1. Building hope in Indonesia
• Global Village 12384 • 2 simple, strong houses for 2 homeless families • 21 volunteers from
• February - March 2012 • 200 students in 1 local public school 10 countries
• Git Git, Bali, Indonesia • clean water infrastructures for up to 100-families • 30 generous donors

2. Building houses for the poor in my birthplace
Indonesia was something that I had wanted
to do for a long time. In Feb 2012, the three-
year wait was finally over when I joined 20
other volunteers from nine countries for a
two-week journey that eventually changed
the lives of two families in the most
fundamental way. We collaborated with the
locals, immersed ourselves in their culture
and inspired them, particularly the young
ones, of the brighter future that lies ahead. It
truly was the experience of a lifetime...
Growing up in Indonesia and having survived a
bloody uprising in 1998, I understand the frustration
of the poor who lack basic infrastructure, such as
housing, to live a decent life. Hearing about Habitat
for Humanity for the first time in 2009, I instantly
thought of organising a team for a build in the
country. Unfortunately, at the time, I had neither the
experience nor construction expertise to lead, so I
decided to join Neale’s and Heather’s team in
Malaysia, where I had a time of my life! The
moment I heard of this trip in late 2011, I signed up
right away, knowing that I will build with seasoned
Habitat volunteers in a country that means so much
to me. GIVING SHELTERS FOR TWO FAMILIES IN DIRE NEED
Upon my arrival in Bali, I was amazed to meet such When one thinks of Bali, one will imagine an island
a diverse team of 21 volunteers from 9 countries. paradise with beautiful beaches and tourist attractions.
With backgrounds covering business – large and That, unfortunately, is not the case with the villagers of
small, academics, government, non-profit and skills Goblek where we did our build for the two-week period.
such as rocket science, marketing, management, The village is located at the northern, mountainous area of
investment banking, biological science, project Bali where villagers do not have the same access to
management, consulting, carpentry and arts, I opportunities as their counterparts from the coastal areas
knew I would have an incredible time! In addition, do. Not only are they so isolated from the other Balinese,
this would be different to the last one, because it’s they also struggles to get access to basic needs, such as
in my birthplace. Everything looked familiar but I clean water - 3 km hike up and down the mountain with
wasn’t in holiday mood - I was there to make a buckets of water is a daily routine for these people.
difference.
When we arrived at the build site for the first time, we were
greeted by friendly locals who were very keen to work with
us in the next 2 weeks. At 1,000 m above sea-level, I was
pleasantly surprised to find the significantly milder
temperature than that of Malaysia and the breathtaking
scenery. We quickly split ourselves into two teams and
started our work with our beneficiaries, Sukiasa and
Budiarta families, as well as local workers and kids! We
dug trenches and septic tanks, laid foundations, erected
walls and installed the tin roofs together with these
heartwarming people. At the end of the two weeks, not
only did we give Goblek village and the two families two
strong houses, some artists in the team also managed to
decorate the interiors with stylish colours and patterns!
Neale Kemp Australia Andy Culley USA Hal Taylor USA
Heather McIlhany USA Sarvin Haghighi Iran Danielle Eely Canada
Jacquiline Johnson USA Amy Mai USA/China Scott Voysey Canada
Emily Kenny USA John Riccardi USA
Maureen Malley Canada
Laura Schrage USA/Germany Australia/
Rita McCaffrey USA Will Edwards
Matt Hodgson Canada Singapore
Mohsen Kazma Dubai Rima Sirhan Palestine
Australia/
Aswin Andrison
Andre Ruoti USA Indonesia Michael Feinglass USA
Copyright © 2012 by Aswin Andrison Page 1

3. IMMERSING INTO THE LOCAL CULTURE Personally, the most moving moment was when we had
Born and raised in Indonesia, I speak Bahasa Indonesia our closing ceremony at the build site. Pak Nengah
fluently. This came in handy when we interacted with Sukiasa, one of the two beneficiaries, emotionally said
the locals and I did everything I could help my team to us “We are really grateful for your generosity, working
mates learn some Indonesian words. When they very hard with us and providing us with beautiful homes.
learned some words, some of them were cheeky Finally, we have roofs to shelter us at night and the
enough to combine words into meaningless, but children no longer need to be drenched from the
hilarious-sounding phrases, which helped breaking the monsoon rain. All of these are possible because of each
ice and built intimate relationships with the locals. and every one of you. If you happen to come back to
Bali one day, please, please visit us again here in
In addition to learning the language, my teammates Goblek! We will welcome you with open hearts…”
immersed themselves into the local cultures by visiting a
local cultural show in which we played the traditional Hearing these sincere words, I thought I did quite well to
instrument, gamelan, and danced energetically with the successfully hold my tears. But when the local builders,
locals! Whilst I was familiar with gamelan and Balinese whom I talked to afterwards, told me that I was the first
dance, I was struck by the energy and cheerfulness of Indonesian-born volunteer to ever participate in their
the musicians and dancers - we really had a wonderful many builds and that I have set an example for many
time! others to follow, I was extremely humbled and tears
started running down my cheeks.
There are heroes in this world. Some fought in battles
and brought back victories. Others fed the poor and
liberated the oppressed from tyrannies. Whilst my
mates went to Bali not just to build houses but also to
have a bit of fun and time off from their busy lives, they
gave the beneficiaries homes - the most basic
prerequisite for families to flourish. In addition, they
have inspired the locals to do the same if, one day, they
are in a position to do so. With or without them realising,
they have changed the lives of these people. They,
undoubtedly, have become heroes in the eyes of these
people and will be remembered for a long, long time. I
personally have found more meanings in life and would
like to sincerely thank my team leaders - Heather and
Neale, team mates, donors and supporters for their
unwavering support to make this incredible endeavour
possible.
DELIVERING PROFOUND IMPACTS
Needless to say, the locals were extremely thankful of
our work. Not only did we provide shelter for two needy
families and spark the local economy by purchasing
goods, such as raw materials, labours and food, we
also got the children from the neighbourhood involved
and became examples for them to always help others
as much as they can. After playing multiple games of
soccer and working closely with them at the build site,
we also visited their school to make them aware of the
world beyond their village. On a world map, we told
them where we come from, how our home countries
are like and what we do. The kids were amused to
meet people with backgrounds beyond their
imaginations! Hal, the rocket scientist who used to
design space shuttles and work on multiple NASA
launches, told them to work hard in his address. He
said “If all of you study hard enough, the first
astronauts to walk on the surface of planet Mars will be Bali was only the beginning of our work there. In the
among you.” mountainous region of Goblek, water is scarce and
the villagers need to walk at least for 3 km to collect
water on daily basis, in addition to harvesting rain
water with traditional equipment. Thanks to the
generosity of my donors - we raised $2,400 in
addition to the primary donations accumulated for the
two houses. We are currently working with Habitat
Bali to finance an upcoming project: installing fresh
water and sanitation infrastructures for up to 100
families in the area.
Copyright © 2012 by Aswin Andrison Page 2

4. GV12384 Team Leaders, Neale Kemp and
Heather McIlhany, posing with the completed
house and the new happy owner, pak Nengah.