Small Steps That Count

The Fondation Rolf Schnyder was not born from a grand plan.

It was born from a wish.

Rolf W. Schnyder — watchmaker, adventurer, the man who took a bankrupt name and an empty warehouse and, over twenty-eight years, built one of watchmaking’s most celebrated houses — had a wish for what might follow him. He wanted, in the words of his wife Chai, “to help the hapless, with priority to children, the future of our world.”

He died in Kuala Lumpur in April 2011, at 75. Three weeks before, he had stood at Baselworld’s press day and spoken to hundreds about the future. He was, until the end, still looking forward.

Chai Schnyder established Fondation Rolf Schnyder in Switzerland the following year — not with fanfare, but with the same attitude she had watched in him for decades.

Just do it.

She is honest about the doubt that came with it. In her Founder’s Letter, she writes:

“There are so many problems in the world — what difference can I make? There are too many people suffering — what I can do is just a drop in the ocean.”

She does not pretend the doubt went away. She chose, instead, to act anyway.

“I do not have the answers to all those questions, but I decided to emulate my late husband’s ‘just do it’ attitude, and his courage in taking up challenges. Within a short time, I was pleasantly surprised that following my heart had led to many fruitful encounters — of wonderful, hardworking people, who dedicate their time and effort to helping the needy.”

Born in Kuching, Sarawak, she never forgot where she came from. The foundation’s work here is not coincidence. It is homecoming.

In Sarawak today, those small steps look like this:

Six-year-olds in government preschools learning to code — not as a novelty, but as a foundation. Teachers who stay in their schools long after the programme visits, carrying the knowledge with them. A Ministry of Education invitation to help shape the national AI curriculum.

Code.org — the organisation that has reached over 100 million students worldwide — recognises Fondation Rolf Schnyder as its International Partner in Malaysia.

The numbers are adding up. They were always meant to.

“Every effort makes a difference,” Datin Chai writes. “Let’s begin with small steps and let these count.”

Rolf saw what could be salvaged in a forgotten watchmaking house — not the assets, but the potential. He poured vision, patience, and craft into it until it became something extraordinary.

The foundation does the same, in a different workshop entirely.

Every child carries magnificent potential. Some simply need the right conditions to let it emerge.

That is the wish. That is the work.

Persatuan Kebajikan Rolf Schnyder (PKRS) is the Malaysian chapter of Fondation Rolf Schnyder, established in 2019. We deliver coding and digital literacy education to children across Sarawak and beyond — in partnership with Code.org, and in honour of the people who made this work possible.