Our Sponsorship Waiting List of children needing sponsorship is regularly updated. Please see below to see the children and read their stories. You can help change their lives. To sponsor, click here and remember to name the child you would like to sponsor in ‘I want my donation to be dedicated: NAME OF CHILD’.
Please set your sponsorship to ‘monthly’ and $40 USD.
I Nyoman Budiarta
I Nyoman Budiarta (nicknamed “Nyoman”), is the youngest of three. He’s now 13 years old and in 8th grade in Kintamani. His oldest sibling passed away years ago. His older brother is in grade 11 and goes to school in Ubud with help from his relatives.
Nyoman doesn’t have debt at school, because his parents borrowed money from their neighbor for about IDR 2 millions (about $150) to cover his school entrance fee and other expenses in his junior high school. However, Nyoman’s parents plan to have him quit school after finishing junior high school, as they cannot afford further debt, and the High School costs are quite a bit higher.
Ni Eka Lestari (sister of Ni Komang Natalia Dewi)
Ni Eka Lestari is a 14 year old 9th grader in Kintamani, in her last year of Jr High. Eka is the oldest of four, with 3 younger sisters. Her father passed away when she was in grade 4 (5 years ago), so her widowed mother has to raise all four girls by herself.
Her mother earns money by selling food and small staples in a small warung, a type of Balinese open restaurant. Eka helps her mother with the warung after school and on her day off from school.
Eka will have to quit or drop out of school next year if she doesn’t get sponsored. Her mother cannot afford to take more loans to pay the entrance fee for a senior high school. On top of that, the schools charge high monthly fees and that would be impossible for her to cover. Her mother already has a debt of about IDR 2 million (about $175) to cover their living expenses. For an impoverished working mother, that’s a huge debt.
Ni Komang Natalia Dewi (sister of Eka Lestari)
Ni Komang Natalia Dewi (nicknamed “Komang”), is in grade 7 in Kintamani and 12 years old. Komang is the second daughter out of four. Her father passed away five years ago, so her widowed mother has to raise all four girls by herself.
Her mother struggles a lot in raising Komang and her other daughters.Komang has dreams of becoming a doctor, although it would be impossible for her considering how expensive medical school is. Komang just entered junior high school this year. Her mother had to borrow money to afford the cost of her school uniforms and fees. Now her mother has a debt of about IDR 2 million to cover their living expenses. Komang’s mother plans to only pay for her school until she graduates from junior high school. She just can’t afford to do any more or borrow any more.
I Gusti Ngurah Diki Setiawan
I Gusti Ngurah Diki Setiawan is a 15 year old 9th grader living in Pejeng with his mother, grandmother, and older brother who is in 11th grade. His father passed away in 2016 from Dengue fever. He shares a room and a mattress with his older brother.
His mother sells cooking spices (onion, garlic, and flowers for offerings) using a motorbike. She earns around 30,000-40,000 per day (about $2.00).
Diki is in his last year of junior high school. He should advance to senior high school next year. However, he would have to drop out if he doesn’t get sponsored in 5-6 months. Senior High School is expensive – there are charges just to start school, and then there are monthly fees and the expenses of uniforms, supplies, and mandatory school charges for additional things
Ni Komang Wiwin Juniari
Ni Komang Wiwin Juniari, age 15 and in 9th grade, lives with her father and her sister’s family in Tegallalang. Her mother passed away when she was in grade 6. She was hit by falling trees and died on the spot.
Because of their poor financial status, Wiwin works by carving wood so she can earn money to buy both her meals at school and her meager school supplies. Wiwin goes to school with her friend, whom owns a motorbike. When Wiwin’s father doesn’t use their only motorbike, Wiwin uses it and picks her friend in return.
Wiwin’s hobby is dancing. She often joins the practice in her village. She dreams of becoming a tour guide, since she would like to help her father and family.
Luh Gede Risma Kusuma Dewi
Luh Gede Risma Kusuma Dewi is a 15 year old from Tabanan in her first year of High School. The elder of 2 children, she’s a very smart student. She was ranked the 4th when she was in junior high school. Now in her new school at the public senior high school, she’s ranked the 2nd.
Iluh’s dream is to become a pharmacist, or work in a pharmacy. If she can’t be a pharmacist, she would like to have her own business or shop. Iluh has a temporary sponsorship but it’s about to stop, so to stay in school she’ll need to find a new sponsor.
Nengah Topik Mahendra
Nengah Topik Mahendra, age 14 and in his first year of high school, is the younger of two brothers in Kintamani. His older brother is working as a daily worker but he rarely comes back home and doesn’t help at all with Kadek’s schooling expenses.
Both of Kadek’s parents work as laborers. With their earnings, Kadek’s parents could barely afford their daily staples. That’s why when Kadek needed to pay for his entrance fee to enter vocational senior high school, his parents borrowed IDR 1.5 million (about $120) from their neighbor and they haven’t been able to pay anything back. Like so many poor families, they have accumulated debt for just their basic needs.
Kadek is facing the same low income future as an unskilled worker, unless he can graduate from school.
Wayan Dede Swastika
Wayan Dede Swastika (nicknamed “Dede”) is a 15 year old 9th grader in Tegallalang who dearly hopes to be able to enter High School next term. Dede’s father passed away in 2008 when Dede was only 5 years old, due to cancer. Dede’s mother has a disability where she walks with a limp. She also has cysts in her ovaries and needs surgery. However, due to their lack of money, his mother has not been able to have the surgery yet.
Dede will have to drop out of school next year if he doesn’t get help, since his mother just can’t afford to pay the costs. High School is expensive and she’s already in massive debt with loans she’s had to take out just to live.
Nengah Topik Mahendra
Nengah Topik Mahendra, age 14 and in his first year of high school, is the younger of two brothers in Kintamani. His older brother is working as a daily worker but he rarely comes back home and doesn’t help at all with Kadek’s schooling expenses.
Both of Kadek’s parents work as laborers. With their earnings, Kadek’s parents could barely afford their daily staples. That’s why when Kadek needed to pay for his entrance fee to enter vocational senior high school, his parents borrowed IDR 1.5 million (about $120) from their neighbor and they haven’t been able to pay anything back. Like so many poor families, they have accumulated debt for just their basic needs.
Gede Agus Eka Pratama
Agus Eka is a 16 year old 10th grader in the Buleleng area. He’s very grateful to be in High School although it has cost his parents a tremendous amount for them in debt. But he hopes to have a better life and not have to work as a struggling laborer if he has a high school education.
Agus is the older of two. His parents work as laborers and he helps with their work. Nowadays it’s the clove season so they have been picking cloves to earn money. When cloves are out of the season, they do farming and sell some fruit such as papaya. Agus parents had to take loan from the cooperation in the village about IDR 2 millions to pay for Agus’ entrance fee and school supplies. However, they are only able to pay the interest so their debt is still IDR 2 million.
Ni Kadek Yunita Putri
Ni Kadek Yunita Putri, age 17 from Klungkung, is now in her first year of high school. Because she’s a girl, and has 3 brothers, her parents had never expected her to go to High School, much less graduate. Girls in her situation very often drop out after Jr High, in large part because High School is considered very expensive.
Yunita already has debt at school for the uniforms and monthly school fee for about IDR 1,250,000. (about $100/month to attend). Yunita is a smart girl. There’s no ranking system yet in her class, but her grades are all above the average. Even now Yunita is feeling embarrassed to go to school because she hasn’t paid her school debt.
Ni Komang Ari Tiantini
Ni Komang Ari Tiantini (Tria), age 13, is the youngest of three girls. She’s in 8th grade in Tegallalang. Her parents are struggling to cover her school expenses, so Tria also works to help lessen her parents’ burden. Tria works after school by carving wood. She earns around IDR 4,000 to 5,000 (about $3) for one piece of carving. Usually she makes about one or two carvings per day due to the carving’s difficulty.
Tegallalang, the area where she lives, is a great source of wood carvings for the tourist trade and seems to be a wealthy area, but behind the thriving shops these families make extremely meager wages creating the souvenirs and objects that tourists buy. Tria dreams of becoming a tailor and owning a shop of her own. This is a bold dream for a Balinese girl but one she really wants.
I Gusti Ngurah Made Rai Widana
Made Rai Widana (RahDe), age 12, is the younger of two brothers who go to school in Bongkasa. He has just started Jr High – grade 7. RahDe dreams of becoming a tour guide, and for that needs to study English His extra curricular activity in sepak takraw, a type of local ball sport.
His hobby is playing in the gamelan orchestra, which he often plays with his friends from the same banjar, or village. He is a bright and active boy, determined to finish school and have a better life and future.
while his mother stays at home and makes Balinese offerings to be sold in the market. Sometimes his mother also works as laborer for other people.
Komang Asih
Komang Asihis a 9th grader in Buleleng, finishing up Jr High School and looking forward to High School. She’s now 15.
Komang Asih is the youngest of three. She has two older sisters who work as housekeepers in Denpasar. Her oldest sister gets paid IDR 1.5 million (about $110) a month, while her second oldest sister earns IDR 900,000. Both of her sisters only graduated from Junior High School (grade 9) and their future prospects are limited by this. Her parents work in Denpasar as laborers, and they earn less than minimum wage and only get to work when there are demands.
Ni Luh Ani Ayu
Ni Luh Ani Ayu, age 13 and in grade 7, lives in Karangasem, the area threatened by the Volcano. She is the youngest of 6 chidren, and her older sisters either dropped out of primary school or didn’t go at all. But Ani Ayu really wants to break that chain and graduate High School.
Now in her first year of Jr High, she almost didn’t make it. The entrance fee was too high for her parents, but the BCP coordinator pushed them to borrow money from Ani’s aunt, a market vendor, and they did borrow half. They will have to pay it back of course, and also the balance.
Ani Ayu is so happy to be in school, and really likes science. She would like to find a way one day to use it in her work. Her grades are above average, and she is a member of the KSPAN club, an after school program that studies and teaches about health and AIDS.
Gusti Ngurah Jasiana
Gusti’s father passed away in early 2016 ago from Dengue Fever leaving a huge financial burden on the family.. His mother sells cooking spices (onion, garlic, and flowers for offerings) using a motorbike. She earns around 30,000-40,000 per day.
Gusti had been sponsored and so was majoring in hotel accommodation in senior high school. However, after his sponsor unexpectadly stopped, he could no longer pay the school fees. Bali Children’s Project had been paying the defecit from our limited ermergency fund to keep him in school.
Thankfully Sean and Jenn were there to save Gusti’s education and future.