Twenty years ago, Maggie Doyne was an 18-year-old high school grad taking a gap year to explore the world. Her travels led her to a riverbed in Nepal by chance – or perhaps fate – where she saw children cracking rocks to survive. That moment sparked a series of life-changing steps that transformed the Moorestown native into the mother of more than 50 children and the founder of a haven for Nepal’s most vulnerable.

Her journey is the focus of “Between the Mountain and the Sky,” a new documentary directed by her husband, Canadian filmmaker Jeremy Regimbal. The film, which has already raised nearly $1 million for Doyne’s BlinkNow Foundation, captures the stunning beauty of Nepal alongside the daily challenges and triumphs of her work. It has struck a chord with audiences at film festivals across the globe, from Telluride to Rome, earning awards like Best Documentary and Audience Choice. It is expected to be in theaters later this year.

Last summer, the couple and some of the children traveled the film festival circuit, watching the documentary with viewers who were inevitably moved by the story. 

“It’s indescribable to see your life and kids on screen,” she says. “It’s not easy putting yourself out there like this, but it’s helping people see the human side of this work and why it matters. When people walk out of the theater crying, inspired, changed – that’s why we did this. That’s the power of art.”

Regimbal shot the film over nearly a decade of their life together, blending footage he captured with archival photos and videos dating back to the early days. It offers an intimate look at the evolution of Doyne’s life and mission, spanning nearly 20 years of challenges, growth and personal transformation. Watching it, however, was not easy for her.

“For years, I avoided watching any of it,” she says. “But this summer, it was time – I had to sign off on legal stuff. I couldn’t put it off any longer.” 

Even then, she approached it slowly. “I could only handle 10 or 15 minutes at a time. It hit me so hard, but I knew I had to get through it. And every time we show the film, I feel a little lighter – it’s healing to share the journey.”

The journey began in 2005, when Doyne decided to take a break before college to travel. Her gap year led her first to India, where Doyne spent months reflecting on her life. “There was all this expectation about what you’re supposed to do, and I thought, ‘Wait, why am I rushing straight into college?’” Doyne says. “I thought maybe by learning about myself, I’d learn more about the world. But it wasn’t like, ‘I’m going to go help people.’ That came later.”

The final leg of her journey brought her to Nepal, a country reeling from more than a decade of civil war. The conflict had orphaned, impoverished and displaced countless children. In Surket, Nepal, which Doyne describes as one of the poorest corners of the world, she saw children as young as 3 – undernourished, unhoused and unschooled – breaking rocks to sell for mere pennies.

Doyne returned to New Jersey with a conviction that she had to act. She cashed in her babysitting savings – $5,000 – and bought land in Surkhet, where she envisioned building a school and home for those children. That became the thriving Kopila Valley Children’s Home and School.

“It was moment by moment, kind of question by question, and an unraveling of sorts,” she says. “One moment led to the next, and then thousands of miles later, I found myself in a place I wasn’t supposed to be.”

In the nearly 20 years since, her BlinkNow Foundation has expanded to include a school with 500 students, an orphanage currently housing 51 kids, a women’s center and a health clinic. Her approach – rooted in creating spaces where children and families thrive – has earned global recognition, including being named CNN Hero of the Year in 2015.

The documentary isn’t just a chronicle of BlinkNow’s growth. It’s also a deeply personal story about love and loss. One of its most emotional moments is the loss of Ravi, a malnourished, abandoned baby who became the heart of the Kopila family. The entire family poured their love into Ravi, helping him grow from a frail infant into a thriving toddler. But his bright future was tragically cut short by an accidental drowning.

Ravi’s passing brought Doyne to one of her lowest points. Her family took her back to New Jersey to grieve, but she soon found herself at a pivotal meeting in Los Angeles, where she had planned to take Ravi with her. It was there that she encountered Regimbal. Their connection grew into a partnership in life and a shared commitment to sharing the stories of the children at Kopila.

“I can’t erase what these kids have lost,” Doyne says. “But I can make their holidays special, remember their birthdays and make sure they have a really good party,” she says in the film. “You have to go through hard things, and you have to make a choice. You have to choose love again. You have to choose joy again. I’ve seen it. I’ve seen what love does. It’s the thread that connects us all.”

As Doyne and Regimbal built their life together, they also added two biological children to the mix. Their daughter Ruby Sunshine is 6 and now in first grade at Kopila, while their toddler son Everest attends daycare alongside his “brothers and sisters.”

“I used to say I wanted to build the school I’d want my children to go to and the home I’d want them to live in,” Doyne says. “In a way, we’ve done that – created a place where any child, from anywhere, can have an amazing childhood.”

Life in Nepal is anything but quiet. “My kids don’t know any different,” she says. “It’s a little paradise most days, and it’s never lonely.” 

As the family makes frequent trips to their home of origin and welcomes a constant stream of visitors from North America, Maggie says her two worlds are growing smaller and more interconnected.

“Ruby is starting to connect the dots, seeing the differences and asking questions,” she says. “She’s wise beyond her years.”

The couple now find themselves raising children who are the same age Doyne was when she went on that pivotal gap year. “We’re navigating first jobs, relationships, and all the challenges of young adulthood,” she says. “At the same time, I’m starting over with little ones. It’s like being a new mom again, but with more wisdom and a deeper understanding of how fleeting it all is.”

SJ Mag readers may recall an excerpt from Doyne’s memoir “Between the Mountain and the Sky, A Mother’s Story of Love, Loss, Healing, and Hope,” published in the May 2022 issue. She wrote about her younger self, and what led to such bold steps into the unknown – a theme that continues to resonate as she reflects on her life’s unexpected path.

“I love where I was born,” she says. “Growing up in a community that valued education and children made me who I am. When you’re given that kind of gift, it’s in you to give it back.”