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A new wheelchair brings joy to a diasbled child in Mosul, Iraq.

GRAPEVINE — They are the smallest victims, caught in the crossfire of war.

That's why one North Texas man is stepping in to help children who are caught in combat.

Brad Blauser is one of the thousands of U.S. civilian contractors in Iraq, supporting the work of American soldiers. But this story is not about him; it's about what Blauser is doing for some of Iraq's children during his spare time.

"It would be tough for me to stay if I knew I was just staying there and working to make money for myself," he explained.

Blauser and some soldiers in the northern city of Mosul noticed there were many disabled Iraqi children without wheelchairs near their army base.

"Major Brown let me know there were kids actually dragging themselves on the ground near the city, and was distressed by that," Blauser said.

Many of the youngsters were born with birth defects; others were victims of the war.

Working with a non-profit company that makes pediatric wheelchairs, Blauser and the soldiers got them ordered, built and shipped at a substantial discount.

Now, nearly 150 Iraqi children have wheelchairs and another 270 should get them within months.

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Blauser's effort has supplied scores of new wheelchairs to children in Mosul, Iraq.

Blauser hopes to help another 500 kids in the new year. "A wheelchair for one of these kids is not something they expect; It's not something that's feasible in their wildest dreams, that their family could ever afford," he said. "Their parents are overwhelmingly grateful; the child is grateful, and the parents will tell the whole community."

In a country still very much at war, helping some of its vunerable children has improved Blauser's morale along with the soldiers he works with.

"Children have a universal language of love," Blauser said, "and whether they speak or don't speak, I think everyone can relate to the smile of a child."

E-mail dronan@wfaa.com