Blog
Travel
I am reminded of the Norman Rockwell painting of a family going on vacation. They are in the family car and everyone is smiling and happy. The family dog has his head out the window and he enjoying the wind in his face. Then the second caption is this family returning from vacation. They are slumped in their chairs and exhausted–no smiles except the family dog. He has his head out the window with the same enjoyment of the experience as he had when they left on vacation. That is often our experience in travel–we go with...
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Hendra’s Vision for a School
By Hendra Pontomudis, Principle of Hohidiai School — After the conflict in Maluku ended in 2001, we established a permanent medical presence here in Halmahera. Over 60 children have come into our care through that work. We take into care only the neediest cases. There are other underprivileged children that we support in their families and in their villages in various ways such as their education, food supplements for the malnourished, medical attention and care. We did not want our children to be educated in the local schools where...
read moreNew Dental Equipment
Thanks to a generous grant from the Australian Embassy new dental equipment has been purchased and is in use at the Hohidiai Clinic. It is like walking into a modern dental suite with a reclining chair, overhead light, stainless steel trays and dental tools. The dentist and dental nurses have been serving the dental needs of the patients in what I would describe as an old barber chair. They have helped untold numbers of people with tooth extraction, fillings and even root canal surgery. The poor in this region are not used to going for their...
read moreSchool Caretaker’s House – the First Building
Hohidiai School in the initial stages of construction — A caretaker’s residence has been erected as the first building. The following diagrams show the plans as they are being developed. A total of 15 buildings are planned. International School ...
read moreLoving People are Rich
Recently I heard an original song written by a father whose five year old son died of cancer. He had one line about the value of love–he said, “I could die as a bum but if I have love, I am rich”. In reflection on the advances of the last 15 years–there has been a lot of love shared and received. The amazing people who have stood with the work of IFC have given of themselves with donations, in-kind gifts and many have traveled to Indonesia to serve. It is just such a blessing to have people believe in the work of...
read moreHeroes
We think a hero might be the guy who makes the 50 yard field goal to win the game for his team. I think the greatest heroes are those who serve the sick and poor quietly, faithfully day-in and day-out. The heroes at the Hohidiai base are treating the struggling HIV patient and encouraging their families. It is the young nurse who cleans the room of the crippled 82 year old. She scrubbed until his room smelled fresh and clean. The hard working school teachers who are reaching the next generation with a top education. The mobile HIV team that...
read morePartners
There are things you just cannot do without help. I know that the work of helping people takes a committed band of people. IFC has a large group of partners from all over the U.S. world. Last year there were 27 teams that went to serve at the base in Indonesia. That would be at least 200 people who decided to go, paid their own way, traveled from their home and served at the base. In the last 15 years some 3,000 have come to stand with the work. It is awesome to think about that large number of people who have made the commitment to help the...
read moreNew Friends
Davis and Autumn arrived in Fairbanks two weeks ago and came into our circle of friends. They are here to serve our community with their group of young people. I was surprised to meet an Indonesian couple in Alaska. Davis and Autumn grew up in Jakarta and moved tot he U.S. for their education. We got to use some of our Bahasa Indonesian language with them–it was great to interact. Their English language is very good plus they speak three other languages. It must be nice to be young and from an International background. They see the...
read moreStranded
It started with a small ticking sound in the motor. We were going the speed limit and made it to Valdez where I spoke to a wonderful group of friends. We left that beautiful place with a stunning blue sky and climbed Thompson Pass and passed the crazies in the mountain climbing competition. They called it an event but after seeing how high on the mountain those snow machine tracks were–it looked more like insanity to me. I am just not wired that way–flat ground is good. The ticking sound just got a little louder and then it took...
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