Buy Shoes. Save Lives. by the Preemptive Love Coalition

Preemptive Love Coalition exists
to eradicate the backlog of thousands of children in Iraq WAITING IN LINE FOR LIFE SAVING HEART SURGERIES
in pursuit of peace between communities at odds.

I Am An Iraqi Child...

2007 BSSL Concept Short

Chemical Warfare, Sanctions, & Intra-Family Marriage

Experts think that Saddam Hussein’s 281 chemical attacks and experiments on the Kurds of northern Iraq contribute to the high rate of life-threatening heart disease among children in the region today.

Others cite U.N. sanctions and the massive spike in infant and child mortality throughout the mid-nineties for many of the problems among children and youth in Iraq today. Widespread corruption and the deliberate withholding of essential human services led to rampant malnutrition and disease in Iraq on a scale so vast that it led to the resignations of the U.N. Coordinator for Iraq and other U.N. leaders. The sanctions were widely criticized by U.S. and world policy-makers for never really harming Saddam.

Intra-family marriage—a practice common in tribal societies and reinforced by histories of ethnic cleansing—is still practiced by many today and probably also contributes to the prevalence of these diseases.

Eradicating the Backlog with Buy Shoes. Save Lives. and the Preemptive Love Coalition

In July 2007, Jeremy & Jessica Courtney and Cody Fisher came face-to-face with the overwhelming reality of thousands of children waiting in line for life-saving heart surgery. With a background in grant-writing and fundraising, the trio knew that they did not want to start a traditional non-profit. They determined to make the markets bend in favor of the outcast, underdog children of Iraq.

The Courtneys and Fisher launched Buy Shoes. Save Lives. to generate critical funding through a creative blending of commerce and compassion. They loved the traditional handmade Kurdish shoes and they suspected that others around the world might like them as well—especially when the purchase of every pair of Klash would help fund a life-saving heart surgery for an Iraqi child.

As this movement gained momentum, more staff was added and the Preemptive Love Coalition was officially incorporated in February 2008, immediately multiplying the means through which people could come together to save lives.

As we enter our third year of operations, our 2010 goal is to save a total of ninety children, including sending fifty children to Turkey and forty surgeries inside Iraq through international surgical missions.We don't know what the future holds, but it looks extremely hopeful for thousands of Iraqi children with a Klash-wearing coalition like you on their side.

HEART-MENDER TEE
Kids in Iraq are often born with holes in their hearts that need patching due to decades of chemical warfare, malnutrition, & intra-family marriage. Buy this tee to stand in the hole between what could be and what should be.

Ships in 2-4 weeks if ordered alone.

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Aram Majid has been the only one willing to change the rules of his 3,000–year–old trade to make sure you get the shoes you want. Thanks to Aram, lifesaving, hand–made shoes from Iraq never felt so good or looked so great! Plus you help Aram work toward his goal of sending his children to college with every pair of shoes you buy!		“The difference in my Klash today compared to the first day I got them is the difference between a new pair of jeans and my favorite pair of jeans that I put on after a long day of work. My Klash are now the first shoes I reach for.” - Chad Bertrand	Meet Nivar. She lives in Iraq and needs urgent heart surgery outside the country because of a four-fold set of heart defects called Tetralogy of Fallot. Her growth has been stunted by lack of oxygen in her blood and subsequent lack of energy & activity. But it's not too late for Nivar. A total corrective surgery is still possible before she moves into her ninth birthday in September. Her father has collected $3,500 from savings, friends, and family to help send Nivar to surgery! This is the kind of family participation that so encourages us!

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