More good deeds from our home grown heroes. The news you never read about:

MANAS AIR BASE, Kyrgyzstan, Feb. 6, 2008 – Where most just see trash, Air Force Tech. Sgt. Robert Sommers, of 376th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron here, sees possibility.

On any given day, the squadron’s noncommissioned officer in charge of operations management can be found sorting through leftover wood scraps and paints in his shop to create paintings and donate the proceeds to help pay for heart surgeries for children whose parents are unable to pay for the surgeries themselves.

“Possibilities are endless; everybody has a talent and can use it to help others who are less fortunate,� Sommers said. “This is what I am trying to do.�

The Children’s Heart Ward is a facility that houses infants and children who need surgery to correct heart defects stemming from a combination of inherited genes and environmental factors, such as illness or mothers being exposed to chemicals during pregnancy.

Two local doctors perform these surgeries free of charge. But an oxygenator — a disposable piece of equipment that serves as the lung during cardiac surgery and is designed to expose the blood to oxygen and remove carbon dioxide — is needed for each operation, and each costs $560.

The Manas Air Base Outreach Society has addressed that need with its Children’s Heart Ward focus group. Airmen raise money to pay for the oxygenators and sometimes for other types of surgeries so more children can be assisted. Since the foundation stood up, 97 surgeries have been supported, most by covering the cost of an oxygenator.

During his five-month tour, Sommers’ donated proceeds have paid for three oxygenators.

[go to link below for the rest of the story-ed.]

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Robert Sommers, of 376th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron, adds details to a painting at Manas Air Base, Kyrgyzstan. Sommers sells the paintings he creates from leftover paint and wood scraps and donates the proceeds to a local heart foundation that helps pay for heart surgeries for children whose parents are unable to pay for the surgeries themselves. Photo by Senior Airman Tabitha Kuykendall, USAF

A painting by Air Force Tech. Sgt. Robert Sommers, of 376th Expeditionary Civil Engineer Squadron. Sommers sells the paintings he creates from leftover paint and wood scraps and donates the proceeds to a local heart foundation that helps pay for heart surgeries for children whose parents are unable to pay for the surgeries themselves. Photo by Senior Airman Tabitha Kuykendall, USAF

Face of Defense: Sergeant’s Art Funds Surgeries for Needy Children
By Senior Airman Tabitha Kuykendall, USAF
Special to American Forces Press Service

Technorati Tags: Sgt Robert Sommers, Manas Air Base, Kyrgystan, Air Force, Art for children, Support The Troops

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