Developing Facilities, Channeling Enthusiasm for Learning

After successfully capacitating Sanggar Fortune Nursery School (PAUD) in Pondok Pinang and Ragunan, FORU inaugurated its third PAUD in Lenteng Agung this year. The nursery school located on Jalan Swadaya III RT 006/04 No. 3, Kelurahan Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta, was inaugurated by Indira Abidin as Corporate Secretary of FORU on Tuesday, July 16, 2013. In the inaugural ceremony attended by Achmad Nur Rochim (FORU Associate HCD Director), Hany Nurahmawati (Marketing Communications Manager of Fortune Indonesia), and Oscar Prajnaphalla (Corporate Communications Manager of FORU), the attendees also broke their fasts together and gave donation to orphans.

Before FORU agreed to cooperate and developed the house into a nursery school, public recognized the house to be used by Rahman Agung foundation to manage religious education for children and adults. Since 1992, they have made small study groups so that the development of the children in the neighborhood can be monitored and measured. “For us, saving the nation must begin with saving the children in the neighborhood. Since that is our intention from the beginning, we do not charge any fees from the people who put their children in our care,” said Maslihan Nurdin, the owner and founder of the foundation.

Apparently, the people gave unexpected response. “Because we were overwhelmed, we had to reject a lot of kids even though they have high learning spirit. Now, Ummi (wife of Ustaz Nurdin) has to teach 15-18 children in one class. All children are put into one class because there is no more room,” he added. In addition to limited spaces, Nurdin also acknowledged the constraints on the teachers. Because it is free, the teachers are paid voluntarily. “The children have their study group twice a week. Our teachers get Rp 10 thousand per day,” he said again. Nurdin has a great expectation that FORU will help channeling the enthusiasm for learning of the students in the neighboring area by developing learning activities and supporting facilities.

The development of Sanggar Fortune Nursery School, one of FORU’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities, was greeted enthusiastically by Indira. As a publicly-owned company, FORU is responsible to share some of the corporate profits to the surrounding community. Therefore, the assistance for this program is not merely on the funding but also on the facilitating activities. Hopefully, the people around the nursery school can become self-reliant community.

Since being started in 2008, Sanggar Fortune is committed to be a place for empowerment of the surrounding community.  The main work program focuses on improving the quality of education by establishing nursery schools because FORU is certain that education is an important asset for improving the quality of life. “We can not build a good generation if the basic education is not good. Therefore, we teach values and build characters in the nursery schools. If this is strongly instilled, their development will not waver,” said Indira.

Indira also added that in the future the activities of Sanggar Fortune will include not only education for children. “But it also includes education for parents, because the real education is done at home. So, let us join hands for the success of our good intention in preparing the children to be future leaders of the nation,” she said.

PAUD Lenteng Agung is the third PAUD established by FORU. The first PAUD was established in Pondok Pinang in 2008, while the second PAUD was established in Ragunan four years later. “It’s been a long time we wanted to have such educational institution. Thank you so much to FORU for the support,” said Nugraha, the supervisor of PAUD.