Dayna Curry

Dayna Curry (born November 4, 1971) is an American citizen, who was held a prisoner by Taliban government of Afghanistan in 2001. She befriended fellow aid worker Heather Mercer while attending Antioch Community Church in Waco, Texas. In 2001 the pair were part of a German-based missionary group called Shelter Now International when they were imprisoned by the Taliban for proselytization. Their captivity coincided with the September 11 attacks and the beginning of the US-led War in Afghanistan. In November 2001, Curry and her fellow workers were rescued from Taliban captivity by US military forces.

Early life Curry was raised in Forest Hills, Tennessee. In 1989, she graduated from Brentwood High School in Brentwood, Tennessee and went to Baylor University in Waco, Texas. A social work major, Dayna volunteered at the Waco Center for Youth (a residential facility treats teenagers with emotional and behavioral problems) while she was attending Baylor. After graduation, Curry took a job as a social worker at a high school for troubled teens in Waco.

Dayna Curry and Heather Mercer got to know each other in Waco when they both joined the Antioch Community Church, an evangelical, non-denominational church.

Return to the United States After their release and subsequent return to the United States, Curry and Mercer met with President George W. Bush at the White House on November 26, 2001. The two co-authored a book entitled Prisoners of hope: the story of our captivity and freedom in Afghanistan, that was published in 2002.