The realm of social action and tzedakah is vast and intimidating. Many of us stand in the face of suffering, grief and oppression and wonder how on earth we could make even the smallest difference. You can imagine, then, that when I learned about these two teenagers, each of whom is making a difference in the lives of literally hundreds—even thousands—of refugees in Darfur, I wasn’t only humbled—I was floored.

A little over a year ago, a new congregation, Beth Shalom, was formed in central Florida. Part of any congregation’s responsibility is service to the community, so I looked for a way to do my part.

It is a massive problem when a genocide like the one in Darfur is going under the radar. News channels and other media outlets have shed little light on the situation. In October 2005, my friend Arielle Wisotsky my brother, David Messinger, and I formed Help Darfur Now, an organization devoted to spreading awareness of the Darfur crisis and to helping the victims of the genocide.