Inspired Magazine vol 3

Above (left to right)
Trishna, Moira
and Krishna.
Catholic child expressed shock that Muslim children
had also been injured in the war. In disbelief he
said, “But no-one hurts Muslims – they are the
ones that kill Croatians.” After Moira revealed there
was fighting on both sides he tugged at her shirt.
“Moira,” he asked. “What does a Muslim look like?”
With that one innocent question, Moira determined
that the children of both religions should meet –
to give the opposing side a human face. The trip
together was a massive success.
Moira stayed in Bosnia for four and a half years.
GLOBAL AMBULANCE
As the Bosnian War drew to a close, Moira was
called to Albania. Here she spent three years
helping the underprivileged, especially disfigured
children. From her laptop in this poverty-stricken
corner of the world, Moira would plead, urge, cajole
and convince friends, volunteers, doctors and
hospitals to treat the children before returning
them home again. She estimates she sent some
200 children for medical treatment during her time
in the Balkans.
BECOMING A MOTHER
During her time in Albania, Moira took over
guardianship of two boys of her own – Ahmed and
Emmanuel from Iraq. Both orphans had serious
disabilities and Moira organised multiple surgeries
and provided a loving home. Ahmed is now a
world record-holding Paralympian swimmer and
Emmanuel has recently signed a music record deal
in the United States.
Having sent children the world over, Moira
decided to establish a home in Australia especially
to house those in need of life-saving surgery. In
2001 she opened the Children First Foundation,
which has since helped more than 350 children
to be treated for critical conditions including
those requiring open heart surgery, bowel
reconstruction, plastic surgery, amputations
and new prosthetic limbs.
During this time Moira also met the twins Trishna
and Krishna, born conjoined at the head in
Bangladesh in 2006. She organised their medical
evacuation to Australia where they underwent
ground-breaking 38-hour surgery that saved their
lives. Moira says she was their aid worker, then
their nurse and, along the journey, she became
their mum.
The twins now live with Moira in Melbourne and
their biological mother and younger brother live
with them too, so the twins have two mums.
They call Moira “Mummy” and their mother “Ma”.
Trishna is now in grade four and Krishna attends a
developmental school.
LUCKY IN LOVE
By 2007 Moira was ready to focus more on
her adopted children. She handed over the reins
at Children First Foundation and, with the help
of friends and fundraisers, obtained a house in
Melbourne. Here she not only nurtures her own
adoptees but also welcomes in those whom others
deem “too hard.” “There are always going to be
people bringing in kids like Trishna and Krishna
who are too easy to say no to,” Moira says. “They
are the ones I want to help.”
Moira has recently launched her own foundation,
the Moira Kelly Creating Hope Foundation. She
has taken in a woman from Africa who was
trafficked to Australia, separated from her children
and recently gave birth to twins. Then there’s
the seven-year-old from Palestine with a horrific
skin condition that appears like burn scars all
over her face whom Moira now homes. And the
five-year-old with a condition that gives her the
world’s biggest feet. Plus more. Together they
live in a busy house that’s a gorgeous chaos of
nationalities, laughter and love.
“I’m the happiest I’ve been in many years,” Moira
says. “I look around at all these beautiful people
I’ve got living with me and it keeps me young. I
love getting up in the mornings to them all. I think
I’d have to be the luckiest person in the world.”
Get involved
You can support Moira’s work through the
Moira Kelly Creating Hope Foundation.
Visit www.creatinghopefoundation.org.au.
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MOIRA KELLY