Lonnie and Mary through the Years

Sept 1-12, 2014
The 'Bina Anugraph' school for children with disabilities in Lembong. The 'XS project' and trash pickers in Jakarta. The 'Kami Satu' orphanage for unwanted children in Bogor. Baptisms in Jakarta and Bandung.

Sept 1 we visited the Bina Anugraph school in Lembong. Edi Rochadi, our driver and translator in Bandung, told us about this school, located right behind the school where his two children attend. The school has 37 children, ages 5-21 and a staff of 10 teachers and volunteers. The children have various disabilities like cerebral palsy, autism, ADHD, downs syndrome, mental retardation, hearing and visual disabilities. A very poor school with few resources. They had a building but the rooms inside were separated by plywood partitions. We are hopeful that we will be able to work with them in the future on providing some much needed resources such as physical therapy equipment, puzzles, desks and chairs.

Mrs Iis Tatin Nurhayati. The chairperson of the Sina Anugraph school and foundation. She began this school in Feb 2003. They receive a small amount of support from the government and otherwise rely on donations for assistance. She said the parents pay some, but 80% of the children attend for free.

Two boys have cerebral palsy and are in need of braces.

Some of the teachers and volunteer staff

The children are taught reading, speaking, music and learning different crafts.

Just seeing these pictures tell the story of how much need they have, but they continue to do their best

Very few resources and learning materials to help the children

Wood and cupboard partitions that create walls used in separating the classrooms

Some of the mothers gathering outside to pick up their children after school. Bina Anugraph also tries to help the parents offering classes on how to parent children with disabilities.

They show Sister Lucherini the many crafts that the children have made.

We take the train each month from Jakarta to Bandung. Just a little over 3 hours. We prefer the train because the traffic on the roads is very unpredictable and the views are spectacular.

The rice fields show the different stages of growing here. Some have just been planted, by hand, each little plant! Other fields have been in for awhile, can you imagine each field being planted one plant at a time by hand?? Who can complain about their job being physically tiring now? Most of the planters are woman.

The valley below. Like a green carpet, always terraced.

Sept 4. The XS Project. We were introduced to this organization by Dr Titi. They are a NGO that has two focuses working with sanitation. First, to identify materials from the garbage that can be recycled and made into products that can then be sold. Second, to use part of the proceeds to help provide education to the children of the parents that work in collecting garbage, and to pay the trash pickers for collecting recyclables rather than sending them to the dump where they will add to the mounds of waste.

This pile is remnants of billboard signs. The materials will be recycled into purses, backpacks, computer cases and other saleable items.

Retno, is the general manager for the XS Project. Here she is showing us seat covers from discarded vehicles. These will be made into purses and other saleable items.

We see these all the time in the grocery stores. Various plastic containers. Here they are meticulously washed by hand to eliminate all the residue and smell. Then they will be dried and made into purses, jackets, other items.

Ochia (bottom picture) has been working for this company for 5 years, sewing the different items. His brother in the black shirt, Verman. They are paid by what they produce.

Some of the finished products

Agus, our driver and translator. I think he likes it!

Gofer's job is product design. What new products can be developed from these materials?

The product showroom. 5% of all sales goes to a scholarship fund to help the children of the trash pickers attend school. 45% of the proceeds go directly to the trash pickers. The remaining funds pay the operations of the facility.

Check out this coat...all from recycled garbage

Some pretty nice portable coolers

This bag is made of recycleable foil packages.

The XS staff. L to R,.Gofer, product development, Juheri, general staff, Najet, finance, Retno, general manager, and Rosmiyati, quality control.

Above was the fun part. Then we went to meet the trash pickers and where they live.

Most of these people come to Jakarta searching for a way to make a better living for their families. They come with virtually no skills and relatively no education. As the pictures will show, they literally live amidst the garbage. They are thus looked as outcasts by the community. Their homes are where the garbage is. As squatters, they are often evicted and then move to the next garbage area. There they set up their own community.

The carts are what the men used to go about the area collecting garbage. Mainly any type of garbage they think they can get paid for. They bring it back here to the garbage dump , and the women and children sort through it. You can imagine the smell and disease that is rampant in these areas.

Behind the walls people live there. And here the children will play

This is a small gathering of children and parents. The children are considered as outcasts and often will drop out of school and work with their parents in collecting, sorting and selling the garbage.

This is a group pre-school and kindergarten age children being taught the English alphabet by 2 volunteers who come to help them learn.

A small medical center is provided through donations to provide some health and hygiene to these people.

Two expatriate women we met, Sheroni (white), and Sonetta, who volunteer their time two days/week to teaching the children. While we were there they were singing the ABC song in English and then in Indonesian with the children

There are of course innumerable needs!!!
We hope we will be able to work with these children and their parents in the near future.

Beautiful little girl who just stared at us with the most serious face!

Of course, despite the circumstances, the people always seem happy. A great attribute!

A one room home for one of the families. It does not matter how big the family may be. This is it!

Taking a break from his work.

This is where they bring their finds and sort it and then sell it to this lady below.

Sorting and selling the garbage

The scales used to see how much it will weigh. they get paid by weight.

As we walked by we caught this family in the middle of the picture eating their lunch. The walls of their home is the garbage. We don't believe you could ever see any more humbling circumstances!

We hope that we get the opportunity to help this community and give them the lift and hope to improve their lives. We see much where we can offer help. What a blessing to belong to a Church that truly cares and teaches us to find ways to reach out and lift others through what we have been given. When we sing that beautiful song, "Because I have Been Given Much," it will mean a bit more to me from here on out.

Sunday Sept. 7, a completely different environment. The baptism of Lely. We had her in our home a few weeks earlier and knew this day would come. A wonderful sweet lady. What a great way to spend our Sunday!! Sister Olsen and Sister Sheffield, wonderful missionaries who helped teach and prepare Sister Lely for this day. Sister Lely next to Sister Lucherini, and her longtime friend who was a huge influence in her life to come into the church, Sister Adeline!

Leaving the church after the baptism. We felt like we were walking on air. It was such a wonderful day.

Sept 9. Visiting the 'Kami Satu' orphanage in Bogor, a suburb of Jakarta.

We were told these are rejected children from rape, failed abortions, and simply unwanted. 30 children from 10 months old to 14.

They have received a donation from a company that trains nannies. 20-25 work here for two weeks to gain experience in their training. A huge benefit to the orphanage

This was a clean and nicely kept facility. They said the children are taught to make their beds and clean their room daily. The older children are expected to help the younger children.

John and Olga are the leaders of this facility. Olga ,seated next to Sister Lucherini, and John next to Elder Lucherini. While they have many nannies to help, Olga says when the children are sick she personally cares for each of them. She said that in one month, all 30 children got the mumps. What wonderful people who have devoted their lives to helping these children.

Sept 13. How fitting to conclude the week by attending the baptisms of 5 people in Bandung. One family of 4. The Edi family, Thomas, his wife Ninni, 16 year old Patricia, and Samuel 13. Pictured here with Thomas's brother who came for the baptisms.

Christina being baptized by her father. We have visited with them many times over the past months and it was wonderful to be here for Christina's special day. Our missionaries are full of faith and fire! We love their devotion to the work here! Miracles are taking place in this part of the vineyard. The seeds have been planted for a long time, now the harvest. There have been many wonderful missionaries who have worked and laid the groundwork and we love their efforts.