Dear Friends of Mustafa;

What a momentous day! February 17, 2009 and Mustafa has just received the gift of hearing again. In a small conference room on the 7th floor of 400 Parnassus Avenue, 8:30 AM, Dr. Colleen Polite fitted his new device and wired him to the computer to calibrate his new cochlear implant. A room full of individuals waited anxiously – some with cameras, some without. All eyes were on this small little guy with the huge brown eyes as he played with a puzzle at the small table.

None of us knew what to expect. As Dr. Polite adjusted the device and clapped her hands, he looked at her with an inquisitive expression. It was not a huge reaction, not a super clear specific moment….rather, it was a gradual adjustment that you could see was going on for Mustafa as his hearing and brain were working together to make sense of this new sensation. As you can see, it is not easy to put into words. But as Mustafa has shown over and over, he is resilient and able to tackle new tasks with strong determination. There is a long road ahead as his speech therapy lessons proceed. Today is just the beginning.

After the appointment, he played in the dining room of Ronald McDonald House, putting pieces of a puzzle together and painting. He acted no differently than he has for the many weeks he’s already been here…content and inquisitive. Andrew Skewes-Cox, age 24, came to play some guitar and children’s songs. When he strummed extra hard on the strings, Mustafa looked up. He laughed and continued to play. As I was leaving, I called out his name when he was looking down at his father’s feet. He looked up, and that one second of response made me realize how unbelievably valuable this entire community effort has been. It may have been just a coincidence; or…he may have heard. Whatever it was, it was the realization that there are great moments ahead.

Here are some photos taken today and also at Nancy Pelosi’s office last Thursday when we visited Harriett Ishimoto who helped to get the visas for Mustafa and Ghazwan. Ghazwan has been writing poetry, a new experience in his life. He wants to present a few to Nancy Pelosi, the doctors and other friends at a future date. We think we’ve found an Arabic translator of verse but if you know of any one who would be interested please let us know.

Special thanks to Mohammad Salim and Rana Madanat for their time for interpreting and time taken from work on Feb. 17th.

And today we heard that when Mustafa awoke, he kissed his new device before putting it on….so perfect.

HERE ARE SOME LINKS TO NEWS COVERAGE…. (and you can also “google” Mustafa Ghazwan Feb 17″ and see that it was in Washington Post and many other places.. It even went to Italy!
Best, Amy Skewes-Cox

San Francisco Chronicle

San Jose Mercury News 02/17/2009

Iraqi boy deafened in bomb attack could hear again after surgery at UCSF

Los Angeles Times 2/17/2009

Silence surrounding Iraqi boy deafened in airstrike broken by SF doctors’ cochlear implant

Sacramento Bee (AP) 2/17/2009

Iraqi boy deafened in bomb attack hears again

Modesto Bee
2/17/2009

Iraqi boy deafened in bomb attack hears again

Marin Independent Journal 02/17/2009

With Marin support, deafened Iraqi boy hears again with implant

Contra Costa Times (AP) 2/17/2009

Iraqi boy deafened in bomb attack hears again

San Francisco Examiner 2/16/2009

Iraqi boy injured in U.S. attack to receive hearing test

(AP) 2/18/2009

UCSF surgeons help Iraqi toddler who lost hearing in bomb blast

Associated Press 2/17/2009

Iraqi boy deafened in bomb attack hears again

KNTV 2/17/2009

Iraqi Boy Hopes Bay Area Holds Key to Hearing

KTVU Ch 2 02/17/2009
Iraqi Boy Deafened In Bomb Attack May Hear Again

KGO TV Ch 7 2/17/2009

Iraqi boy receives positive feedback

MSNBC 2/17/2009

Iraqi boy deafened in bomb attack hears again

KCBS (AP) 2/17/2009

UCSF Surgeons Restore Iraqi Boy’s Hearing

Total Results from Google News here: