"Lost Boys" Found

"Lost Boys" Found

Thousands of young boys who had wandered homeless and alone in Sudan have found homes in the United States.

...The "Lost Boys" of Sudan are a generation that was displaced. They lost their homes and families in the war between Sudan's Arab Islamic government against the Christians, animists, and black Africans in the South. More than 2 million people have died as the war has dragged on for 17 years.

...Many of the boys saw their parents being killed or seized and taken away by Islamic soldiers, or by pro-government militias, according to The Seattle Times. They saw people die from diseases, malnutrition, or ingesting unsanitary food or water.

...About 12,000 of the boys traveled in small tribes throughout the war zone for years, the Times reported. Led by other children, they walked more than 600 miles, braving lions, crocodile-infested rivers, and Islamic patrols. Most eventually ended up in a refugee camp in Kakuma, Kenya, which holds about 70,000 Sudanese refugees.

...Emmanuel Ajak's journey started in 1987 and ended in Seattle this month. Ajak was 4 years old when his home was destroyed and his family was scattered by the war, the Times reported. He arrived in Kakuma where this year he was chosen to be among the first of 3,500 of the Lost Boys to be relocated to the United States. About 50 boys arrived last month and hundreds more are expected in coming months.

...Christian groups are helping relocate the boys. Workers for Lutheran Social Services helped select candidates they thought would best adjust to U.S. society, and is helping provide for at least two boys in Philadelphia, according to news reports. Bethany Christian Services also helped find families to host relocated boys, as did church groups in several cities.

...The foster families will give the boys a secure home and help them prepare for the future. Because they are refugees they are allowed to work immediately, obtain an immigrant visa in one year, and apply for citizenship in five years. Some of the boys who came to the United States five years ago are attending college, the Times reported.

...The boys still must deal with their past and the cultural changes. "Pray for the adjustment," Jenelle Czaplicki said. She and her family are hosting two of the boys in their home in Michigan, according to Mission Network News.

..."All of the kids have nightmares or startle awake," Molly Daggett of Lutheran Social Services said. "But they are remarkably resilient, given all the trauma they've experienced." The boys should adjust well because they had caring families in their formative years and "they have had each other -- there's collective healing in that."

...Most of the boys came from Christian families but they may have lost their faith while wandering and living in refugee camps, Czaplicki said. "We don't know where these children are spiritually. Maybe they are followers of Jesus Christ already. I don't know for sure and it's just a matter of finding out and sharing the truth with them."

"Lost Boys" Found