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About us

Our Board of Directors and Story

Founder Michael Pate has been volunteering around the world since 2002, helping provide medical care with Doctors Without Borders and supporting poor, remote villages in Africa, Afghanistan, India, the Solomon Islands, and Indonesia.

In 2006, he met Co-Founder Ni Pande Putu Etiartini, who had been serving the elderly, communities, and children with disabilities across Indonesia—including Bali, Sumba, Flores—as well as in India. Together, they founded YKPA in Bali, Indonesia in 2007.

Since then, YKPA has supported medical care for children from poor and remote villages in need of surgery, HIV treatment, and disability care, as well as providing education for street children and disadvantaged kids.

Both founders have also dedicated themselves to disaster relief: Michael helped during the Yogyakarta earthquake in Java 2006, while Putu assisted in the Nepal earthquake 2015, Lombok disaster 2018, and Mount Agung volcano rescue operations. and Join Red Cross In USA San Diego since 2023. also volunteer at Path Kitchen in downtown San Diego serving meals for homeless people.  

In 2022, during the COVID-19 crisis, they met Jay Hirani, who helped keep YKPA’s children’s home running, by organizing a successful fundraising in Perth Australia (cycle Fun dressing Perth) supporting education and even purchasing  and renovated a second home for orphanage children in Tabanan Bali Indonesia.

Let’s continue to support our projects—helping children, the elderly, and those in need. One step at a time makes a big difference for many lives.

Together we can make a difference.

JOIN WITH US INTERNATIONAL - BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Michael Pate, RN. NP. MPH
Founder / Board Member President

Jay Hirami
Board Member Treasurer

 Putu Etiartini, A.MD.Kom
Co-Founder / Board Member Secretary

Dr. Sara Spowart, PhD, DMFT / Board member 

Click 👉Learn More About Sara
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Michael Pate: A Life Dedicated to Helping Children

Michael Pate, a veteran and healthcare professional from San Diego, left his home in 2003, where he had worked for many years as a Registered Nurse, Nurse Practitioner, and earned a Master’s in Public Health, to volunteer with Doctors Without Borders in Africa. His global journey of humanitarian work eventually brought him to Bali in 2006, where he met Ni Pande Putu Etiartini, a passionate advocate for street children.

Together, they began helping the most disadvantaged children in Denpasar—providing food, medical care, and education. What started as a small effort to teach children on the beach grew into Yayasan Kasih Peduli Anak (YKPA), a licensed nonprofit providing safe homes, schooling, healthcare, and life skills for children, women, and families in need. Over the years, YKPA has supported hundreds of children, including orphans, disabled children, and those from remote villages requiring medical care.

Michael and Putu’s work goes beyond daily care—they respond to emergencies, run informal schools, train mothers to earn income through crafts like Bali Dolls, and travel to remote areas delivering essential supplies. Their dedication extends internationally, with Putu representing YKPA at fundraisers and aid missions worldwide.

Now, Michael works full-time in healthcare, and together with Putu, they are building a 501(c)(3) nonprofit in the U.S., Join With Us International, expanding their mission of hope, education, and medical care for children globally, disaster relief and caring older mission help worldwide.

More story click our Blog 

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Our Early Projects: YKPA’s Work Since 2007

Founded in 2007 by Putu Etiartini and co-founder Michael Pate, YKPA is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting disadvantaged children in Bali, Indonesia. Our mission is to provide education, shelter, medical care and a children’s home for kids from different backgrounds, offering care for street children and education to give them a brighter future.

See the impact of our work firsthand through inspiring videos that showcase our journey from the very beginning in 2007 to where we are today.

Our Projects Include:

 Bali Street Kids School in Kuta, Bali, Indonesia (since 2007) – We bring education and hope to children living on the streets and in slums. We provide homeschooling, food, and supplies donations, ensuring these children receive the support they need to thrive.

 YKPA Denpasar Children’s Home (since 2008) – We offer a safe and loving home environment for disadvantaged children from various backgrounds, including those with disabilities, those who have experienced trauma or sexual abuse, orphans, and children whose parents are unable to support them. We care for children from infancy up to 18 years old.

 YKPA Tabanan Children’s Home (since 2015) – Our home provides nurturing and secure care for younger disadvantaged children under 15 years old, including those with disabilities, those who have faced trauma or sexual abuse, orphans, and children whose parents are financially unable to care for them.

 Village Kids Project & Remote Village Support (since 2020) – Initiated during the COVID-19 pandemic, this project brings education, healthcare, and essentials to children in underserved villages. We support village kids with English and arts classes, distribute food and groceries to the community, and care for the elderly with blankets and food donations.

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Jay Hirani : A story of Kindness. Helping YKPA

During one of the hardest times in YKPA’s journey—the COVID-19 pandemic—our children’s education and daily needs were at risk. Schools were closed, staff support was in crisis, and donations nearly stopped. We faced a heartbreaking reality: without help, many children at the YKPA Denpasar home would not be able to continue their education.

In this moment of crisis, Jay Hirani, together with his friends and family, stepped in with extraordinary compassion. Jay organized a charity cycling event, using his love for cycling to raise vital funds for YKPA. The impact was incredible. His efforts not only helped pay high school fees for the children in Denpasar, but also made it possible to purchase a second YKPA children’s home in Tabanan, Bali, Indonesia, giving even more children a safe place to live, learn, and grow.

What Jay and his supporters did was nothing short of life-changing. Their generosity carried us through a time when survival seemed almost impossible. Thank you Jay and Team Cycle Fund Raising, YKPA could continue its mission of giving disadvantaged children hope, education, and a brighter future in a safe home.

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Ni Pande Putu Etiartini: Giving Disadvantaged Kids a Safe Home

Ni Pande Putu Etiartini is the founder of YKPA.org, also known as the Bali Street Kids Project. Since 2007, she has dedicated her life to helping disadvantaged children in Bali by providing shelter, education, medical care, and hope.

It all began when Putu saw children begging on the streets—hungry, barefoot, and without hope. Determined to make a difference, she started teaching simple lessons on a mat by the beach. From these humble beginnings, YKPA (Yayasan Kasih Peduli Anak) was born.

For more than 17 years, Putu has provided vulnerable children not only with shelter, education, and medical care, but also with love, dignity, and a chance at a better future. Under her guidance, YKPA has opened children’s homes, schools for street kids, and outreach programs supporting poor villages and families affected by disasters. Many children who once lived on the streets now have brighter futures because of her care.

Today, through Join With Us International, Putu continues her mission—uniting people from around the world to support children in need. Her story is one of compassion, resilience, and the belief that every child deserves the opportunity to learn, grow, and thrive.

More story check https://joinwithusinternationalorg.blogspot.com/