Portable walls – the amazing "gedeg"

I am pleased to report that Subur Gemi Nastiti (SGN) from the tiny village of Sekaralas in East Java is still working alongside the community in Bicak and Ngunut. We are now focusing on moving families that are still living in tents into houses.

Many traditional village houses in Java have woven bamboo walls called gedeg. These walls are lightweight, easily carried and erected, yet strong and very hardy.

SGN volunteers from Sekaralas have been working hard sourcing gedeg from around the villages of Sine and Tenden in Ngawi, East Java.

Since the earthquake, the demand for gedeg has soared and it is becoming increasingly difficult to get a good price. We are now paying around Rp 15,000 per sheet, which is about $2.20 Australian – and that is, if we are lucky and manage to put in our order very quickly. As there are many unscrupulous traders taking advantage of the increased demand, and selling each piece on location in Yogyakarta and surrounds for up to Rp 35,000 – that is more than double the asking price in Sine!

The first gedeg distribution-day went without a hitch. During consultation with the community in Bicak and Ngunut, it was decided that houses along the main roads would receive their gedeg first so that these houses can connect to the main electricity grid and lighten up the roads into each village.

Our first load of gedeg consisted of 160 sheets, which we distributed between 26 households.

Rolls of gedeg - our first delivery.

A gedeg weaver from the village of Tenden in Ngawi, East Java.

The rolls of gedeg ready for distribution.

A very strong Ibu Tinem carries a roll of gedeg on her back .

Grandma Karso and Ibu Ngatiyem stand next to their rolls of gedeg.

Much better to carry a roll of gedeg with a man on each end!

What’s left from the Public Kitchen is shared

Once we closed the public kitchen, we did a thorough stock-take and noted that we had plenty of rice, cooking oil, sugar, tea, crockery, cutlery, blankets and soap.

It was decided that everything is to be bundled into packs and distributed among the community. We even purchased a few extra items to make sure that each household received a fair share.

The young people of Bicak and Ngunut lead the way. They did the stocktake, the bundling, packaging and distributing. They did very well.

Here we are weighing the rice into individual bundles.

Here we are bundling little portions of cooking oil into plastic bags.

Here we are counting the plates for distribution.

Distributing bundles of rice, cooking oil, sugar and tea.

Distributing blankets and soap in Ngunut.

Towards a new Phase - Last meal in Public Kitchen

Over a month after the disaster, the Local Government in Klaten finally have their systems in order, and are distributing the promised “living costs” allowance of Rp 90,000 (approx $13 Australian) per household.

Fortunately, just about every household in Bicak and Ngunut received this assistance. For although the local government are doing their best, the scale of the problem has meant that some communities are still waiting.

Following the distribution of this assistance, the Bicak and Ngunut community decided to close the public kitchen.

All funds will now go towards rebuilding, since that is where there is the greatest need.

Cooking rice for the whole community - literally! All 475 people from Bicak and 345 from Ngunut.

Plates of rice neatly stacked, almost ready to be eaten and enjoyed.

Taking turns to get a plate.

Pak Mardi is in charge of making sure that everyone gets a plate.

Waiting quietly while the meal is being plated.

Cleaning up after our last meal in the public kitchen.

Sekaralas Kids Say Hi To Their Friends In Bicak & Ngunut

When I last returned to Sekaralas, I passed on the letters from the children of Bicak and Ngunut to the children of Sekaralas.

Understandably, the children felt great empathy for their new friends and wanted to write back immediately to pass on their sympathy, their prayers and their friendship.

Here are letters from Dela (9), Atut (11) and Novia (9) to their new friends in Bicak and Ngunut.

Sari

Letter from Dela - Surat dari Dela

Hello my friends, how are you all going? I hope you are well and healthy. My name is Dela, and I am in grade 3 at SD Sekaralas 1. I know from the newspaper that a lot of homes are ruined in your area and that some children have lost their parents.

Are you back at school yet? The new school year started two weeks ago in Sekaralas. How about you, when will you be allowed back at school? I hope that help comes soon so you can go back to school. I pray that you and your family will always be safe.

Sweet greetings
Dela

Hallo kawan-kawan, bagaimana keadaan di sana? Semoga teman-teman baik-baik dan sehat-sehat saja. Namaku Dela, kelas 3 SD Sekaralas I, Ngawi, Jawa Timur. Aku tahu dari surat kabar rumah-rumah roboh dan ada anak kehilangan orang tua.

Apakah kawan-kawan sudah melanjutkan sekolah? Aku sudah sekolah hampir 2 minggu di kelas yang baru. Bagaimana sekolahmu? Semoga baik-baik saja ya. Semoga bantuan segera datang dan teman-teman dapat terus sekolah. Aku selalu mendoakan kawan-kawan dan keluarga kalian. Semoga Tuhan selalu melindungi kalian.

Salam manis,
Dela

Letter from Atut to Kurniawati - Surat dari Atut kepada Kurniawati

Hello Kurniawati, how are you? I hope you and your family are well.

Let me introduce myself, my name is Atut and I am in grade 6 at SDN Ngrambe 1.

I think I also felt the earthquake on 27 May 2006, however slightly… I was just about to go to school.

I have a relative who lives in Jetis in the district of Bantul who lost his house because of the earthquake. We are very fortunate that his whole family are safe and no one was injured.

People around my village felt a slight tremor. My heart was beating very fast when I felt the tremor that morning. Now I feel unsettled.

After reading your story, I felt very sad. I hope that you will find the strength to get through the terrible ordeal that has befallen Klaten.

This is it for now. I hope that I haven’t been too forward in my letter. I do not wish to offend you in any way. I wish we can all be happy forever.
Sweet greetings
Atut


Hallo Kurniawati. Bagaimana keadaanmu dan keluarga? Baik-baik saja bukan?

Perkenalkan, nama saya Atut, kelas 6 SD. Nama SD saya SDN Ngrambe I, Ngawi, Jawa Timur.

Pada hari Sabtu, 27 Mei 2006, saya juga sedikit merasakan goncangan gempa itu. Pada saat itu saya hendak ke sekolah. O…ya, saudaraku yang berada di Kecamatan Jetis, Kabupaten Bantul, Yogyakarta rumahnya juga roboh. Untung saja saudaraku dan keluarganya tidak terluka. Saat saya merasakan guncangan gempa, hati saya berdebar-debar. Rasa gelisah selalu menghantuiku setelah gempa terjadi. Di rumah sekitar desa saya, hanya merasakan goncangan saja.

Setelah mendengar ceritamu tadi, saya merasa terharu. Perasaan saya juga sangat sedih dan saya berharap kau di sana agar tetap sabag dan tabah dalam menghadapi cobaan yang menimpa Klaten.

Demikian cerita dan saya dan saya mohon maaf apabila ada kata-kata saya yang menyinggung perasaanmu. Saya berharap kamu selalu ceria di sepanjang waktu.

Salam manis, Atut

Letter from Novia - Surat dari Novia

Hey there friends, what’s up? Good? I hope all my friends are healthy and happy.

What's your name? My name is Novia Amalina, and I am in grade 3 at SD Sekaralas 1, which is the name of my Primary school in Sekaralas.

Is it true my friends, that you have lost loved ones? I know from the news on TV and in the newspapers. The news makes me very sad. It makes me want to cry.

The new school year has just started and I’m now in Grade 3. I was the first prizewinner in Second Grade and the prize was five books. What grade are you in? What’s your school like? I hope your school is OK. Can you get to school easily? Do you have enough to eat and drink? Where do you get your clothes?

Keep your spirit strong, my friends. I will pray for you. My warmest wishes.

Your friend
Novia Amalina

Hai teman-teman. Apa kabar? Baik? Semoga teman-teman sehat-sehat saja. Nama kamu siapa? Namaku Novia Amalina, kelas 3 SD Sekaralas I, Ngawi, Jawa Timur. Kawan-kawan apa betul kehilangan keluarga? Aku tahu dari TV dan surat kabar. Aku merasa sedih sekali. Aku sampai menangis-nangis. Aku sekarang sudah kelas 3 SD. Aku juara 1 dan mendapatkan 5 buku. Kamu sekarang kelas berapa? Bagaimana keadaanmu sekolah kamu? Semoga sekolahmu baik-baik saja ya. Bagaimana makan dan minim kamu? Darimana kamu mendapatkan baju? Apakah kamu bisa sekolah dengan lancar? Semoga teman-teman tetap bersemangat. Aku mendoakan kalian. Salam untuk kalian.

Aku kawanmu,
Novia Amalina

Help from near and far; milk, biscuits and mattresses

Subur Gemi Nastiti (SGN) is a small community development group working to fan grass-roots entrepreneurialism in the Village of Sekaralas in East Java.

SGN are working with the community in Bicak and Ngunut to coordinate volunteers and donations from other parts of Java and indeed, the world (thank you to our friends in London, Armidale, Boston and San Francisco!)

The photographs and updates in this blog are from Sari (SGNManager). Sari has been working tirelessly making links between those who can help and those who need help, whether it is help from around the corner, or farther away.

Help from around the corner

The village exchange program has been successful in fostering cross-village links, which will endure well into the future. This program facilitates people from Sekaralas to come to Bicak and Ngunut to assist in the recovery effort, and gives people from Bicak and Ngunut an opportunity to rest and recharge in the village of Sekaralas.

Help from farther away

Recently, thanks to help from friends in Boston and San Francisco, some milk, biscuits, medicines and mattresses were distributed to the people of Bicak and Ngunut.

Distributing mattresses.












Andri enjoys his ice-drink, while Rosyid takes care of the 2 cartons of milk.

Here kids are lining up for some milk and biscuits.












Here women are lining up for a supply of headache tablets and cough medicine.

A shy Hatir, holding his carton of milk says "thank you!"

Contributions from London

In the first week of July - during a trip to London, I (Chandra) was asked to deliver some money from communities in London for the Earthquack victims. As soon as i got back to Indonesia, I transfered the money to Sari in Jogyakarta, but was not able to report on this blog immediately, due to health problems.

The money was kindly raised by the following:
1. The Sekar Gedhogan Community Gamelan Orchestra and KALIMANTAN, Camden, London (150 pounds)
2. Wesley Square Community, London (300 pounds)
3. St. James Senior Girls School (150 pounds)

Special thanks goes to May, from the St James Senior Girls School and Wesley Square Community - London for the special fundraising efforts...

Student Teachers Teach about Resilience and Faith in Bicak

In the aftermath of the earthquake, some are finding solace in their faith. In many ways, this has fostered a sense of resilience and community spirit.

While the Children’s Centre is used for all sorts of activities, when a few days ago, six student teachers came from Yogyakarta to teach Arabic, the children of Bicak were enthusiastic.

They are keen to learn to read and write Arabic so that they may gain a deeper understanding of the teachings of the Qur'an.

Of course, they also learnt to sing a number of catchy songs, and there was time to play games as well.

Here, eight-year old Bagas is reading the Qur'an. His teacher says that he is very good.

Andri, a volunteer teacher is reading a story to the children.

What a studious bunch they are!

Enjoying a drink of milk and a biscuit!

Here is Umi and Dian. They've just had a religious lesson at the Children's Centre in Bicak. Even though they can't read or write in Arabic yet, they said it was fun.