On Thursday, February 5, 2026, Yayasan Rumah Impian Indonesia (Dream House Foundation) held an internal capacity-building workshop entitled “The Friendship Approach.” The workshop brought together 14 facilitators and mentors who are actively involved in accompanying children and vulnerable communities. This gathering served as a shared reflective space to reconnect with the core values that shape Dream House’s identity.
Working alongside people—especially those living in vulnerable situations—requires more than technical skills or successful programs. It calls for a continuously renewed heart, a grounded perspective, and relationships that are intentionally nurtured. For this reason, the workshop was designed to refresh and reaffirm the vision, mission, and foundational values that guide Dream House’s mentoring practices.
Every Human Being Has Inherent Dignity
Dream House believes that every human being carries inherent dignity and hope that deserves to be fully upheld and pursued. Mentoring does not begin with identifying children’s deficiencies, but with recognizing their worth. Throughout the workshop, it was emphasized that mentors must never—through words, attitudes, or decisions—demean the dignity of the children they accompany, even when acting in the name of care or protection.
Mentors are called to be present not as those who “know better” or “stand above,” but as fellow human beings who walk alongside others in their life journeys.
Relationships Matter More Than Programs
One of the key affirmations of the workshop was that relationships are more important than programs. Programs can be well-designed and targets may be achieved, but meaningful and lasting change emerges only through safe, equal, and trust-filled relationships.
The Friendship Approach places human relationships at the center of mentoring. Children are not treated as objects of intervention, but as active subjects—heard, respected, and involved. It is within these relationships that genuine transformation slowly takes root.
Standing with the Vulnerable as an Ethical Choice
In real mentoring contexts, neutrality is often an illusion. When vulnerability is present, Dream House intentionally chooses to stand with those who are most at risk. This stance is understood as an ethical choice, not an emotional reaction.
Such commitment requires courage, consistency, and a willingness to remain present even when the process is long and uncomfortable. Mentors are invited to view each person’s journey holistically, without judgment and without demanding instant results.
Love as Commitment and Friendship as an Equal Relationship
The workshop also deepened participants’ understanding of love as commitment. Love is not merely a feeling, but a conscious decision to seek the good of others through faithfulness, patience, and responsibility.
Within the Friendship Approach, friendship is built on equality. There is no hierarchy of “above” and “below.” Mentors and children are fellow human beings who learn and grow together. For this reason, maintaining healthy boundaries is also an essential part of ethical mentoring, ensuring relationships remain safe and accountable.
Learning to See Process, Not to Judge
Through discussion and reflection, participants shared real challenges they face in mentoring, including the temptation to judge when change seems slow or invisible. The workshop invited mentors to learn to value process rather than mere outcomes.
Every child and family has a unique journey. The role of a mentor is not to force rapid change, but to remain faithful in accompaniment—to listen, to hold hope, and to walk alongside others even when progress is gradual and subtle.
Strengthening the Mentoring Community
Participants’ reflections revealed that the workshop enriched not only their knowledge, but also reaffirmed their calling as mentors. The Friendship Approach was embraced as the distinctive identity of Dream House: being present as a safe companion, not dominating, not judging, but faithfully walking together.
Ultimately, this workshop served as a reminder that the goal of mentoring is not merely program success, but transformed lives—both those of the children being accompanied and the mentors themselves.