Some Pictures from Jeff Mahaira

We are delighted to share some pictures Jeff Mahaira took of his family’s trip to Children’s Sanctuary Namibia and the Sanveld Kindergarten in 2023. Jeff and Lisa Mahaira learned about CSN through their sons, Kai and Kiyoshi, who attend Canyon Heights Elementary School in North Vancouver, BC. Canyon Heights raises funds for CSNS through student popsicle sales. Proceeds from the popsicle sales help support CSN’s Kindergarten and soup kitchen food programs.

The family received a warm welcome from Belinda Tsuses and Chief Ita, who were excited to give the Mahairas a tour of the Mother House and Sanctuary grounds. While the children were at school during their visit, they met the youngest residents of the Mother House when they visited their classroom at the Sanveld Kindergarten.

Thank you, Jeff, for these wonderful pictures!

Here is the Mother House - A safe, loving home for seventeen children, two housemothers and a manager.

The Mahairas meet CSN’s manager, Belinda Tsuses (front centre), Grandmother chief Ita, (holding the soccer ball), house mother Katrina (front right), house mother Victoria (back, right), and CSN founding board members, Theresa Matengu, and Lazarus.

The Kitchen in the Mother House.

The Dining hall in the Mother House is where the children eat meals and work on homework. We are grateful to the Mercker family for their donations of furniture.

A tour of the boy’s dormitory.

The girl’s dormitory.

Chief Ita shows Lisa Mahaira a sample of the walking sticks she makes from a Bessie tree. The Bessie tree also bears fruit which can be eaten. The tree’s bark is boiled and used as a medicine for diarrhea and stomach aches.

A side view of the ground in front of the Mother House.

Johannes, the gardening assistant, lives in this modest home; a tool shed is attached.

The Sanctuary Garden’s corn patch.

Another view of the gardens. A security fence has been erected around the sanctuary grounds.

A partial view of the Sanctuary garden/grounds.

A generator pumps water from the borehole (well) into the water tanks.

The Maiharas take a short drive to visit the Sanveld Kindergarten, where the Mother Houses’ youngest children attend. CSNS funds the Kindergarten’s food program.

Kai and Kiyoshi enjoyed their visit to the Kindergarten classroom.

A friendly “hello” from some Kindergarten students.

A picture of one of the two classes in Sanveld Kindergarten.

Recess time at the playground.

A wave of “good-bye” from Zuma and the three Kindergarten children who reside at the Mother House. Zuma is the Gardener/Handyman for CSN who lives with his family in the Sanctuary. For safety reasons, either he or his assistant, Johannes, transported the children to and from Kindergarten. These three children have now graduated and will attend school this year.

CSN Hosts the International Day of the African Child

In June, the Manager of the Sanctuary, Belinda Tsuses, was approached by the Namibian Ministry of Gender to host the African Child’s Day Celebration. It was a great success with over 500 children, as well as the Governor of the region, senior social workers from the Omaheke Region and officials from the Ministry of Education in attendance.

The event provided wonderful exposure for the CSN Sanctuary and the Board is hopeful it will lead to increased awareness and support from the government. Our heartfelt gratitude goes out to the CSN Board Members, the staff and volunteers who worked hard to ensure this was a wonderful, memorable event for all.

The Ministry of Gender paid for the food and snacks for the dignitaries, CSN workers and children. It was a lively celebration which included singing, dancing, and speeches as well as food for all.

Over 500 children attended the celebration!

What is the International Day of the African Child?

This event is held every year on June 16. Its aim is to commemorate the SOWETO children’s uprising of 1976, during which thousands of South African students protested the apartheid government’s use of Afrikaans as their language of instruction in Bantu schools. The uprising resulted in the deaths of hundreds of students and is considered a turning point in the struggle against apartheid.

Today, the Day of the African Child is an opportunity to celebrate the realization of the rights of the African child, in line with the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child. The purpose is also to raise awareness of the challenges that children face. The theme for 2023 is “The rights of the Child in the Digital Environment”.

President's Report for AGM by Terry Adler

Welcome friends, to our fourth Annual General Meeting for our Children’s Sanctuary Namibia Society! Thank you for joining us and thank you for all the ways you supported CSNS last year. Some of you have been donors since we were first registered as a charity in 2018. Your loyal, generous support has made possible what we are reporting on today.

The start of 2022 was also the start of a new life for 16 of the most at-risk children in Drimiopsis. The building erected in 2021 was made habitable in January and February of 2022 by installing water pipes, toilets, showers, electrical wiring and so on. Supplies needed were purchased or donated, including furniture, appliances, cooking and kitchen utensils, bedding, hygiene items, cleaning supplies and clothes for the children. A medicine cabinet was built and stocked according to a list created by a pharmacist friend of Helge. Zuma and Johannes created and painted a playground with funds donated by CSNS.

 By February of 2022, Helge had hired a manager, Belinda Tsuses, who moved into the house with her two school age children. Belinda immediately set to work, guided by CSN board member Lazarus Musambani. Because of his many years running a residential care home for orphaned children and dealing with the Ministries involved, he is an invaluable teacher and mentor for Belinda and the house mothers. Lazarus was entrusted by the Ministry to choose which of the more than 70 children requiring a home would be the first to move in. By March, the house was ready, the kitchen full of food, the children’s dressers full of clothes, all preparations made for the move in day of March 7th.

At first the children were apprehensive, as this was a huge step into the unknown. Very soon, they began to feel safe and to thrive, responding to the loving care of dedicated caregivers. For the first time in their young lives, they have health care, support with their schooling, enjoy celebrations for their birthdays and holidays, and are learning their cultural heritage from Grandmother Ita. As you heard Sonja say, they each have a bed to call their own, 3 nutritious meals a day, a home and a family to return to after school.

 The fund-raising strategies you supported in 2022 included a house concert, a plant sale, birthday appeals, a Christmas appeal, the sale of popsicles at Canyon Heights Elementary School and Giving Tuesday. It is amazing when you realize these humble efforts raised enough money to change the course of these children’s lives.

 In this current year of 2023, we continue to support CSN to enrich the lives of these children, and the many children still awaiting the security of their own home. Our primary objectives continue to be the support of the Mother House, the Food Programs and the garden expansion.

 We aim to help CSN to:

1) create a citrus orchard,

2) Buy fertilizer and seeds to grow crops including carrots, spinach, onions, cabbage, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, beets, squash, corn and melons.

3) Grow excess food to sell to community members, enriching their nutrition and generating income to make the garden self-sustaining

4) Expand the garden and purchase shade netting to protect the plants during the intensely hot summers to ensure nutritious crops to supplement the children’s meals year-round, at the Mother House, the kindergarten, and the soup kitchen.

5) Provide the operational costs for the MH, including salaries, food, diesel, trips to Gobabis for shopping, medical needs, and banking.

Our goal for 2023 is to raise $35,000 CAD. This will cover:

1) Operational costs for Mother House, the food programs (MH, kindergarten and

soup kitchen) and the garden – approximately $30,000 CAD

2) Garden expansion – planting a citrus orchard, adding vegetables and fruits,

supplying protective shade netting – costing approximately $5000 CAD.

We are also pleased to announce we are joining CSN in a special international fund-

raising effort to bring power to the Sanctuary complex. The MH was prepared for

electrical hookup in early 2022. At the time, the official authorized to provide power

promised to do so but more than a year later that has not been forthcoming. While no

formal explanation has been given, the provision of power is unlikely at a time when

Namibia, South Africa and their neighbours are experiencing severe drought conditions

and extended power outages. Rationing of electricity is a fact of life in all these

countries.

Given these circumstances, the CSN board has decided to invest in solar power.

Together, we are raising money for the purchase and installation of solar panels. These

will be a reliable source of energy for the MH and Sanctuary land, meeting needs for

heat, light, appliances, computer and phone, as well as running the water pump that

supplies water for the house and garden. The estimate for materials and installation is

$21,000 CAD.

It is a joy to collaborate with the CSN board and the people of Drimiopsis to support

their children to grow into adults capable of enriching the quality of life in their

community. We could not do this without your generous hearts. You help us raise up a

community in ways guided by and contributed to by the people themselves. We thank

you from the bottom of our hearts. We hope you will continue to journey with us on this

great adventure, an adventure that is life-changing for all! Thank you for your attention.

Children's Sanctuary Namibia Society is a Canadian registered charity.