Some Michigan soldiers helped arrange for a heart operation that will allow a 7-year-old Iraqi boy to lead a normal life.
The boy underwent the four-hour procedure Tuesday at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital in Grand Rapids.
The military is withholding his full name.
Doctors say his prognosis is very good.
The boy used to become exhausted after taking only a few steps. When he's fully recovered, he will no longer be tired all the time.
Members of the Cheboygan-based 46th Military Police Company of the Michigan Army National Guard met the boy and his mother in Baghdad while training Iraqis to become police officers.
Through their efforts, the Michigan/Ohio chapter of Healing the Children provided his medical care.