His parents and sisters successfully fled the dangers of Somalia to find a home in Buffalo, but now 1-year-old Bruce Osman is facing dangers of his own.
Several months after his birth, the son of Isha Hassan and Hamadi Musa was diagnosed with osteopetrosis, a rare congenital disorder in which the bones become overly dense. Without bone marrow transplants, afflicted children usually die within their first 10 years.
Bruce, who was named for his parents’ English tutor, had a bone marrow transplant last November in Minnesota. His mother stayed in a nearby Ronald McDonald House while his father remained in Buffalo, working and caring for his two daughters.
A caseworker for Journey’s End Refugee Services has helped the family since their arrival and, more recently, has coordinated a donation effort that has allowed Musa to travel to Minnesota during points in his son’s treatment and enabled the girls to visit their mother.
The course of Bruce’s initial treatment went from November 2005 to February 2006; his parents learned a month later that it needs to be repeated.
Bruce is scheduled to return to Minnesota mid-month for a second bone marrow transplant. Anna Ireland, the family’s caseworker for Journey’s End, has established the Bruce Osman Fund for anyone who would like to help the family. Checks can be made payable to the “Bruce Osman Fund” and sent in care of Journey’s End Refugee Services, P.O. Box 885, Buffalo, NY 14213.
