Above is the link to an Opinion Page article in the NY Times. Nick Kristof, who does lots of things in South Sudan, wrote about this guy, Ryan. I knew who he was right away. I have wondered about him these past few years and am glad that he is safe.
I got out my moleskin journal from my Sudan trip - 2008 - no satellite yet at the compound, so no blog - and went through looking for my encounter with Ryan and his friend, Chris. Both from Samaritan's Purse living in the Nuba's. They had several reasons for visiting the South - the Nuba's are at the border of North and South. Well, I will let you read my entry......
23Feb2008:
When we were closing the clinic and Joy Mueller was closing the gate to the road, a white Toyota Land Cruiser pulled up to the gate. There were two white guys in it. Joy asked if she could help them and they said they were looking for Joy and Dave Mueller. She said "I think you have come to the right place, that she was Joy Mueller and Dave was her husband". It was too funny. These guys are with Samaritan's Purse - a mission aid NGO and they really had no idea where they were. They were just going to stop by and ask if anyone knew the Muellers. No maps, no road signs, getting dark. Samaritan's Purse is the sponsor of the program that Dr. Ajak and Dr. Deng went through. Chris is from Indiana and Ryan is from Florida. Crazy, huh. They have been in the North - Nuba Mountain region. And this area is Arab. They have been there a long time. One, 8 years and one 5 years. They both speak Arabic - Chris really well and Ryan doing pretty good.
Ryan has a Sudanese girlfriend. Both Ajak and Deng know her. He let them know what she is up to these days. It was such a nice surprise having khawaja visitors. They were funny, nice, handsome, charming. We debated a bit - them being Fundamentalist and me being Episcopalian. All in good fun and lessons learned. We must all be included in God's presence.
24Feb2008
......returned back to camp around 4 pm. The guys (Ryan and Chris) were headed off to Juba. I wished them God's Peace, safe travel. What a crazy world we are in.
After reading Mr. Kristof's info on Ryan, I felt a nice feeling of relief. I can not even say how many times I have thought of those two boys up in those mountains. It does not surprise me that Ryan stayed. He seemed the type that would not just leave because someone told him to. They both are courageous young men with a deep devotion to God. My admiration for them abounds. As I prepare to return next week to Werkok and the hospital, I wonder if I will be able to find his wife and say hello. Let her know I met her husband some years ago.
Here are some pictures I found of Ryan, Chris and me.
