Empowering disadvantaged young people in Indonesia

Dear YCM’s donator on GlobalGiving,

This time, I do not share you an individual highlight’s report. We have to admit that all people, organizations, and countries in the world face tough situation during the covid-19 pandemic. No one ready for this unplanned situation, not to mention with YCM. We were not ready either. Since March 2019, we cannot do our “normal” activities. Crowds and active cheering situation we used to have previous years, changed to quiet and individualistic circumstances. We were not able to meet our friends, colleagues, and relatives. The first three months during the pandemic quarantine, we did not know what to do. Our youth used to come, stay, learn, being protected in our house of dreams, and use up their energy to create positive things had to be in hiatus for a while. We were thinking a lot and took an action for what we can do for our society and our youth. So, we started on sharing foods, maskers produced by our team and prepared some campaigns for our youth about covid-19 and what action we have to do to prevent it.

After the quarantine, we prepared some programs we can do to assist the youth on online basis and practical activities but still applying strict health protocols. We realize that many people have lost their jobs caused by the covid-19 pandemic, to survive they are producing crafts, home foods and drinks, so we launched program for youth on social media marketing and graphic design. Our youth who joined the program learnt on how to make a good package for home industry products and how to market it on social media. We had about 20 youth who learnt and practice the program, they joined both online and practical activities. They also practiced their skill by assisting some “friends” and community’s products.

While some younger youth who still have to attend their formal education from schools, can come to YCM and use YCM’s internet and tools to learn schools’ online lessons. They of course have to obey our strict health protocols. This online school system is tricky for most of our youth. Many of them do not have tools or if they have, they must share the use with other family’s member. Home situation are also not supportive for them to learn the online lesson at home. Their parents are busy to earn money in order to survive and or not educated, they are overwhelmed with their children online school and the condition nowadays. We give the chance to these young people to use our internet, the tools (our computers and laptops), and assistance from our tutors.

We started to do online English conversation lesson in the past two months, especially for YCM’s adolescents, and we continue by extending the program for free to public in January 2021. This program is designed to help young people who do not have any activities and their parents cannot afford to let them to learn English at the course places, as well as to support their online school system that mostly theoretical lessons. This program is also to support the unemployed youth who need the English communication skill, in order to get ready to work again. Meanwhile our gardening and handcrafting team are still working on their projects as usual, unfortunately our tourism team was in a great impact of the pandemic. We are trying to do and design an alternative program for tour and guiding program. 

Another program that we design for 2021 is vlogging program. Our youth is encouraged to make vlog by filming the “view from their window”. YCM’s supporting team will assist them online from afar.

While we are struggling to stay safe and healthy, we try to stay active and bounce back again. We are campaigning the Take and Give Society program with the tagline “Don’t pay it back…Pay it forward” taken and inspired from a 2000 movie PAY IT FORWARD, our hope for a better and safe world, and better future for everyone. Thank you for choosing to donate to us through GlobalGiving. Cannot mention you how grateful we are for all kind and sincere heart who assist us to “Pay It Forward” for everything we received. Happy New Year 2021 everyone!

Since the pandemic hits the world every body tries to survive, not to mention our organization. Thank you so much for all donators who sincerely allow us to survive and to assist others. 

The first months of quarantine following the outbreak in March 2020, we supported communities by producing fabric maskers and distributed the maskers for free to the people who cannot afford to buy them. We also collected some money from the donators and distributed foods and groceries to the people, especially the families of YCM’s member and our neighbors. Until just recently, to lighten the burden of the YCM’s member families, we also share some foods’ materials for them. As we cannot use YCM’s house as a place to gather many people in one time and as the schools’ lesson only can only be done online, we facilitate our space and internet to study online in our place (we apply strict covid protocols and limit the number who can come to our house). The youth who have no internet or equipment to study online, can come to YCM and use our facilities.

YCM’s youths’ families’ background generally are underprivileged with financial hardship. Most of the youths’ parents are casual worker or unemployed. Casual worker in Indonesia means earning ridiculously small and uncertain incomes. They hardly enjoy privileged lives while they have to survive day to day living.

Icha’s family for example. Icha is a young woman (18-year-old) who had to gave up her formal education when she finished her junior school (when she was 15-year-old). She has two other younger siblings whom her parents need to look after for as well. So, Icha should stop dreaming about further education since her parents no longer able to support her for formal education. Her father is an online motorbike taxi driver while her mother is a housemaid with a little income every month. Icha’s father must stop taking passengers during the pandemic and depending on foods or sending goods order (he only get one or two costumers the whole day mostly), well it is not much to support the whole family's member. Her family received some foods’ materials from donators through YCM. She gets an opportunity to study in a “package” school (an afternoon school to catch up formal school lessons and gets a high school certificate). She continues learning skills and knowledge at YCM. During pandemic, we try to support her with necessary skills she loves to do and we pay her transport to come (we can only accommodate few people per day) or to learn online buy lending her a laptop and give her an internet data.

Puja (a 15-year-old boy)’s family more and less experience the same condition with Icha’s family. His father is an online motorbike taxi and his mother is a housewife. Four of them (parents with two kids) live in a small rented “house” and have to experience difficulties to pay the rent and school fees. The situation is really tough for them. Day to day living cost is a challenge for them for sure. YCM assists them on some foods’ materials and a place to learn and internet connection. Puja is an extremely diligent and smart one, he grabs the opportunity to study at YCM’s. He comes early in the morning, sets up his lesson and returns home late in the afternoon everyday.

Bunga is another youth of YCM. Her family is facing a real tough situation. With six other siblings and parents who are casual workers (her father is a cheap accessories vendor and her mother is a housemaid), they cannot afford the online learning system. During the pandemic, her father hardly to sell his accessories caused by the strict rules of the local government due to the covid’s prevention. Day to day necessities are already so difficult for them, the pandemic causes even harder for them and many other families.

Dear donators, we would like to say that your donations allow us to survive. We do not know what else we can say to express our gratitude to you. From the bottom of our hearts, please allow us again to say thank you very much. May we stay healthy and peace within.

Warmest regards and love from us in Bogor Indonesia!!!

Putu and YCM’s family.