The Story

Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission released its final report this week. It looks back over decades of economic unrest and war that led to thousands of deaths and countless displaced Liberians. Emmanuel Dolo was a young boy in Monrovia when the Liberian civil war separated him from his family. He later learned his father was killed in the violence. After he watched a woman die in the street, Emmanuel vowed that when he grew up, he'd find a way to help people.

All this week, to commemorate the New Year, Dick will be talking with people who have made big changes in their lives…in one way or another. Shannon Hayes always thought she’d be an academic. She earned her  PhD but then decided not to follow the traditional career path. Instead she’s raising cattle.

Roy Kim grew up in North Korea during the Korean War. When rumors circulated in his hometown that the United Nations planned to drop an atomic bomb, Roy fled the country with his father.

Ned Breslin has spent twenty years trying to bring clean water to people in the developing world. While many people who do that kind of work tout their successes, Ned likes to talk about his failures. He says each one has taught him a little more about the magnitude of the challenges, and what it will take to make a difference. Photo: Ned's picture of Dona Fatima, the woman he met in Mozambique.