The director of an upcoming documentary that details the harrowing story surrounding Liberia’s 2014 Ebola battle revealed during a sit-down interview with Faithwire last week one of the most memorable scenes from his time shooting the film.
Arthur Rasco, director of “Facing Darkness,” recalled meeting a man named Joseph — an individual whose story reminds us all that there are many lingering after-effects following a massive health crisis that people sometimes forget to consider.
For instance, Joseph, who is in his 20s, lost more than a dozen of his family members to Ebola. These individuals left behind scores of orphans — children who had no place to go after their parents tragically perished.
“(Joseph) lost 17 family members … and he’s telling us the stories, and then he lists all of his family members one by one by one,” Rasco recalled. “I’m interviewing him and I’m like, ‘Joseph, you’ve been through so much.'”
Now, here’s the truly crazy part of the story. Joseph told Rasco that he’s now caring for all of the kids who were left behind, essentially adopting his cousins, nieces and nephews. And Joseph said these young children are now giving him hope for the future.
“Joseph was in his 20s at the time of filming; he didn’t have any biological children,” Rasco said. “He had now, because of Ebola, 16 children living under his roof to take care of … he now had to take them under (his wing), and hearing that … was a curveball.”
Watch Rasco discuss Joseph as well as the Ebola crisis below:
Rasco also discussed the other subjects at the center of “Facing Darkness,” including how his organization, Samaritan’s Purse, handled learning that two American staff members on the ground — Dr. Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol — had contracted Ebola.
“The unthinkable happened,” Rasco said, of the July 2014 events, noting that the staff initially thought it was “a death sentence” for Brantly and Writebol. “That just threw our whole team at Samaritan’s Purse into a tailspin.”
In the end, though, the two medical professionals survived.
As Faithwire previously reported, “Facing Darkness” will tell the unbelievable story surrounding Liberia’s battle with Ebola and the role that Franklin Graham’s organization, Samaritan’s Purse, played in helping fight against the disease. Set for release nationwide during a one-night-only showing on March 30, 2017, the movie will take viewers deep inside the harrowing ordeal.
Watch the trailer below:
Graham previously told Faithwire that he had a knot in his stomach and was overtaken by hopelessness after he received a call in July 2014 stating that Brantly had contracted Ebola. It was a challenging moment that truly shook Graham to his core.
“I didn’t even know how to pray. It was a desperate kind of prayer, ‘God why?’” he candidly admitted during a recent interview with Faithwire. “Because I knew Dr. Kent Brantly was going to die, and there was nothing I could do. My faith was very thin at that point (and I felt no hope).”
Little did Graham know that his valiant effort to save Brantly — a medical missionary serving in Liberia when the Ebola crisis touched off in 2014 — would pay off, and that his bold choice to keep his personnel in the region would save lives.
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