The numbers the Iraqi boy wrote on the walls of the Ronald McDonald House formed a telephone number.

It reached Ali Al-Azawi, a man who helped the boy and his mother when he was in Bismarck for medical treatment last summer.

Al-Azawi is one of this year's Tribune Award winners for the help he provided to Mohammed Raad Adnan and his mother, Iman Hamid Hammood. He interpreted for the family, and helped the people at the Ronald McDonald House accommodate a Muslim family.

"It was the bond between Ali and Mohammed that was a joy to behold." said Kathy Keiser, director of the Ronald McDonald House in BIsmarck.

The family did not speak English when they came to the United States, and they also could not read or write in Arabic. Al-Azawi was like an uncle to the boy.

Al-Azawi has a wife and daughter and works two jobs, which further impressed Keiser with his dedication to helping the family.

"Mohammed could not get enough of Ali, and Ali would regularly, jokingly say 'Mohammed, he's killing me!' and you could tell he loved every minute of it," Keiser said.

- Sara Kincaid