EL CAJON, March 20, 2006 - Waste Management of San Diego employee Benson Deng, a Snapshot program administrator in El Cajon and resident of La Mesa, will receive a San Diego Peacemaker Award on Thursday, March 23, from the National Conflict Resolution Center at its 18th annual Peacemaker Awards.

The awards are given “to outstanding leaders in collaborative problem solving and violence prevention.” One national award-winner and two local award-winners – including Deng – will be honored at the awards program at the Manchester Hyatt on San Diego Bay.

Deng, along with his brother, Alephonsion, and cousin, Benjamin Ajak, were chosen as honorees for writing the courageous book, They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky, along with co-author Judy Bernstein. The book chronicles their life stories as “Lost Boys of Sudan,” who were forced from their homes as young boys and endured a death march of 1,000 miles, facing the threat of death from starvation, crocodiles, bandits and soldiers. Most of the boys who started on the march didn't make it – however, Benson, Alephonsion and Benjamin did, and have shared their amazing story in the book published last summer.

Benson Deng was seven years old when the Sudanese government sent armed Murahiliin soldiers into his small village in southern Sudan. As the families in the village came under attack, the young boys fled, knowing that they would either be slaughtered or conscripted into the Murahiliin army. Benson joined thousands of homeless boys running for their lives from village to village and refugee camp to refugee camp. Benson and his cousin Benjamin Ajak reunited with Alephonsion at the Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya.

After nine tough years on their own in the camp, where they ate starvation rations and desperately tried to acquire an education, they were sent to the United States as part of an international refugee relief program, arriving in 2001. About 100 of the “lost boys” came to San Diego. Benson was hired more than two years ago by Waste Management of San Diego by managers who were impressed by his story of perseverance, as well as his sense of purpose and dedication.

“We are so proud and honored to have Benson as a team member at Waste Management,” said Carl Scherbaum, District Manager. “Benson, his brother and their cousin have overcome unimaginable tragedy and are active, contributing members of the San Diego community, pursuing their educations and serving the community by working hard at their jobs and sharing their story with groups around the county. We are thrilled that the National Conflict Resolution Center is honoring Benson, Alephonsion and Benjamin.”

“I am really happy about this award, especially for the people who have come to understand this sadness and are putting efforts to raise vigilance on the suffering of other, fellow human beings,” said Benson Deng. “I will take this award as their encouragement to do more for others still facing such hardship and in the names of my dear friends, brothers and sisters who suffer and to those who perished in this journey.”

Waste Management, Inc. is the leading provider of comprehensive waste and environmental services in North America. For more information about recycling, log onto www.wm.com. For more information about They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky, visit www.TheyPouredFire.com; for more information about the National Conflict Resolution Center, visit www.ncrconline.com.

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