My name is Dara Walsh (ERC Class of 2003), and I’m a Peace Corps Volunteer working in southern Morocco. I’m about to enter my second year of service as a Health, Hygiene and Sanitation volunteer. Health volunteers work at the local hospital and spend most of their time researching water problems and preparing grant proposals for community projects like building wells, well covers, school latrines, etc. We also send out health messages on such things as water purification, dental hygiene, vaccinations and hand-washing, through school classes, murals, flyers, and other communications. Through my work here in the town of Aday, I have met a handicapped girl named Laila who is in need of help.

Laila Kharaz, now five years old, was born with club feet, a condition which twists the ankles inward and causes the person to walk on the outer edge of their feet. There appear to be two ankle bones which harden over the years and become permanent if not corrected. It’s difficult for Laila to walk long distances, as she is tired and in pain after a short while. Club foot is a condition that is best corrected at birth but Laila, as many others in Morocco, did not and do not get proper health care. It’s important that she have the operation within the next several months, as the situation becomes more problematic as she gets older.

Laila’s father is a local shopkeeper who walks 30 minutes every day to his little store in the center of town and works from sunrise to sundown. Her mother is a housewife. Laila has two brothers who are ten and two, and a sister who is eight. Laila is an otherwise normal child, energetic, spunky and happy, and wants to go to school this coming school year, as most children start their schooling here at age six.

The Peace Corps has helped by finding a well-known surgeon in Rabat, the capital city of Morocco, who is willing to do the surgery. His name is Dr. Ismaili and he’s a bone surgeon at the Ibn Sina Hospital, the biggest hospital in Morocco. He has 18 years of experience in the private sector and is nationally known and respected. Laila and her family made the cross-country trek from the south up to Rabat in early February to see Dr. Ismaili. A Peace Corps representative helped interpret. (Laila’s family speaks mainly Tashalheet, one of three Berber languages in Morocco.

Since this can’t be considered in any way a Peace Corps project – the Peace Corps funds only official community projects and not private causes such as an operation – I’ve decided to take on personally the task of raising funds for Laila’s surgery. The estimated cost for the operation and expected follow-up is $6000. Funds raised will be collected by my father in San Diego (see below for details). Peace Corps can later advise on how to transfer funds to Morocco and to the doctor in the end, though they will not handle the money or make any official record of donations.

About my village ...

My village, Aday, is located in the province of Tiznit in the southern part of the country. The rugged valleys and mountains of this area make it somewhat isolated. The climate is dry, and vegetation is sparse. The inhabitants are predominantly Berber, and Tashalheet is the main language spoken. In terms of religion and custom this is one of the most conservative areas of the whole country.

About 5000 people live in the town, clustered in more than 50 small neighborhoods that are scattered across a big valley and the surrounding mountains. There is some farming, but many local men have gone away to work in larger Moroccan cities or in Europe and come back to visit for just a few weeks a year. Those who work locally manage to make only a very minimal living. There is a main road through the town center, but the far-flung neighborhoods are connected mainly by footpaths. Access to clean water is always a problem. Women spend hours every day drawing water from wells and transporting it long distances.

My village is one of the most, if not the most conservative villages assigned to a Peace Corps Volunteer in Morocco. Most people – especially women – are uneducated. The great majority of women are illiterate. Girls may finish six to eight years of school; very few go beyond that, and some are not sent to school at all. Girls usually do the housework for their families, and when they marry – starting sometimes around 14 years of age – they move to their husband’s house to serve his family for the rest of their life. Most girls have no say in who they marry, as their marriages are usually arranged by their father. Most never see their husband until the day of the wedding. Women rarely leave their home, or are allowed to. If they do go outdoors, they wrap themselves in a long white sheet-like veil that covers everything but their eyes. If there is a man in the vicinity, women will cover their entire faces with their veil, or just stay out of sight. Fathers, husbands, brothers, sons have complete control over women and girls. Men make the decisions and determine their fate.

Laila’s mother never saw her husband before the day of their marriage. The same goes for Laila’s aunt and grandmother. Most women give birth at home, and in talking with them, most will tell you that they have lost one or two children at birth, or soon after. Laila’s mother lost one child during childbirth and Laila’s aunt lost three.

Weddings, baby showers and Muslim holidays are times when people gather and eat tagine and couscous, drink sweet mint tea, sing their traditional Berber songs, dance, and play their drums. The January 2005 issue of National Geographic contained an article on Moroccan Berbers you might like to read. A previous Peace Corps volunteer in Morocco conducted the research for the article.

If you would like to help fund Laila’s operation, please contact my father Robert Walsh who lives at 7990 Forrestal Rd., San Diego, CA 92120 and can be reached at 619-583-2186 or bwalsh48@cox.net

We would like to pull this together by May 1 so the operation can be scheduled. Thank you for your support, in any amount. We will keep in touch with all donors as to Laila’s progress.

You are welcome to contact me in Morocco. E-mail is the most efficient way; I get to a computer usually once a week. My address is: dara.walsh@gmail.com.