or maiming our American troops," explained Stewart.

This "Orphans of War" campaign is an outgrowth of a Teddy Bear campaign initially begun four years ago during the Christmas holiday season in Palm Beach County, Florida and was initially intended to brighten up the lives of lonely disenfranchised seniors without family, friends or the joy of the holidays.

This gave J. Robert Gordon, the executive director of AHA, the idea to take the excess stuffed animals and set up this current campaign with the help of a fellow board member, retired Col. Bob Weinstein. Gordon also had greater hopes that implementing this program would help to save the lives of American soldiers while attempting to improve the lives of children orphaned and effected by war.

The happiness and joy that can be brought to Iraqi children has been and will always be the main concern. From my personal experience I can tell you that all of the Iraqi children that visit the Iraqi Assistance Center are so excited to receive beanie babies, soccer balls, and stuffed animals. My reward is seeing the childrens face light up when I hand then the toy(s)," writes Col. Stewart in an email. This program has began to effect a wide range of people, even spreading the teddy bears through the Iraqi NGOs, who distribute the stuffed animals and teddy bears to needy children in the greater Baghdad and Fallujah areas. This campaign has seen such early success that now Col Stewart is nicknamed Baba Noel", which means Santa Claus in Arabic.

Even with the success of the first stages of this campaign, continuing it is becoming extremely difficult. Shipping cost are more than the organization can handle. Mr. Gordon is now accepting, along with the teddy bears and any stuffed animals, a $25 dollar donation for each box to defray shipping cost.

Volunteers are also needed to package the boxes. The Girls and Boys Scouts are regular volunteers who have helped to package past shipments but more hands are needed to send off these gifts of love and hope.

If you have any questions, would like to donate, or to receive information, please mail the organization at American Health Association, Teddy Bear Campaign, 3200 North Federal Highway, Boca Raton, Fl 33431 or call (561) 361-9091. To find out more about the causes of the American Health Association, and their American Volunteer Corp, visit their website at www.americanhealthassociation.org.

# # #