My First Day in Iraq On the first day of a mission with the Catholic Near East Welfare Association (CNEWA) and Cardinal Dolan I had an opportunity to visit both an elementary school and a university in Erbil, Kurdistan, Iraq.  Both were only built and opened within the past year to deal with the exodus of Christians fleeing the onslaught of ISIS around Mosul beginning in the summer of 2014.  These photos reflect the vibrancy of both sites as their very existence brings dignity and hope to those being educated at these schools.   The Dominican Sisters operate the elementary school that is strongly supported by CNEWA and a number of…