KERNABAT DISTRICT, Baghdad, Iraq, Aug. 2, 2004 — Najid primary school was once a wrecked and dilapidated shell of its former self. But now with the new school year only months away, the school celebrated its recent restoration with local students, teachers and the people who helped make it happen.

Marking the completion of the school’s renovation, the students in attendance received gifts provided by the 425th Civil Affairs Battalion. Soldiers of Company A, 1st Battalion, 5th Cavalry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division and Iraqi National Guardsmen mingled with the children and provided a secure environment July 28.

The school was in bad shape before the project started.

“When I did the initial assessment of the school, it was completely trashed. There were big holes in the walls, broken windows, major electrical problems and a big pool of standing water,” said Spc. Sharla Tracy, project coordinator, 425th Civil Affairs. “It looked like a dump yard with piles of trash and old desks,”

“We then hired a local Iraqi contractor, Dr. Karin Alwari. Our purpose was to restore the school to its original look, to include things like new faucets for drinking water, a fence and fresh paint,” she said.

“This school is the first one we initiated, so what we wanted to do was set a standard on how schools should look,“ Sgt. Malcolm Flanders, 425th Civil Affairs, said. “Dr. Karim did an exceptional job. His bids are always low to moderate, and he always puts in way more effort into what he does.”

Local contractors did all the work on the renovation, which is one of the project’s several good points because it helps to stimulate the local economy, Tracy said. It was a 45-day project that was started in mid-June and was completed at a cost $65,000.

“Before we started work on the school, it was horrible, it wasn’t fit for human beings,” Alwari said. “There was water everywhere and the toilets were so bad you couldn’t even look at them. To see it, you would say just leave it and build something new.”

To get the job done, Alwari hired 30 employees, including some who were handicapped.

“It’s good for our economy to hire locally because it is better to give our people something to do and pay them than just handing them money,” Alwari said. “We repaired the roof, walls and windows. We put in septic tanks, updated the electrical system and painted the building.”

The school is located in the Kernabat District, northwest Baghdad. It consists of 12 classrooms and employs 20 teachers who are responsible for approximately 800 students. Half of the students will attend a four-hour session in the morning and the other half in the afternoon.

“The renovation was the last of our bigger projects. Since the transfer of authority, most of the funding is being handled by the various Iraqi government agencies. So, now we are concentrating on low budget projects like trash clean up and preventative medicine,” Tracy said.

“I enjoy helping the children and it seems everyone is happy with the results, even the headmistress, usually they always find something wrong,” Karim said.

“The kids here are really amazing…No matter what the conditions are, they are always smiling,” Tracy said.