Now imagine that you were 6 years old.
Such was the exodus of the Lost Boys. In 1987, a civil war drove over 20,000 children, mostly boys, from their families and villages in southern Sudan. These boys walked for two months to Ethiopia under extremely difficult conditions; there was little food and water, scorching hot sun, attacks from soldiers, and the constant danger of wild animals. Boys as young as 6 and 7 were burying bodies daily. Thousands died on the journey, but those who made it remained several years in Ethiopia, until the Ethiopian army forced them back into Sudan under gunfire. The boys spent the next year (again under extreme conditions) walking through Sudan in an attempt to avoid the warfare that was ravaging parts of the country. In 1992, those who had survived crossed into Kenya, where they were given asylum in the UN’s Kakuma refugee camp.
During their roughly 1,000 mile journey the group suffered huge losses due to starvation, dehydration, military attacks and animal predation. Only about half of the original group made it to Kenya. Aid workers started referring to this group as the “Lost Boys” after Peter Pan’s cadre of orphans.
In 1999 the Lost Boys were approved by the State Department for resettlement in the United State. The first of an eventual 3,500 began arriving in this country in the winter of 1999/2000. Of these, 150 now call Utah home.
Life in the US: New Opportunities, New Struggles
The Lost Boys arrived in Utah dreaming of college and a better life, only to find that the struggle in many ways continued. Without any parental or family support, many of them have to work multiple jobs to support themselves while trying to pursue their educational dreams and maintain a strong sense of community. These young men, who have endured more in their short life than most of us can even imagine, literally have no safety net-an illness, a car accident or a worksite injury can be a significant setback. Lost Boys living in Utah have come to find that safety net in Chier’s team of volunteers.