Local residents appear in documentary about Malawi

MANATEE — Bradenton resident Daniel McNeillie and his friend, Lakewood Ranch High School grad Cassie Yoder, are featured in a documentary of their work with school children in Malawi, Africa, which debuts next week at Lakewood Ranch Cinemas.

The short movie, shot by University of Central Florida film student Erika Rydell, details the harsh life faced by those living in Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world.

Children there daily endure poverty, disease and suffering, with few opportunities or resources to improve, said McNeillie, 22, who is taking this semester off from web design studies at State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota.
PHOTO PROVIDED Dan McNeillie, Erika Rydell, and Cassie Yoder, from left, with Malawi children.

“We went to schools with thousands of kids, kids sitting outside under scorching hot sun, they’re so hungry for knowledge and doing whatever they can. Village after village said, ‘We need a classroom block,’” said McNeillie on Tuesday.

The documentary is slated to debut at 10 a.m., Sept. 26 at Lakewood Ranch Cinemas, 10715 Rodeo Drive, Lakewood Ranch.

The documentary shows students who walk miles just to attend school, and their daily struggle for enough food and water to stay alive, said McNeillie.

The 26-minute movie is titled “Making Your Mark,” and is intended as a call to action to young people to try and help in their communities and in the world, said Kay Yoder, Cassie Yoder’s mother and the executive director of the nonprofit organization called Taking Back Lives, Inc. The organization is also planning a Nov. 14 fundraiser called “Taking Back Lives Walkathon 2009” at Siesta Key Beach, a 5-kilometer walk along the beach.

Cassie Yoder, 19, first went to Africa three years ago and worked in an orphanage for a month, her mother said. Cassie now is attending the University of Florida at Gaineville as a pre-med student, but her philanthropic efforts on Malawi’s behalf continue, Kay Yoder said.

The organization hopes to raise $40,000 in order to build a modest school, McNeillie said. So far, it has probably only raised about $1,000, but he hoped the documentary would spur donations.

“Every dollar is going directly to build the school, we don’t have a salary, no one’s receiving a salary,” said McNeillie. “Other organizations are doing similar work, yes, but they have a lot of overhead. Ours, 100 percent goes directly to it.”

To donate or for information about the documentary, go to the Web site www.takingbacklives.org, or phone (941) 782-7956.