ImageBorn in the rural village of Mayen-Abun in Twic County, South Sudan, cousins Sebastian Maroundit and Mathon Noi were less than ten years old when the war came to their village and separated them from their families. They escaped to Ethiopia only to experience war again within 4 years. In 1991, they escaped from Ethiopia and spent a year walking across the hot desert to a refugee camp in Kenya. In this camp, both were educated through the 8th grade. In 2001, Sebastian and Mathon were selected as two of the 3,800 who would resettle in the United States.

Building Minds in Sudan, Inc. ("BMISS") is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities to African villagers in South Sudan. The organization seeks to restore hope by providing education for people adversely affected by conflict in Sudan. Their aim is to build primary schools, first in the village of Mayen-Abun in South Sudan and provide gender equity through promoting education for girls.

Pads for Girls is a project that was initiated to enable girls to attend school every day, especially during their menstrual cycle. The pads are cotton, washable and reusable. In this male-dominated culture, the girls are teased frequently by the boys especially during their monthly cycle.  Therefore, BMISS's next project is to build a school for girls.