In July 2003, the Leader ran a story about an Oxford resident planning to live and teach in Indonesia for two whole years.
Well, she’s back and Sarah Warmoth is raring to travel overseas again to pursue her life-long goal.
The 1997 Oxford High School grad left the comforts of her home in July and traveled to the far off island of Java to teach preschool and lower elementary art at the Bandung Alliance International School.
Armed with a degree in Cross Cultural Studies from North Central University in Minnesota, Warmoth planned her two-year teaching stint through the Network of International Christian Schools.
She lived in a fully-furnished apartment and spent her days from 7:45 a.m. to 11 a.m. teaching the children and immersing herself in the culture.
‘I felt really comfortable and I was really excited to go,? she said.
Warmoth had previously been to Belize and Jamaica for missions trips.
‘I had never gone out by myself and once I did it, I realized this is the life for me,? she said.
She said teaching English as a Second Language is very important for the Indonesian children.
‘If these children are able to learn English, they’re going to be able to get jobs and in return support their family,? she said.
Although she did learn a lot of the Indonesian dialect, Warmoth said she’s anything but fluent.
One day, her students began speaking all at once in Indonesian.
‘I had to tell them ‘Hey! Speak in English?,? she said laughing.
Warmoth kept in contact with her family through phone calls and e-mail.
She didn’t even hear about the December 26, 2004 tsunami on the island of Sumatra until her mother informed her.
‘I didn’t even know anything had happened,? she said. ‘Because where we are in Bandung, we’re inland far enough that we didn’t feel anything. It was pretty crazy.?
Although the Warmoth’s area didn’t feel the physical affects of the tsunami, the emotional affects ran very deep.
‘I had friends that had relatives that died in the tsunami,? she said. ‘It was pretty sad.?
Warmoth said after the tsunami, college students in her town were out on the streets holding fishing nets to collect money for the relief effort.
Living close to a volcano, experiencing a couple of earthquakes, two bombings and the anxiety of a presidential election only made Warmoth a little uneasy, but she said it was nothing to get scared about.
‘I actually felt safer in Indonesia than I do in America,? she said. ‘I can ask anybody for help, I can ask people for money and they’ll help me without any question. The people are so friendly.?
They’re so friendly, and she’s so in love with helping the lower-class children that Warmoth decided to go back to Indonesia this September.
Warmoth was hired on a one-year contract as the Curriculum Coordinator and Supervisor of the Early Childhood Department at the newly founded Cahaya Bangsa Classical School.
The school, who’s goal is to offer affordable education for the lower-class children in Bandung, was started last June and only had an enrollment of 40.
This June, the number jumped to a staggering 160. Warmoth said they’ve had to put a cap on the number of students because there aren’t enough teachers. ‘There’s no school like this in Indonesia,? she said.
The school ranges from preschool to seventh grade and Warmoth will be helping teachers with their lesson plans and helping out in all the classrooms each day.
Warmoth even created a center-based learning program for Cahaya Bangsa where students will travel to different areas of the classroom and work on different projects, like reading and puzzles.
She said her goal in life is to start as many of these schools as possible in Indonesia ‘so that the poor are able to be educated.?
The school is taught by all Christian teachers, which Warmoth said will ‘bring a positive and a warm and loving atmosphere.?
?(The children) deserve the same love and acceptance that Jesus has given me,? she said.
This time, though, Warmoth has to foot the bill for herself.
The school will give her a small stipend for and a housing allowance, but she’s trying to raise $700-800 a month to take care of her living expenses.
Tomorrow night, Warmoth will be inviting the public to her home at 10 Park St. from 7-9 p.m. to talk about what she’s doing at the school and to help gather prayer or financial support from the community.
‘I’ve grown up in this community and I would really love Oxford to be a supporting ground for me,? she said.
To show Sarah Warmoth your support, feel free to e-mail her at warmee@hotmail.com. To learn more about Cahaya Bangsa Classical School, visit www.cahayabangsa.org.