The beginning of Sudan Civil War. The longest civil war started at Bor Town a few miles away from Deng’s Village.

War in Southern Sudan. Sudan government troops attack many villages, including Deng’s village taking girls and killing many adult males. Deng, who is only 5, escapes in the middle of the night with a few other young boys from his village. No one in his immediate family is with him.

Walk from Sudan to Ethiopia. Deng joins 26,000 other displaced people and walks to Ethiopia in the dry season. The walk takes about a month and many people die along the way due to lack of food and water.

Refugee camp in Ethiopia. Deng lives in a camp with thousands of others. UN provides limited food, blankets and medicine and conditions are poor.

War in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian government is overthrown by rebels. Deng’s refugee camp is attacked.

Walk from Ethiopia to Kenya. Deng joins others who are escaping the attacks and walks across the desert into Northern Kenya. The trek takes about a year and is very dangerous. Many people die of starvation, disease, violence and attacks by lions.

Refugee Camp in Kenya. Deng along with 16,000 refugees arrives in Kenya. UN provides food and education. Deng attends school from 2nd grade through high school. In 1998, media focuses attention on the plight in Africa and the US government begins to take action.

Deng is selected to come to US. After 7 interviews and a lengthy screening process, Deng is approved to come to the United States along with 3,800 other “Lost Boys of Sudan”. Deng, age 18 arrives in San Jose, CA with about 60 other boys. He first attends De Anza Community college to improve his English. In 2008, Deng graduated from California State University-San Jose with a major in Health Sciences. Deng currently attends graduate school at Touro University in Vallejo, CA.

Deng returns to his village. A peace treaty is signed in 2005 ending the war. In the summer of 2005, Deng returns to his village and is reunited with his mother and father who do not recognize him at first. He finds his village in poor condition with no clean water, no roads and no school. Deng vows to return to his village every summer to help.

Deng provides grinding machine for village. Deng collects money from his community in San Jose to purchase, deliver and assemble a grinding machine for his village. This means that the women and girls of the village do not have to spend all day grinding grain by hand. The young girls now have the time to attend school, but they must sit under trees as there is no school building.(View Photos)

Deng begins plans to build a school. In the summer of 2009, Impact a Village completed contruction of a primary school in the village of Malek, Southern Sudan.
View Photos of Building School in Malek, Southern Sudan