Travel Report Jasinga 2005 by Els Geerts
Finally the time arrived…Els & Arnold went for a working visit to Jasinga by the end of October 2005. We would like to note the fact that shortly before their departure, two fabulous people who wish to stay anonymous, sponsored one air-ticket to Indonesia.
Els got a very long list with assignments from the board of members of Yayasan Jasinga.
They didn’t have to suffer from boredom, that’s for sure! They worked incredibly hard and finished the whole list + many extra things.
A short report of their visit is written below:
“Having arrived at the school we immediately knew why we made all the effort, the school looked as terrible as the year before…or even worse. They made an effort to fix some classrooms but unfortunately that did not work out and looked terrible.
Visiting the local people, families and school kids in the village, we were assured that the money donated by our supporters have been spent an will be spend in a very good way. Soon, these kids will be able to go to a school building which is save, clean and equipped, and the parents are supported financially paying the fees for school. The economical situation is bad, the unemployment rate and the inflation are very high and the daily living costs are increasing continuously.
Despite the exhausting trip, the humid tropical heat, the many many impressions, the very basic circumstances in which we are staying, despite everything…we were able to spend our time very efficient and productive with the amazing help of the friendly, helpful and caring locals and our contact person in Indonesia.
The most important- and soon the most visible – result of this visit is the start of the first part of the renovation of sekolah 4 in December 2005. We did all the necessary paperwork. All the details were confirmed and agreements were made. The school team and the children were very excited. They were looking forward to the start of the renovation and couldn’t wait any longer!
We felt very privileged being able to see with our own eyes how alarming the situation was and that we could decide, discuss and agree upon what had to be done with the money of our supporters. We would like to thank all people and volunteers in the Netherlands for their support and for giving the children in Jasinga a chance to work on a better future.
The pictures show a couple of things I have been able to do for the Foundation and the people in Jasinga, Indonesia.”
