“Berlari Terus: Bali to Jakarta” by Scott Thompson to Help Indonesian Children Get Endorsement from The Ministry of Youth and Sports.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jakarta, 9 February 2012 – The Minister of Youth and Sport of the Republic of Indonesia Mr. Andi Mallarangeng supports “Berlari Terus: Bali to Jakarta” which aims to raise funds for underprivileged Indonesian children. “Berlari Terus” is a program initiated by Scott Thompson, a professional from Scotland who will run for charity.
In 2010, Scott Thompson ran for 250 km in Sahara desert within four days in 50 degrees Celsius, and he raised funds for Mary’s Cancer Kiddies (MCK). This year, Scott Thompson will raise funds from corporations and individuals through his initiative “Running from Bali to Jakarta”. The funds will be donated to Yayasan Cinta Anak Bangsa (YCAB Foundation) and MCK. He will start running from Bali on March 8, 2012 and will finish in Jakarta on April 1, 2012. For approximately 1,250 km distance from Bali to Jakarta, he will run within 25 consecutive days, passing through 30 cities in 5 provinces in Indonesia. Scott who is currently working as a director in one of Indonesian companies initiated this program to support underprivileged children in Indonesia.
In the press conference yesterday (02/08), the Minister of Youth and Sport Mr. Andi Mallarangeng stated that he supports this program because it makes sports as a means for charity. According to him, sport not only gives benefit to our health but also can become a means for doing charitable works and promoting culture.
He also stated that currently there is a new trend which makes sport as a means for charity or supporting a cause. Other sports for charity activity in Indonesia was also initiated by Sandiaga S. Uno who has been raising funds for charities through his initiative “Berlari Untuk Berbagi” (Running for Sharing) which he founded in 2009. Last year, Berlari Untuk Berbagi took part in New York Marathon 2011 and funds collected was donated to numbers of foundations including YCAB Foundation.
“Berlari Terus: Bali to Jakarta” is the first to be held in Indonesia, and I hope that this program can inspire and challenge another Indonesian runners to initiate the similar program”, said Mr. Andi Mallarangeng during the press conference in the Ministry of Youth and Sports office.
During the press conference, Scott Thompson as “Berlari Terus” initiator said that he was motivated to do this to help underprivileged children in Indonesia. Up to now, the social funds collected from the corporations and individuals has reached above Rp 1 billion. “I hope this program can also increase public awareness about the condition of Indonesian children.”
Meanwhile, Founder/CEO YCAB Foundation Veronica Colondam stated that YCAB Foundation also participates to raise funds from individuals by “selling” each kilometer run by Scott Thompson, at Rp 1,000,000 per kilometer. General public can also support this program through social media, so this program can inspire people that everyone can give their contribution for a better Indonesia in various ways, including through the sports. The support from general public through social media can also increase public awareness about the condition of Indonesian children.
The donated funds for YCAB Foundation will be used to help drop-out school and underprivilleged students in Indonesia through House of Learning (Rumah Belajar) YCAB Foundation, a part of YCAB Foundation’s programs that focuses on education.
Based on the data released by UNESCO in 2011, one of three children are unable to continue their study. The data also stated that there are 1.5 million junior high school students who are unable to continue their study per year, and more than half million drop-out elementary school students in Indonesia. The facts stated that 6-7 students were dropped out due to economic factor, and currently there are 13% underprivilleged community in Indonesia by September 2011 as stated by Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS).
“We are honored to get the support from Ministry of Youth and Sports, and other parties. We hope that individual participation in our fundraising activity will be able to raise funds up to Rp 1.25 billion, so we can help 500 drop-out school and underprivilleged students to continue their study in our House of Learning. By making them back to school, we hope that we can help to increase Indonesian Human Development Index (HDI) in education sector that is currently at 119th out of 187th countries”, she closed.
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About Berlari Terus
“Berlari Terus” from Bali to Jakarta was initiated by Scott Thompson, a professional who was born in Scotland. Through this program, Scott Thompson raises funds from corporations and individuals which will be donated to two foundations; YCAB Foundation and Mary’s Cancer Kiddies (MCK).
Last year, he ran for 250 K in the Sahara desert and raised funds for MCK. This year, through “Berlari Terus: Bali to Jakarta” he will collects funds for Yayasan Cinta Anak Bangsa (YCAB Foundation) and MCK.
Support us through social media:
Twitter account: @berlariterus and hash-tag #bali2jakarta
For further information, please visit www.runningbalitojakarta.com
About Mary’s Cancer Kiddies (MCK)
Mary’s Cancer Kiddies (MCK) is an independent non profit organization in Indonesia that was established in 2003 by Mary Binks, an Australian woman who is currently living in Jakarta.
Today MCK is run by a small group of volunteers based in Jakarta and Hong Kong, Special Administrative Region of China who raise and manage the provision of funds to cover the cost of medical treatment for children from poor families.
About Yayasan Cinta Anak Bangsa
Yayasan Cinta Anak Bangsa is an independent non-profit organization in Indonesia that was established in August 1999 and became a global organization in 2011 through YCAB Foundation. YCAB Foundation is headquartered in New York and is registered as a non-profit organizations that already have the facility of tax reductions (tax deductions) through section 501 (c) (3).
YCAB Foundation aims to establish independence in adolescents with a comprehensive development approach through the Healthy Lifestyle Promotion (HELP), House of Learning and Development (HOLD), and Hands-on Operation for Entrepreneurship (HOPE).
For more information, please visit www.ycabfoundation.org
Linda Chalid
Development and Communications Division
YCAB Foundation
Tel: +62 21 5835 5000
Fax: +62 21 5835 5001