Among the challenges of Elderly Family Development (BKL) group activities is the issue of sustainability.
Many groups are formed due to competition factors and stop activities afterwards. BKL Cemara Pondokrejo,
Kapanewon Tempel Sleman Regency is able to maintain the sustainability of activities through the local
wisdom of “handarbeni” or a sense of belonging. The purpose of this study was to obtain an in-depth
description of cadres in building a sense of handarbeni so as to find ways to sustain the BKL group. This
study used a qualitative approach with a descriptive phenomenological design. Through in-depth
interviews, the data were analyzed using the Colaizzi technique to see the meaning of the role of cadres in
managing BKL groups that underlie sustainability. The results of this study found that on the Back Stage,
cadres experienced dynamics in maintaining group sustainability. The challenge of maintaining a sense of
handarbeni is overcome from interpreting the role of cadres as a noble task to providing additional
appreciation of financial benefits, recreation and periodic free health checks for administrators. In the
Front Stage role, in their limitations, cadres try to appear cheerful, patient and polite in serving the elderly.