INSPIRATION - Heroic Foster Father

I know I could not do this, the emotional toll would be too much.

Note that his actions are part of the faith, Islam.  Caring for others.

"The foster father who cares when terminally ill kids have no one" PBS NewsHour 2/24/2017

Excerpt

SUMMARY:  Mohamed Bzeek has become somewhat of a local hero in Los Angeles, taking on a life mission that few others would consider:  as a foster parent who cares solely for terminally ill children.  Special correspondent Gayle Tzemach Lemmon meets Bzeek, a former Libyan immigrant who depends on his Muslim faith as he juggles intensive caretaking and heartbreak, as well as his own battle with cancer.

JUDY WOODRUFF (NewsHour):  Now the story of a good man on a quiet and heartbreaking mission, one many people would never consider undertaking.

He worked for years in obscurity, until recent notice brought this remarkable man and his story to light.

From Los Angeles, special correspondent Gayle Tzemach Lemmon brings us this profile.

MOHAMED BZEEK, Foster Parent:  What are you doing?

GAYLE TZEMACH LEMMON, special correspondent:  Mohamed Bzeek has become something of a local hero here in Los Angeles recently.

MOHAMED BZEEK:  I am not an angel.  I am not a hero.  It's just what we are supposed to do as a human being.

GAYLE TZEMACH LEMMON:  In 1978, Bzeek, then a former marathon runner, came to the U.S. from Libya to study engineering.  He met his wife here in the U.S., and became a citizen in 1997.

But, today, he is a different kind of champion.  His distinction?  He is the only foster parent in this city of four million who cares solely for terminally ill children.

What happens if you get sick?

MOHAMED BZEEK:  Father doesn't get sick day.

GAYLE TZEMACH LEMMON:  It is not a glamorous job.

MOHAMED BZEEK:  You have to do it from your heart, really.  If you do it for money, you're not going to stay for long.

GAYLE TZEMACH LEMMON:  Over almost three decades, he and his wife cared for scores of children.  Ten have died in his care.  Most of the children he's taken recently are born with terminal illnesses.

Sometimes, they are abandoned or born to parents with drug addiction.  Once they enter the foster care system, the county works to connect them with foster parents like Mohamed.  The memories of the children, he says, still live with him every day.