From Global Village Foundation:
Gede Sedana is 50 years old.
Crippled by polio as a baby, the disability has not stopped him from leading a full & active life. Growing up in the small village of Bangah, in the district of Panji, North Bali, he missed out on school as a result of his disability, spending his childhood, & teenage years living in unimaginable hardship.
In 1992, when he was 22 years old, he was given the opportunity to receive a very basic education with a charity school for disabled people in Denpasar, where he spent a short period learning to read, write, and become more independent.
It was also where he met his first girlfriend, Ketut Suparariasi, a sweet young lady, two years his junior, also crippled by Polio since early childhood. In 1993 they were married, and returned to Gede’s home village of Bangah to begin their new life together.
During normal times Gede ekes a small income from collecting metal scrap, plastic bottles, and other recyclables, to sell on to scrap dealers, often crawling on his hands and knees through the streets to find the scrap.
Since Covid-19, the scrap dealers do not collect often from him, and his tiny income has been reduced still further. His wife Ketut, supplements the family income he makes from the recycling, by working part-time in a local laundry, and son Putu, also finds occasional work as a Building laborer.
They live in a small, yet clean, simple home, and have three healthy children. Putu (22), Kadek (13), and Komang aged 10.
Gede has received a number of old wheelchairs from donors over the years, which are quickly broken due to the tough terrain around his village. He has never owned a new wheelchair.
He was absolutely delighted when Global Village Foundation tracked him down to gift him a new heavy duty durable Mobility Cart.
His micro-recycling business, and everyday living will hopefully be much easier for him from now on.
The GVF team also delivered to the family their first Covid-19 Emergency Food Aid parcel. something we hope to continue to do for the duration of this crisis.
Without doubt, life has been incredibly tough for Gede & Ketut, yet, as a family, they remain positive, happy, and determined. Their resilience in the face of such adversity is truly inspiring
Please enjoy our short video: The day Gede Sedana received his new Mobility Cart.
