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Robin Lim of Bali Wins CNN Hero of the Year
12/13/2011

Ibu Robin, Bali-based midwife, has just been recently named as the 2011 CNN Hero of the Year.

CNN hero of Bali Hemmerle Robin Teresa Jehle, known as Robin Lim, is an American midwife who was awarded for her selfless dedication to helping thousands of poor Indonesian women with healthy pregnancies and births, according to CNN's official website.

Robin Lim Bali runs the Yayasan Bumi Sehat health clinic. Through this clinic, she offers free care -- pre-natal, birthing services, and medical care -- that many families cannot afford. With this, she is now known to the locals as 'Ibu Robin' meaning Mother Robin.

During a star-studded ceremony held recently at The Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, CNN hero Bali Lim was introduced by Christy Turlington as one of the Top 10 CNN Heroes, while her name was announced as the CNN Hero of the Year at the end of the evening by host Anderson Cooper.

A $50,000 prize will be received by each of the Top 10 CNN Heroes. Lim's nonprofit organization, the Bumi Sehat Foundation, will receive an additional $250,000 grant.

The Top 10 CNN Heroes honors ordinary people from around the world who are making extraordinary contributions to their communities. The winner was chosen after an 11-week vote on CNN.com.

During the cable news network's All Star Tribute in Los Angeles, Lim was quoted by CNN saying that "every baby's first breath on Earth could be one of peace and love," and every mother should be healthy and strong as well as every birth should be safe and loving, though our world is not there yet.

Lim further stated in CNN highlighting Indonesia's high maternal and infant mortality rates that were caused by the high costs of maternal care that situation in Indonesia is bad, with babies left unattended. Deliveries have become commercialized, and mothers die from hemorrhage after childbirth because they can't afford proper care.