Tributes To Marla, A 'Saint'

Marla Ruzicka was, as so many people have said over the last few days, a saint, a boisterous, impulsive, energetic, happy-go-lucky, saint, says CBS News Correspondent Lee Cowan, who knew her.

"Her compassion for human suffering was limitless," he says.

It's what first drew her to Afghanistan, to count for herself the innocent civilians hurt by the war.

"There's lots and lots of victims, unfortunately, and we want to give them help," she said.

Bonnie Docherty first met Ruzicka in Kabul. She not only helped the victims, Docherty says, but she "cheered the spirits of those of us who saw the suffering every single day.

"If I had to use one phrase, it would be full of life, boundless love for people she was working for. She made working in a war zone more bearable."

When the U.S. turned its sights to Iraq, so did Ruzicka.

But no one was doing the work she wanted to do.

So, along with close friend and colleague April Pedersen, Ruzicka founded her own aid organization, CIVIC: the Campaign for Innocent Civilians in Iraq.

Pedersen speaks with The Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith Thursday.

Ruzicka, Cowan marvels, became a one-woman wonder, doing what the U.S. government at first refused to do: take responsibility for the tens of thousands of civilians left struggling in the wake of war, from deaths, injuries, destroyed homes, and more.

"Each person is a story, and each person has needs, that's our priority," she said.

"What motivated her was a profound sense of justice, lovingly giving aid," says Ruben Brigety of George Mason University.

Last Saturday, that heart that gave so much was struck with a blow even Ruzicka couldn't heal.On her way to visit an injured three-month-old Iraqi girl, a suicide bomber struck.

The flames engulfed Ruzicka's car, killing her and her driver.

The woman who had devoted her life to helping civilian casualties had become one herself.

"(She was) someone who adored everybody around her, cheered people up," says Tom Malinowski of the group Human Rights Watch. "It was her influence on people around her that made her so special. So many people just loved her."

Ruzicka had "done more good for more good people than most of us could ever hope to do," Cowan observes. All told, she helped get Congress to appropriate $2 million dollars more for victims in Afghanistan, and some $20 million for people in Iraq.

That kind of commitment got her a eulogy on the Senate floor, from Vermont Democrat Patrick Leahy: "She wanted the people of Afghanistan and Iraq to see the face of America she believed in, this compassionate, humanitarian face. To my knowledge, this is the first time we have ever provided this type of assistance to civilian victims of U.S. military operations, and it would never have happened without the initiative, the courage, and the incomparable force of character of Marla Ruzicka."

"She served her country well, and residents in other countries even better," Cowan says. "And I was proud to call her my friend.

"Marla Ruzicka was only 28-years-old. She will be missed."

Pedersen told Harry Smith Thursday that, "For Marla, it was simple. Everything was pretty simple. She used her charm and her naiveté to her advantage. She thought, if the U.S. was responsible for causing harm, that we should be responsible for making amends. We should take every case, every number, seriously, and give them the help that they deserve."

Ruzicka, Pedersen says, had "a strong compassion and need to help those in need. She couldn't stay in one place. She traveled all over the world, Afghanistan, Iraq, Africa, Latin America, to help those people in need. It was just something within her."

And the $20 million Cowan mentioned that Ruzicka had raised for Iraq's civilian war victims "has now become $30 million," Pedersen reported. "The Senate just (Wednesday night) adopted unanimously an amendment that gave $30 million, not $20 million, to Iraqi victims of conflict."

But Ruzicka was fully aware of the danger she faced in Iraq, Pedersen points out. "She wouldn't let me go to Baghdad with her," he said.

Pedersen vows to carry on the work she and Ruzicka were doing together, Ruzicka in Iraq and Pedersen from the U.S.: "We're going to make sure that we continue to shine a spotlight on victims of war everywhere. It's important. Marla felt that each tragedy was her responsibility, and we're going to make sure that each tragedy is all of our responsibility.

"It's up to all of us to make sure that her important work is continued. So we're asking people to go to our Web site, civicworldwide.org and make a donation and help us continue this important work."