February 10, 2026
The United Board community mourns the passing of Dr. Budi Widianarko, a beloved trustee, colleague, and friend, who died suddenly of a heart attack on February 7, 2026 at the age of 63.
Budi joined the United Board as a trustee in 2020 and served with steadfast dedication and distinction. He was a member of the Program Committee and the Finance and Administration Committee, and he lent his wisdom and good counsel to a number of task forces and ad hoc groups, including the Pandemic Response Fund Advisory Committee, the Strategy Study Committee, the Task Force on Christian Identity, the Task Force on Board Effectiveness, and, most recently, the Strategic Planning Steering Task Force.
Dr. Patricia Licuanan, Board Vice Chair, remembered him as a person of deep integrity whose “friendly presence would always put [others] at ease,” combining “his deep Asian roots and experience with a broad global perspective.”
An environmental scientist by training and a senior leader in Indonesian higher education, Budi brought to the United Board a rare blend of scholarly expertise, institutional experience, and spiritual depth. Fr. Dennis Holtschneider recalled the way Budi listened carefully, waited patiently, and then “asked a clarifying question, offered a reframing that showed us a better path, or suggested a fresh way to bring our highest ideals to bear,” a wisdom “always, always given with kindness.”
Dr. Joe Zolner worked closely with Budi on the Task Force on Board Effectiveness, and remembered him as “a wonderfully collaborative colleague,” whose “palpable spirit of good cheer and fellowship” and constant openness to dialogue and learning made him “a true joy to work with.”
Within the United Board offices, staff were equally touched by Budi’s warmth and encouragement, not least his many contributions to the Program Committee, the Finance and Administration Committee, and to Asian higher education in general. For many staff members, he embodied the United Board’s mission in person: a humble servant-leader, deeply rooted in his Catholic faith, committed to whole person education, and eager to build bridges across cultures and contexts.
Dr. Pareena Gupta Lawrence, President of the United Board, said, “What stands out for me is Budi’s warmth, humility, gentle humor, and enduring wisdom. Whenever we needed him for a task force or committee, he was there—ready to serve and to lead, regardless of his schedule or the time zone. As a quiet, gentle, and resolute leader, he had a remarkable way of bringing out the best in each of us. I count it a profound privilege that our paths crossed, even though our time together was far too short.”
Dr. Su Yon Pak, Board Chair, said, “To be in Budi’s presence was to witness wisdom and integrity in action. He shared his hard-earned insights generously—in every discussion and in every vote—accompanied by understated humor and a gentle twinkle in his eyes. In service to the United Board’s vision, he kept calling us to listen to the voices of ‘the least of these’ in the region. Budi gave himself selflessly to our common work. He was our colleague and our friend, a model trustee who leaves an indelible mark on the United Board. We will miss him deeply.”
Beyond the United Board, Budi served as Executive Director of Yayasan Sandjojo and as Professor and former Rector of Soegijapranata Catholic University in Semarang, Indonesia, where he was widely respected as a teacher, mentor, and administrator. His leadership and scholarship have left a lasting imprint on generations of students and colleagues, as well as on the wider network of Christian universities in Indonesia and across Asia.
Budi spoke about food ecology, microplastics, and urban food systems in what may have been one of his final extended reflections with the United Board community, in the December 2025 issue of its newsletter Horizons. He ended the interview with a simple conviction that now reads like a legacy to all of us: “Everyone,” he believed, “has two professions—teacher and farmer—because whenever we share knowledge or help something grow, we are contributing to the flourishing of our communities and our world.”
The United Board extends its deepest sympathy to Budi’s wife, Imevianty Lim, their children, and his colleagues at Soegijapranata Catholic University and friends around the world.
A Requiem Mass will be held on Wednesday, February 11, at 6:00 pm WIB, followed by the Funeral Sending Off Mass on Thursday, February 12, at 8:00 am WIB, at Soegijapranata Catholic University Chapel in Semarang.
We invite the United Board community to remember Budi in prayer and in thanksgiving for “a life well lived” and for the many ways he enriched our work in Christian higher education in Asia.
For more tributes from United Board trustees and staff, please click here.