The Pearl of Wondama Bay

Kompas/Ferganata Indra Riatmoko

Samida Duminggu

Her name is Samida Duminggu. She was born on Aug. 18, 1970, one day after the nation celebrated its 25^th independence anniversary. Perhaps it is the spirit of independence that has encouraged her to empower the people of Sombokoro village in Windesi district, Wondama Bay regency, West Papua.

Samida initiated the establishment of an early childhood education (PAUD) center in Sombokoro village, on Sombokoro Island. Every morning from Monday to Thursday, she rows a boat for about an hour to travel from her home to the PAUD center on the other side of Sombokoro Island. There, she teaches dozens of children, ranging from 2 to 6 years old, who come from Sombokoro and other villages.

She teaches them to read, to know about natural resources and to understand simple concepts about their neighborhood. To date, the PAUD center has had three batches of “graduates”. The first batch comprises 18 students, nine students in the second batch, and in the third, 15 students.

After teaching at the PAUD center, she goes home again by boat. Once she has reached home, she finds local women almost every day, waiting for her handicraft class to begin. She usually starts class at 1 p.m. Eastern Indonesian Time.

All of the local women have learned their handicraft skills from Samida. It is she who teaches them to make necklaces from clamshells that they collect on the beach, noken woven bags, and artificial flowers from wood shavings. Samida also teaches them how to cook.

These are all just a small part of Samida’s ongoing work with the women of Sombokoro. Most importantly, Samida has instilled among the village women the idea that they can empower themselves. This was reinforced further when the handicrafts that they produced were sold.

Roughpearls

Wemet with Samida on Friday night (11/8/2017) in Sombokoro. The lights on her verandah, which are powered by electricity from the village’s generator, went out for a moment during the interview.

A series of romantic songs from a CD player connected to a loud speaker could be heard faintly. One of them was A Riyanto’s “Desember Kelabu” (Grey December),to which we sang along.

“I named the PAUD center Pulau Mutiara [Pearl Island], Sombokoro,” Samida said.

The name refers to the pearls found in the waters around the island. Another meaning, Samida said, was that her students were like rough pearls that needed polishing so they could truly shine. For instance, the students are able to memorize the alphabet and count to 20 only after a month of learning.

It is these rough pearls that makes Samida willing do whatever it takes to run the PAUD center. She sailed to Manokwari, the provincial capital, to process the documentation needed to open the center.

A notarial deed and licensure from the local education agency and other government bodies were just some of the documents that she had to process. Finally, on Nov. 3, 2013, she obtained the operational license for her Pulau Mutiara PAUD center.

Samida is highly dedicated in running the PAUD center. She has never compromised in the face of her daily challenges, including bad weather that may disrupt ferry services. She battles wind and storm to run the PAUD center.

She is very firm when it comes to rules and discipline. She was not hesitant to fire three of her managers after she found them violating regulations, by chastising or berating students on things they had not yet learned. “This is not allowed,” she said.

All classes at the PAUD center are free of charge. Samida uses the government’s PAUD operational assistance fund (BOP) and regional school operational assistance fund (BOSDa) to cover the center’s operational costs.

In its first year, the school received Rp 8.8 million (US$666.42) in BOSD a funding. The school then obtained Rp 20.2 million BOSDa funding for its second year and Rp 20.9 million for its third year. From the BOP PAUD scheme, the school obtained Rp 7.2 million annually during its first two years of operations. “It is not much, but I cannot ask for more,” Samida said.

The PAUD center especially needs the funds to cover the honorariums for its teachers. Since 2016, four teachers have taught at Pulau Mutiara.

Samida aims to open a village literacy program in 2018. “I cannot yet implement this program. After I get someone to replace me [as the PAUD center manager], I will be able to run it,” she said.

Chasing dreams

Samida previously worked at a timber company in Sorong, West Papua. She was introduced to Sombokoro Island in 2004. After marrying the then-village head of Sombokoro on May 16, 2004, Samida moved to the island.

Her stepson serves as the current Sombokoro village head. Her husband has died. Since 2004, Samida had observed the potential in the local children that could be cultivated through education. She first realized this when she worked at the integrated healthcare center (posyandu).

Now, the mother of three, all from a previous marriage before she moved to Sombokoro, is diligently chasing another dream. She is pursuing a master’s degree through distance learning from the Samaritan College of Teaching Sciences in Maluku.

“I will finish the degree in four months,” she said, smiling. She is majoring in Christian Education.

She often uses her evenings and early mornings to read the course materials sent to her digitally. She vows to pursue higher education not only for her own benefit, but also to advance those around her.

“As far as I am able, I wish to use my blessed life for the good of other people,” Samida said of her reason behind pursuing the master’s degree.