Guard comes to boy's aid

OREM — An Afghan boy is recovering from heart surgery made possible by members of the Utah National Guard.

Asadullah Khan, 12, was released Sunday from Loma Linda University Children's Hospital in Southern California, just two days after he successfully underwent a 5-hour surgery to repair a hole in his heart, hospital spokeswoman Julie Smith said.

The boy suffered from ventricular septal defect, a condition his family knew nothing about just months ago when they pleaded with the 211th Aviation Group of the 25th Infantry Division to help the ailing boy.

The unit flies Apache helicopters and is based at Salt Lake Airport No. 2 in West Jordan. In addition to flying missions, they "adopted" a remote area of Afghanistan. Since Aug. 8, they had visited the boy's village every two weeks to assist in humanitarian needs.

"The father numerous times asked for help," said Chief Warrant Officer Layne Pace, also an Orem Fire battalion chief.

The boy could not keep up with other boys his age. He would hunch over and take breaks while running. His skin was discolored.

After medical teams diagnosed the boy with VSD, the Utah troops were wondered what they could do to help him.

They started an e-mail campaign. The Utahns sought help via e-mails to friends and family — and "the e-mail went national," Pace said.

People from seven hospitals expressed interest. "We had three or four vying to take him," Pace said.

The California hospital ultimately was picked, he said, because its officials were most pro-active in the details of bringing him to the United States.

By the end of December, the boy received permission to enter the country.

By mid-January, the boy, his father and an interpreter arrived courtesy of JetBlue and Pakistan International Airlines, Pace said.

"They were very excited," Pace said.

Pace, who's home for a brief break before returning to the Middle East, was happy the boy's travels and surgery were safe.

"It was a huge sigh of relief. A lot of us have been working on this some four months," he said.

Friday's surgery was one in a succession of charitable deeds arranged by Utah soldiers as part of Angels for Afghanistan — military men and women dedicated to helping people there.

The first surgery was on a 7-year-old girl with severely crossed eyes. The successful surgery won hearts of the villagers. Angels for Afghanistan also obtained antibiotics for a man who had a leg infection so severe that he risked losing the limb.

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E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com