Paulina and Elis, Companions to excluded children

Paulina and Elisabeth have served in the state school in Kanatang Village in East Sumba for five and two years respectively. Every time Wahana Visi holds activities in the village, Paulina and Elis are involved.

They are a harmonious duo who often become facilitators to find talented children to be involved in Wahana Visi's activities.

Paulina is good at storytelling, while Elis is good at art and sports. The talents of the two teachers are pillars for developing the young generation in SD Taymanu. They coordinate volley ball, singing, and dancing activities.

The uniqueness of Paulina and Elis is that they always seek to lift up students who need help in academic achievement or social development.

Kanatang was a kingdom area. The remains of the kingdom tradition such as the division of community people according to three caste prevails today. They are still divided into maramba, kabihu and ata groups.

Children feel that impact. Paulina and Elis are called to protect them.

"Mrs. Elis and I choose to prioritize children who have low social status because we hope to prevent them from having bad feelings so that they can develop their own talent," says Paulina.

Paulina and Elis  teach students to recycle plastic garbage usually scattered on roads. Some of the work from the recycled plastics are shopping bags, house mockups, and ornaments. Now, 30 percent of students from the school use bag they produce from plastic.

"The children we seek to support are those coming from poor families. Our duties as teachers are encouraging, guiding, building, and directing the children," Elis adds to Paulina's explanation.

*Written by Beatriks Mbete, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer, Wahana Visi Indonesia at East Sumba 1 and 2 operational office