RALEIGH -- Dozens of Triangle residents gather to paint tents with messages of hope to the people of Darfur, the war-plagued region of Sudan.

"We are painting squares which signifies the loss of the displaced people but at the same time it focuses on the ability to change loss into hope," said Flo Singer with the Interfaith Coalition to Save Darfur.

But change has been slow in coming to the region torn apart by violence.

President Bush is among those who've called the crisis genocide.

"It doesn't get better, unfortunately it’s getting worse and worse," said Mohamed Yahya, a refugee of Darfur who was a student when he helped alert the world about Darfur's problem.

Now he hopes Tents of Hope will help further the movement for peace.

"It's unfair for genocide to continue and it’s unfair that we keep watching it,” said Yahya. “All citizens, the people who are here today they have that kind of caution, they are very aware to make a change."

A change people hope comes soon to a region where innocent lives are being lost and peace seems like a far-off prospect.

One-hundred cities across the nation are participating in Tents of Hope. In November, all the tents will be displayed on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

From there, they'll be sent to Darfur.