Foster father only takes in terminally ill children
“He’s the only one that would take a child who would possibly not make it."
By Livia Gamble
February 10 2017
There’s selfless and then there’s a man named Mohamed Bzeek.
Bzeek, a foster carer who was recently profiled in The Los Angeles Times for a heartwarming reason: he only takes in terminally ill children.
For more than 20 years, Bzeek has looked after these kids, with around 10 of them dying under his care.
The Los Angeles Times reports that: “Of the 35,000 children monitored by the county’s Department of Children and Family Services, there are about 600 children at any given time who fall under the care of the department’s Medical Case Management Services.”
“He’s the only one that would take a child who would possibly not make it, Melissa Testerman, a DCFS intake coordinator who finds placements for sick children told the publication.
Currently, Bzeek is caring for a 6-year-old girl with a rare brain defect, who is blind, deaf and paralysed.
“I know she can’t hear, can’t see, but I always talk to her,” Bzeek said. “I’m always holding her, playing with her, touching her. … She has feelings. She has a soul. She’s a human being."
Bzeek has a 20-year-old son of his own who was born with brittle bone disease and dwarfism. He was married to a woman who whom he began fostering children with all those years ago; however, she fell ill prior to their divorce and died shortly after.
Bzeek said his wife was always the "strong one", but says the key to doing what he does is to love them like they are his own.
“I know they are sick. I know they are going to die. I do my best as a human being and leave the rest to God.”
Depite the massive costs required for looking after a sick child, Bzeek only gets paid $1,700 a month.
Since the article was published, a Go Fund Me page was set up to support Bzeek and his family.
"I was feeling overwhelmed and disturbed by all the hate speech I was seeing on internet. Then I stumbled across the article in the L.A. Times . I started reading it and promptly burst into tears," the page says.
"It was healing to read about someone who is so genuinely good. I was touched by his gentleness, his loving-kindness and his dedication to his children. Mr. Bzeek inspires me to be a better person, and to focus on being of service to others."
In one day strangers have donated over $100,000.
