As part of its Evening Lecture series, the Mesa Community College Psychology Department presents a lecture in April by John Bul Dau, one of the Lost Boys of Sudan.
It is 7 p.m. April 17 in the Performing Arts Center at MCC’s Southern and Dobson Campus, 1833 W. Southern Ave. in Mesa.
Free and open to the public, “Finding hope in adversity: The story of John Bul Dau, Sudan civil war survivor,” is based on Dau’s experiences from surviving the atrocities of war and famine to becoming a university graduate, nonprofit founder and inspirational speaker. Dau celebrates the power we all have to choose to persevere through any challenges we may face, according to a release.
The inspiring presentation is funded through the Maricopa Behavioral Health Grant (HB2691), which is sponsored by the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System and the Maricopa County Community College District, the release states.
“We are honored to have Mr. Dau in our community to share his story that will foster empathy and understanding,” Mia Palmer, MCC psychology professor and Psi Beta National Honor Society advisor, said in the release. “His message is inspirational and can encourage us to become agents of positive change in the world. His legacy of survival and perseverance is uplifting and will inspire our students as they study to work in the behavioral health fields.”
Author of the memoir, “God Grew Tired of Us,” and featured in the award-winning documentary of the same title, Dau has received many prestigious awards including the National Geographic Emerging Explorers Award; a Volvo for Life finalist in the Quality of Life category — which carried a financial contribution to the John Dau Foundation; a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader for 2008; and, together with former Secretary of State Gen. Colin Powell, he received a Most Caring Award from the Caring Institute. Through the John Dau Foundation: Saving Lives in South Sudan, he has raised more than $6 million to build and run Duk Lost Boys Clinic and 10 other clinics in his home village of Duk Payuel and Jonglei State, South Sudan, the release states.
