The nonprofit organization HEAL Palestine said it works to help children impacted by the crisis through donors and volunteers.
HOUSTON — Two young children from Gaza arrived in Houston to receive life-changing medical care, after being severely wounded in the region’s ongoing conflict.
Baraa, 7, and Heba, 10, landed at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on Sunday afternoon. Through donations and volunteers, the nonprofit organization HEAL Palestine facilitated their journey to Houston. HEAL Palestine board member Greg Stocks said Baraa lost both his legs in a bombing, and Heba had one of her legs amputated after injuries sustained during a strike.
Stocks said the nonprofit’s goal is to secure charity care from local hospitals, where both children will undergo medical treatment, receive prosthetic legs and get long-term support. This will all take place while both Baraa and Heba stay with locals in the Houston area.
“We have a whole community of volunteers who provide just a family for these children as they come. They have host families that they live with. We have culturally Arab-background folks who tend to drive them around, take them out, just give them a sense of community and a sense of hope,” Stocks said.
Stocks added that he became heavily invested in the organization’s mission because he is a doctor himself. He felt compelled to do what he could to help.
“My heart aches with what’s going on, and so, I just want to use the small gifts that I can to try to give something back,” Stocks said.
Baraa and Heba are among 15 children arriving in the U.S. this week through HEAL Palestine’s initiative. So far, the nonprofit has reported that six children have arrived in Houston, and more than 60 children have been brought to the U.S. overall.
Farah Shah, co-founder of HEAL Palestine’s Houston chapter, said the city was a natural choice for the program.
“Houston has the largest medical center in the country,” Shah said.
Shah added, however, that medical treatment is just the start. She said HEAL Palestine’s efforts go beyond urgent care and aim to provide long-term healing and support.
“These children need education. They need to learn leadership. There’s so much that’s involved. A lot of them are going through severe, severe trauma, PTSD,” Shah said. “It’s given us a chance to be able to do a small part toward helping these people and these precious children that deserve so much more.”
At the airport on Sunday, dozens of community members gathered to welcome the children and show their support.
“To give them a good welcome from the Houston community. Show that there are people there for them,” Houston resident Hamza Qureshi said.
Alisa Haider, who also came to greet the children, added, “We’re all human at the end of the day, and people’s lives matter.”
After their medical treatment in the U.S., HEAL Palestine said the children, including Baraa and Heba, will likely be transported to Cairo, Egypt, where the nonprofit plans to continue to support them through housing, education and ongoing physical therapy.