Founding Story – Suwandi Foundation

THE BEGINNING OF THE SUWANDI FOUNDATION

A letter from one of our founders:

Growing up, I always thought that in order to be a leader you had to be at the top. However, as I have grown up, traveled the world, and met new people, I learned that not only can anyone be a leader, but that everybody is a leader.

My journey began after my 18th birthday, as I boarded a plane to Bali with nothing but a carryon bag. My itinerary was simple: teach kids English. But after being welcomed into the community by locals, my itinerary quickly changed. I canceled my return flight home and extended my two month stay to an entire year. I was shown my life’s purpose by students, like Puspa who taught me that a smile can turn someone’s day around, or Rai who taught me that it’s okay to laugh at yourself.

But the most important lesson of all was: Anyone can Inspire, Teach, and Change the World.

During my year in Bali, I was introduced to The WINS Foundation- an NGO committed to supporting the education of children in Indonesia. After returning to Vermont I was able to work with WINS USA; which was a small non-profit that connected US sponsors with students in Indonesia. Two years later, after returning to Bali with our now co-founder, Kaitlynn, we expanded the organization and renamed the non-profit in order to honor a great man, and represent our goals for the future. The Suwandi Foundation was born.

We are forever inspired by the philosophies of the WINS Foundation and still partner with the different branches. By working together, we ensure that children like Puspa and Rai have the freedoms to set goals, and the resources to become universal scholars.

– Lily Slaughter, CEO of The Suwandi Foundation

OUR VALUES

EDUCATE

We firmly believe in the transformative power of education. Our mission is to empower underprivileged students in Bali, Indonesia, by providing them with the educational resources through funding learning centers, assisting in curriculum development, and collaborating on program development.

CONNECT

We are not hero’s. We work for and with communities to produce symbiotic relationships between our volunteers and the people that we support. By creating a space for safe and valuable interactions, the connections made allow both volunteers and students to explore alternative perspectives and develop global citizenship.

EMPOWER

We act when asked. We work alongside local leaders who want to create educational opportunities in their villages. Our goal is to support local innovations to assist in creating lasting solutions that evolve to ensure no group of individuals becomes dependent on temporary fixes for permanent problems.

SUWANDI

Dec 6, 1996-August 28, 2019

I Gede Suwandi Saputra was one of the first people to welcome us to Bali. In a new place on the other side of the world, surrounded by new people and culture, Suwandi, with a huge smile and open arms made us all feel at home.

Devoting his life to providing education, Suwandi inspired us all. By day he was a teacher at Yayasan Widya Sari, but his love for education did not stop in the classroom. At home, kids from around his neighborhood settled onto Suwandi’s cold cement floor seeking help with homework and exchanging messily doodled math equations for extra drawing time.

Suwandi brought joy to every room he walked into, he carried an aura of peace and love and constantly reminded us to always follow our hearts. Suwandi lived his life by Leonardo Da Vinci’s quote, “a life without love is no life at all” to which he would promptly add, “and food without spice is meaningless”.

In August of 2019, Suwandi passed away, leaving behind world of people who smile at the memory of him. After his death, our team talked about the power of Suwandi’s passions, his dreams to help those who needed it, and his love for education. We chose to name this organization after Suwandi not only to honor his legacy, but to ensure that his impact on others did not stop when we lost him.

We want to thank Suwandi’s Family for everything the love they have shared with us. His younger siblings Ayu and Suadi and his mother, Ibu Nengah continue to carry Suwandi’s mission on their shoulders, giving back to their local community in any way possible and always giving us a place to call home.

Terima kasih keluarga kita.