Over the past 20 years, AIDS and war have claimed the parents of 2.4 million Ugandan children.When Alexis Hefley first visited the country,, in 1993, she saw the children's sorrow, but the former Texas banker also spotted "a world of possibility".She watched as they danced for tourists to earn money, and she had a thought: If people in America could see them perform, they'd support them too. The children's passion and talent inspired Hefley to work with the kids at an orphanage in Kampala, the capital city of Uganda, to organize a traveling dance troupe .The goals: to give the problems in Uganda a human face, to raise awareness and to raise money. The first tour touched down at six American cities in 1994.Today, the 22-member troupe, known as the Spirit of Uganda, travels across America every two years.The young performers bring their energy and joy to audiences across the U.S.and help support hundreds of Ugandan orphans back home.Among the young dancers, some earn scholarships to attend the U.S.colleges, and then return to their country to help rebuild it. Photojournalist Douglas Menuez first photographed the troupe in 2006 -?a project that led to his new book, Transcendent Spirit, from which these images are drawn.At each performance, the dancers' faces show pure joy, quite an achievement given the hardships they've faced."They look to the future, not the past," explains Menuez."They embrace beauty and good in the world." As one dancer puts it, "People think we have lost our parents.We've had so many problems.But then they see us perform.They see our smiles.And they learn that life goes on." What do we learn about the Spirit of Uganda?
It was started by a journalist. It travels across the U.S.annually. It consists of two dozen performers. Its dancers have chances to study in the U.S.