PHOTO: Didin carefully cuts a piece of fabric, readying it for stitching later
Jakarta – Within an alley on the southern borders of Jakarta, away from the city’s noise and buzz, a middle-aged man quietly sews his hopes into beautiful garbs. His name is Didin Sahidin, a Majalengka (West Java) native who, in 1994, moved to the state capital to try his luck, armed only with tailoring skills.
Dealing with hand deformities from a very young age, Didin is anything but discouraged. His limitations have made him highly resilient — like a projectile catapulted over walls, he’s breaking barriers, providing benefits for his neighborhood.
“[My journey started] when I took a free sewing class from the government. I remember having some of my village friends there too, but only I made it to Jakarta, in 1994. I worked for someone else at first, this was in 1996, until I could finally support myself four years later,” Didin shared with the PR team.
The Pengadegan Tailor Shop is a living proof of his story. Didin initiated the project right after seeing a widespread shortage of face masks during the pandemic. With these goods sold at alarmingly high prices, he was encouraged to make cloth masks and give them out for free.
“COVID-19 has made these products really costly, so we [tailor shop employees] developed an idea to distribute cloth masks without charge. Then [mask] orders just started flooding,” he added.
The tailor is now joined by dozens of talented workers who are ready to whip up the finest outfits on request. These requests come in regularly from every part of society, from the military, police, to civilians. Once, Didin even had the opportunity to handle an order from a high-ranking police official.
His actions have convinced Korindo Foundation into supporting his cause to empower society and particularly tailors. Through its Green Sponsorship program, the Foundation helps Pengadegan Tailor Shop spread its wings in the market.
Green Sponsorship is one of Korindo Foundation’s Corporate Social Contribution (CSC) programs that focus on economic empowerment. In this program, capital grants worth 15,000,000 IDR are disbursed to chosen businesses in two stages.
PHOTO: Didin’s hard work has brought in tons of orders from all corners of society. The tailor hopes to empower local communities by opening a sewing course
“The main goal is to make financial independence possible for certain groups and communities and improve the living standards of our beneficiaries,” said the Foundation’s general manager Setiyono during the grant handover to the tailor shop Tuesday (10/16).
Green Sponsorship begins with a call for business formation and expansion proposals. Once applications pile in and are filtered, selected candidates will enter into a partnership with the Korindo Foundation for a certain period of time. On this occasion, Pengadegan Tailor Shop becomes one of the two lucky recipients.
“I’d like to thank the Foundation for its attention to our work. I will use this money to rent a place where I can teach people sewing and help my community get better financially.”
Korindo Group and Foundation pledge to spread kindness to everyone. We will continue to push for financial independence among Indonesians through our Corporate Social Contribution programs. It is only when one can stand on his or her own two feet that a nation can progress. (PR)
