Michael Cooper’s life has changed—and not insignificantly. Having recently returned from Iraq, the 40-year-old humanitarian aid worker has been coping with re-entry into civilian life in the unforgiving hustle of New York City. Starting a branch of Mercy Corps, a NetAid World Schoolhouse partner working in Iraq and other crisis areas, from his apartment, he is in the throes of an altogether new adventure, with the memory of Iraq still fresh and vivid in his mind.
In June 2003, Michael was sent to Al Kut, about 150 kilometers southeast of Baghdad, as Mercy Corps’ director of humanitarian programs for the country. He quickly set to work establishing headquarters in an abandoned hotel overlooking the Tigris River. The first few months were spent building the organization’s presence from the ground up, acquiring essentials such as cars, generators and other supplies, hiring locals, and finding homes for staff members.
Six months in the war-torn country has left him with a lifetime’s worth of anecdotes—and stories so unimaginable that the adage “you had to be there” really rings true.
“I didn’t get a whole lot of sleep in Iraq,” he says. “In the summer, it gets as hot as 130° Fahrenheit, so I would sleep on the rooftop of my home to keep cool. One morning, I woke up to find a bullet lying next to my cot.”
Weeks after his arrival, Michael and his staff were unwinding at his home when there was a loud explosion: His home had been attacked.
“We had figured out how to watch DVDs using a projector, and we were all sitting there, watching a movie, when a grenade went off, followed by gun shots. The staff guard was injured, and he ran into the house covered in blood,” he recalls. “We regrouped and came together as a team to talk about it. We sent some staff to wait things out in Kuwait while others stayed behind.”
Still, neither the stifling heat nor the daily—and nightly—threat of violence could stop Mercy Corps’ operations in Iraq. Even when the UN pulled its staff from the country following the fatal attack on its headquarters last August, which killed at least 22 people including UN envoy Sergio Vieira de Mello, Michael and his team stayed on.
“I think in some ways we became even more determined to do something,” he explains. “We did a security assessment, and we felt that, because we had good community relationships, it would be okay for us to stay.”
The team branded everything—their cars, office and homes—with banners that read: Mercy Corps, non-governmental organization.
“It helped a lot. We even developed a special department to deal with community relations. Over time, people came to understand how we operated and that we respect them. We made sure that’s how we operated—respect—in every way.”
Michael had made friends within the community, and attended weddings, funerals and other important milestones in the lives of the locals. The brother of a friend, Sayyed Muhammad, had died, and what followed was something more like a celebration than a funeral, with 3,000 people coming together to honor the life of this beloved man.
“Sayyed was really touched that I came, but it was also a defining moment for my sense of safety. I went to the funeral because I was friends with him, but then I realized afterwards that this was how to work as well. Getting involved in the community, buying bread at the local market, getting my hair cut, eating at restaurants—these day-to-day interactions are what count.”
So far, Mercy Corps’ close relationship with the community has made its programs even stronger. Today the organization is involved in a range of initiatives to rehabilitate the region, including bolstering the education system, expanding economic opportunities, and providing health care, clean water and sanitation. Most recently, Mercy Corps organized a citywide contest entitled “I Love My Town” to increase awareness and participation in civic affairs by children, and is funding the Al Kut Women’s Cooperative to help women gain income-generating skills and knowledge.
Despite the ongoing turmoil in Iraq, Mercy Corps is staying its course. “The thought that something might happen is always in the back of your mind, but you think, I didn’t come here to be afraid. You know there’s risk, but you want to do good.”
