John Fawcett - Background To The Foundation

John Fawcett, former ceramacist, educationalist and Deputy Director of the Perth Technical College, has been living continuously in Bali since 1983, after relocating there to recover from a life-threatening medical accident in May 1981, which kept him hospitalized for nearly three years.

John quickly recognized the great medical need on the island and, with assistance from Rotary Australia and Rotary International, began his humanitarian work which then took over his life, first establishing a Cleft Lip and Palate Program in 1989 and later the Mobile Clinic for Cataract Surgery in 1991. Several other Rotary programs followed, with the establishment of The John Fawcett Foundation and its Indonesian counterpart, the Yayasan Kemanusiaan Indonesia in 2000, which brought all the projects together under one umbrella organization.

In October 2003 John Fawcett was awarded the John Curtin University Medal for his community work, and in January 2004 the Australian Government honoured his humanitarian work in Bali and contribution to international relations with the Order of Australia.