After living in a refugee camp in Kenya for nine years, Abraham Ayor was one of 3,800 Sudanese refugees accepted to live in the United States. The group, which became known as "the Lost Boys" from Sudan, received plenty of attention when they first began arriving in the United States February of 2001.
I met Abraham at an American University event when his friend and fellow "Lost Boy" Gabriel Deng spoke to students. When we sat down to talk a week later, I admit I was expecting to find a man who was struggling to get by in a country that is vastly different from his home. Instead, I found a man with a quiet determination to become a beacon of light to lead his country towards a peaceful tomorrow.
Abraham's journey is nothing short of remarkable. When a civil war broke out in Sudan in 1987, the young Abraham left his home and his family, fleeing for his life. After a brief stay in Ethiopia, he returned to Sudan only to be followed by government forces. Joining with other refugees, Abraham, who was only about 9 or 10 at the time, walked to Kenya. The weary refugees hid during the day from government forces and walked during the night, battling dehydration and exhaustion that claimed the many lives before the group finally reached the refugee camp in Kenya. Abraham stayed at the camp for nine years, living in a shelter made from containers he found. During his time there he was fortunate enough to attend a UN school that provided both a primary and secondary education for the refugee children.
Then, on a day that Abraham describes as a complete surprise, he learned that he and the other boys would be able to come to the United States. "I didn't even apply for the papers to come to America," Abraham said with a shy smile. However, getting to the U.S. proved difficult. Filing the necessary papers was a slow process that was compounded when the American Embassy in Kenya was bombed Aug. 7, 1998, killing 213 people.
After waiting for two years, 19-year-old Abraham finally arrived in the United States in April 2001, where he was placed in Atlanta. After working as a painter in the Job Corps, Abraham left Atlanta to rejoin his surrogate brothers, five other "Lost Boys" who were living in Washington, D.C.
Now 24 years old, Abraham is establishing a life for himself, living in Washington, D.C., in a two-bedroom apartment with five other "Lost Boys." Most of these men have no idea where their families are or if they are even alive. The men have become their own family, supporting and sustaining each other as they did when they met back in the refugee camp.
Abraham is working as an electrician, but he is not satisfied. "God gives different talents to different people," Abraham says, and he thinks his talent may lie in education. He hopes to attend college to study business, once he can meet the residency requirements. He also hopes to help others learn how to start their own small businesses and once he has acquired both theoretical and practical knowledge, Abraham wants to return to Sudan to teach his countrymen. He and his "Lost Boy" brothers believe that education is critical to ending the fighting in Sudan and giving the youth a chance for a better future. He knows it may be years before he will be able to return to Sudan to fulfill his dream, but Abraham holds firm to his faith. "Without hope it may not happen, but with hope it can. Maybe not tomorrow, but someday."
Katy Johnson is a senior at Gustavus Adolphus College and a student
in the Washington Semester Program.
