Rebuilding Hope, a documentary that follows three men who fled civil war-torn Sudan and into the United States as children, then return to their homeland as adults, is available for purchase online following a local screening in Phoenix.
Gabriel Bol Deng, Koor Garang and Garang Mayuol, the subjects of the documentary, are a few of the thousands of Sudanese refugees who traveled from their country and into the U.S. Once they arrived, the refugees were dubbed the "Lost Boys."
The film depicts Bol Deng, Garang and Mayuol as they search their birthplace for homes and family -- neither of which they've seen in years -- while trying to give back to Sudan.
In Phoenix, a group who helped promote the screening, the Arizona Lost Boys Center, is helping support refugees locally.
Jany Deng, who came to the U.S. from Sudan in 1995 and has worked at the center "since day one," is now a program manager for the non-profit group.
"There was not a lot of help; not a lot of support," Deng says of when he first came to the U.S.. He later learned of the center opening and decided it was time to make a change.
The result of his work and others' was the center, which offers counseling and assistance to refugees and fosters awareness of their plight through projects such as the "Rebuilding Hope" screening.
Clips from the film:
In Focus: Rebuilding Hope:
Pre-trip thoughts from former "Lost Boys":
