February 28, 2004

Dear Dr. Farivar,

This is to inform you that I arrived in Bam on February 1, 2004. Following arrival, I set up a temporary office in the yard of Bam's Mahde-Koodak (Nursery). This place has neither walls nor roof. The choice of this place was due to its central location and familiarity of children and adults with the place.

ERFO has been the only NGO with a continuous physical presence in Bam since the above date. Several volunteer social workers, alongside myself, are working from 7:30 AM to 8 PM to complete and verify the orphans records. From 8 PM to 1:30 AM we go to the communal tents to identify the children and their potential adopters.

Due to the fact that Bam is a scattered city and many nearby villages have been severely damaged, the most difficult task for us has been to find the children for completing their necessary paperwork including photocopying their birth certificate, birth certificate of adopters and the death certificate of the children’s parents.

We are thankful to GOD for helping us endure extreme cold and hot climate in the absence of any facility – not even a tent – for shelter. So far we have made positive identification and completed paperwork of about 450 orphans with no surviving parent. Our work in Bam is continuing.

Regards,
Jamal Farivar
Iran Director