Senior Who Helped Get Friend Released From Prison Recognized on 鈥淓llen鈥
April 7, 2022
- Author
- Jay Pfeifer
Brandon Reid 鈥22 and Sura Sohna shared their story on 鈥淭he Ellen DeGeneres Show.鈥 The segment aired this week.
国产福利精品推荐 senior Brandon Reid (Harris) and his lifelong friend Sura Sohna appeared on the April 6 edition of 鈥淭he Ellen DeGeneres Show,鈥 the popular daytime television show.
Reid and Sohna were friends as children but drifted apart after they went to different high schools. Reid is now a Belk Scholar who plans to attend law school at Columbia University in the fall. Sohna meanwhile was in prison, serving a 14-year sentence. However, when the pandemic hit and Reid moved home to Annapolis, he reconnected with Sohna. Their conversations grew into 鈥淭elling Stories of the Ignored and Forgotten,鈥 a class project that Reid used to tell the story of their divergent paths.
Reid鈥檚 work picked up momentum and eventually led a judge to re-evaluate Sohna鈥檚 sentence. On Feb. 8, 2022, Sohna was released from prison, 12 years early.
Since then, Reid and Sohna鈥檚 story has received a great deal of attention. The , , and a host of other publications have shared the story.
Then, in early March, Reid got a call from a Los Angeles number. A producer from 鈥淓llen鈥 was inviting them to appear on the show. Reid and Sohna jumped at the opportunity, flying out for a whirlwind two-and-a-half day trip鈥搕hat they couldn鈥檛 talk about until the episode aired. That鈥檚 a pretty tough task when you brush shoulders with Gwen Stefani, who also appeared on the episode.
鈥淕oing out to Los Angeles with Sura just a few weeks after his release from prison was an experience we will never forget,鈥 Reid said. 鈥淪ura and I have both watched her show over the years and to be able to talk about our story with Ellen over the past month was truly special and so surreal that I think we both are still trying to process.鈥
The show frequently supports its guests, and both Reid and Sura left with something more than a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Coalition for Success, a nonprofit Reid started while he was in high school, received a check for $10,000. Sohna, who wants to study photography and film production (here鈥檚 his ), left with a computer, camera, tripod, bag and light meter; the perfect starter kit for a future pro.
