BLOOD BROTHER: A STORY OF LOVE AND HOPE by Pamela Powell

"Blood Brother" was nothing like what I predicted it would be.  The title made me picture violence and brutality.  It sounded angry.  It was none of those things.  "Blood Brother" turned out to be a true story about a remarkably typical young man, Rocky Braat, who leaves everything and everyone he knows in the US to travel to a remote part of India.  It is here that he visits an orphanage and finds a place where he is needed.  With these new connections, Rocky carries out extraordinary acts of love and courage.

Rocky's story is similar to many other twenty-somethings.  He is looking for more in life.  He is unsettled.  But this is where Rocky's story diverges from most.  He travels to India and decides to stay.  His best friend from design school, Steve Hoover, listens to Rocky's adventures and can't quite comprehend why his best friend would give up all he had to live in rat infested housing with no running water, and care for mothers and children diagnosed with HIV.  In order to better understand Rocky, Steve visits this desolate and isolated community.  Through Steve's eyes and commentary, we learn more about Rocky, his past, as well as what draws him to these children and families.

"Blood Brother" is a story of faith, hope, and love.  It is a story of how one person can make a difference.  The children are just that...children.  They happen to be sick and ostracized from the schools and community.  They live in less than appealing conditions, but with Rocky's love and guidance, these children continue to be happy and full of hope.  Rocky isn't perfect.  He's human.  He's not the magical cure for AIDS.  But he is what this Indian village needs.  Rocky candidly expresses his ups and downs, his fears, and his emotional attachment to everyone.  We see him flail when he returns to the US.  And we see him thrive in deplorable conditions back in India.

Although many of us can't be Rocky, we can have our eyes opened to what is happening half way across the world.  Children are children wherever they live.  It is through their hope and love of life that perhaps we can better see.  Rocky is a gift to these children and they, in turn are his gift.  He has found his home and his future.


For more information about helping Rocky and these children, go to Blood Brother Film

Click on the link below for a trailer of this film:

Blood Brother Trailer