When Seamus Canning, a San Francisco contractor, recounts his April trip to volunteer at an orphanage for rescued child soldiers in South Sudan, he pulls out a bound book of photographs he took with his iPhone.

As he flips through the pages, he recalls the names of almost every child pictured – those playing soccer with a ball he brought for them, those lying down for a midday nap, and those who were older and carrying guns to protect the orphanage from potential attacks.

“At first, it was real intense with all the conflict in the area,” Canning said. “But once I was with the kids, all those concerns went away. I wanted to do whatever I could to help make their lives better.”