How it all began ~
The Denan Project was founded in Woodbury, Connecticut. Although the project is based in a quaint New England town seemingly removed from the issues that plague the sun-baked Ogaden, its vision reaches across the globe-to help the people of Denan. The Denan Project was founded in 2003 by Dick Young after he traveled to a refugee camp near the village of Denan to film a documentary about the terrible conditions there.
Arriving in the camp adjoining the village, Young found 7,000 people who had been displaced from their homes by civil war, disease, and drought. New people were arriving daily-sometimes as many as 200 in a day-having traveled hundreds of miles and in desperate need of food, water, a doctor, and medicine. Unfortunately, they found almost nothing in the way of medical care and very little food and water. The refugee camp was in a precarious situation, with people dying daily.
When Young returned home to Woodbury, Connecticut-a town whose population is not much bigger than that of Denan-he could not forget what he saw and experienced in the Ogaden. He gathered a group of friends and neighbors and talked to them of the desperate plight of the refugees. The group formed The Denan Project with the shared dream of saving lives and giving hope to the people of Denan. They set themselves a goal that they thought was modest and achievable-to raise $30,000 to set up a small, free clinic, buy medicine for one year and hire an Ethiopian doctor.
The volunteers began to raise money by having gatherings in their homes and by speaking to local organizations. By April 2004, the group had raised enough money to open their tiny clinic in an abandoned, rundown two-room building. Since then, donations have allowed The Denan Project to turn that tiny clinic into a 29-room hospital with a support staff of more than 30 people to run the hospital and related operations. To date, it has treated 55,000 people all for free for a wide range of illnesses and injuries, and has saved many lives.