Ita's story: one woman's determination to follow her dreams

Ita Arista is an exceptional example of how hard work and determination will reap its rewards! Ita came to YUM when she was 12 years old as one of the orphans living at the Children’s Village in the 1990s. The fourth child of seven siblings, her parents could not afford to put all their children to school and decided that an orphanage would be the best place for Ita.

Fast forward 12 years later and Ita recently earned a Bachelor of Economics majoring in Management in October 2019 with a GPA of 3,72 which means she graduated Cum Laude, or With Distinction. Ita could never have graduated from high school and now university without the continued support from a very generous donor who has been supporting her since she was in junior high school.

With the education she has received in university, Ita has learned so many things such as high self-confidence when meeting people, being able to adapt to different people's characters and having better opportunities to move up in her current job which will help to ease the life of her family, because her father is a farm labourer while her mother is a housewife.

Ita went through many challenges during her last semester at university. Students were initially allowed to choose their supervisors but in the end the campus policy changed and the Deputy Dean of Economics was appointed as Ita’s supervisor. Of course this made Ita very nervous especially since she had to find the perfect time to meet between her supervisor’s teaching schedule and Ita’s study schedule. But thankfully her supervisor was very patient and understanding and even encouraged Ita until she finished her final paper.

Despite these challenges, Ita continued to work in the morning as a Bookkeeper at YUM Cipanas and to go to university in the evenings. In the end, Ita managed to get an A for her final paper! This is of course due to Ita’s own determination in achieving her dreams with the strong support from her family, her donor and her supportive friends. We at YUM cannot be more proud of what Ita has achieved and how she has grown into a strong, hard working woman.