Born in Medan on 17 July 1964. Her passion and drive for her pursuit in the world of education and childcare began in 1984 when she was asked to teach a class of kindergarteners by a private school in Jakarta. At that time, she was fresh out of high school. Her experience teaching eventually propelled her further into the world of children’s education, until in 1985 Vina Tarigan opened a tutoring center for children in preschool, elementary school, all the way through to junior high and high school.
She received a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration in the year 1989, and in 2007 she continued to receive a master’s degree in Management. Despite all that, Vina Tarigan’s desire to lend her hand to the children of Jakarta pushed her to find the time to pursue a career in midwifery. In 2006, she completed a D3 program in midwifery, and in 2010, she completed her D4 program. Aside from her exposure to HIV/AIDS in the academic realm, she also spent her extra time researching about the virus through various seminars and government-sponsored events.
In 2007, Vina Tarigan volunteered for the first time in a Methadone Maintenance Therapy Program. Methadone is a substitution for heroin, and this program was one method used by the government to aid in the battle against the HIV epidemic, particularly injecting drug users. By talking and communicating directly with those infected by HIV was how Vina Tarigan decided her true calling lay with these communities, particularly the blameless children who carry this burden from the doings of their parents. From here, in the year 2008, Vina Tarigan and her husband made it their mission to provide the Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) program to mothers in need, free of charge. This was the early pillars of the VSE foundation. To this day, this program is one of the cornerstones of the services that the foundation offers.
In that same year, and with the help of Prof. Irwanto, Ph.D from the Catholic University Atma Jaya, Vina was involved in the care, support, and treatment of children living with HIV in Jakarta through an organization called Lentera Anak Pelangi. Headquartered in the HIV/AIDS research center of Atma Jaya University, this organization helps children across Jakarta find the nutritional benefits and psychosocial support they need to grow up healthily. From going on house visits and meeting these children and their families on a regular basis for 8 years, LAP opened up opportunities for Vina that deepened her understanding about the issues surrounding HIV, both through the medical and social lens.
The experiences she was able to have from the Methadone Therapy program, LAP, and finally as the Chairman of her district in West Jakarta, allowed her to fully pursue a career in helping children with HIV. Various training seminars related to HIV and PMTCT have invited her as a guest speaker, one who is not sitting behind a desk and reading about these communities, but in fact is going out every day into these communities. She also teaches a class regarding HIV and PMTCT in a vocational school for healthcare.