The former army engineer, with a history of chronic injuries, depression and addiction, was floating somewhere above rock bottom - aimless, traumatised, anchored only by his family, in particular, his wife Tracey, and the promising Rugby League career of his son, future Newcastle Knights player, Corey. But something in the shocking devastation of the tsunami moved him. Within days, Donny Paterson was on a plane to Sri Lanka. Landing in Colombo, he met three fellow travellers and together they took a chance and drove south. Arriving in the shattered village of Peraliya, they found a community without food, water, medicine, homes or livelihood. The events that followed were remarkable - a rescue effort, a village saved, an award-winning documentary, red-carpet treatment at film festivals, and, for Donny, a Cannes penthouse stay as guest of actor Sean Penn. How could this have happened to an ordinary Aussie bloke?