A Summer of Hope: ICF, EPIC, and AUIS Unite to Support Orphaned Girls in Iraq
This summer, a powerful alliance is giving 25 orphaned and vulnerable girls in Iraq a chance to dream again.
The Iraqi Children Foundation (ICF), in collaboration with our long-time partner EPIC (Enabling Peace in Iraq Center) and the American University of Iraq, Sulaimani (AUIS), is launching Artful Mind - an eight-week summer program designed to bring healing, learning, and hope to girls living in state-run orphanages across the region.
For many of these girls—some as young as six—Artful Mind is the only structured educational and emotional support they’ll receive all year. The program offers a full-day experience filled with English lessons, art therapy, yoga, reading circles, and life-skills training—all within the safe and nurturing environment of AUIS. It is led by AUIS librarian Halbast Khan, supported by faculty, staff, and student volunteers, and conducted under the supervision of Sulaymaniyah’s child welfare authorities.
But this urgently needed program almost didn’t happen.
A Crisis in Funding, A Call to Action
Recent freezes in U.S. foreign aid have left critical child welfare initiatives like Artful Mind without the funding they need. While governments wait, children cannot.
In response, ICF and EPIC have launched a rapid-response campaign: $20,000 in 20 days. The goal is simple—secure the resources to ensure Artful Mind can go forward and deliver its full eight weeks of support.
Every dollar raised will directly provide:
Safe daily transportation to and from AUIS
Nutritious meals and snacks
Art and classroom supplies
A safe space where girls can process trauma and explore possibility
For children who have survived conflict, abandonment, or violence, these eight weeks are not just about summer—they’re about survival, stability, and the first steps toward reclaiming their futures.
Meet the Girls Behind the Program
Each girl has her own story and her own dreams:
Leila, 16, dreams of playing for FC Barcelona while filling sketchbooks with sweeping landscapes.
Rojin, 13, taught herself to read and now studies anatomy by flashlight.
Hawjin, 17, wants to become a lawyer to protect women and children in courtrooms.
Sara, 15, a Syrian refugee and budding engineer, teaches English to younger girls.
Why This Matters
At ICF, we’ve spent over a decade standing with Iraq’s most vulnerable children. We know that long-term recovery doesn’t happen through emergency aid alone, it happens through steady, hands-on support that rebuilds hope from the inside out.
And thanks to the trust and commitment of partners like EPIC and AUIS, this kind of transformation is possible. Artful Mind is more than a summer program, it’s a model for what we can achieve when the nonprofit community, higher education, and local leadership come together to serve those too often overlooked.
How You Can Help
Donate now at http://spot.fund/z5vhzncsc
Share the campaign on email, social media, WhatsApp, or LinkedIn
Sponsor a week, a meal, a teacher, or a girl’s entire summer
Together, we can give these girls what politics and policy delays cannot: a season of safety, dignity, and possibility. Let’s make this summer count.