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In last newsletter I mentioned that Betty and Theo would visit Siama. Well, they did, and had a wonderful time and ofcourse enjoyed the well-being of the Siama girls. Together with the eldest girls and Heike and Ender, they visited an open-air concert of a female rockstar, who played guitar. They loved it and you probably have guessed..... now they all want to learn to play the guitar!! (unfortunately this will remain a dream for them for a while..).
They also went to a musical which was performed by a group of streetchildren from Windhoek which was directed by a Dutch volunteer. They also enjoyed this show and our girls gave their own performance that evening by singing a couple of their own songs. Everybody liked it, because singing is something that our girls can do very well! All together they had a super-evening with lots of fun and entertainment. New Roof December – mid January is their summer holidays. Because the girls have left the Siama premises during that time, we used this holiday to renew the roof of the main building. Every time, after repairs, the leakages came back. Our house had a flat roof , and therefore every time after the rain had gone, the water remained on the roof. We have now opted for another type of roof as you can see from the picture, so the drainage of water is now a lot better. The whole repair was very costly, but the result is a lot better and we can now go forward with a ‘dry’ house. The first rain has already arrived and Heike told us that there were no leakages anymore. Everybody sleeps in a dry bed! Hurray!!
Computercourses Mid January the girls returned from their holidays at Siama and they are now already going to school for a month. Everybody went to the next grade, so that was good news! 7 girls are now going to secondary education (yes, yes the little ones are growing up). These 7 girls are following computer courses after school. Heike teaches them what internet is and how to work with Word and Excel. Thanks to gifts of Namibia ProKind and other sponsors we now have 2 computers with internet connection. The girls can now find information on internet for their studies at school. A trainee Since mid January we have a trainee, Claudia, from Germany for 3 months at Siama. Claudia studies to become a social pedagogist and completes her traineeship in Omaruru. Every afternoon she assist the girls with their homework and plays various games with them to learn them to interact better with each other and have more respect and appreciation. Because it is not always peace at Siama..... We recently welcomed a new girl, Alexandrine. She comes from the ‘local ghetto’. Her sister, Shirley, missed Alexandrine very much and also wanted to go to school. Heike did a lot of effort to get Shirley a place at school and she succeeded! Shirley also came to live at Siama. So we welcomed not one, but two new girls! But the other girls, did not give the newcomers their usual warm welcome. They clearly showed an attitude that this had been their territory for years and played boss. It escalated and after various conversations with the whole group, Heike and Apollonia managed to get all the noses in the same direction again, and with that, the peace returned (for the time being)...... But Shirley, the newcomer, remained to sulk and made a lot of fuss again. She threw with her shoes, called Apollonia names, etc. Heike was left with no other option then to give Shirley the choice; either you behave according to our rules or you need to leave Siama. Shirley opted to go home, which means that Alexandrine is alone at Siama. Heike writes that everything is OK with her, she has a very sweet character, but also wrote that we need to learn that not all Africans can be helped. All together, Heike and Apollonia had a very hectic time. That’s why it is so nice that the girls are going..... A weekend away Friends of Heike and Ender from Luxembourg have donated money to take the girls on a weekend trip to Swakopmund. You need to know that Swakopmund is approximately 280km away from Omaruru, situated at the coast. It is a fairly large seaside place, where it is lovely to stay in the Summertime (which is now). Well-fortuned Namibians rent a villa there to escape the high temperatures inlands. The difference in temperature between Swakopmund and Omaruru can sometimes be more than 15 degrees. Swakopmund has many stores, more luxery, there is a port, restaurants, etc. You will probably understand there is a world of difference with Omaruru. Anyway, the trip will take place at the end of February. Heike has had a lot to arrange before she can go out with the whole group; where to sleep, where to dine, transport, etc. They will now leave with 2 minivans where the girls will probably have the time of their life. Our girls have never been away from home this far (most of them have not even left Omaruru), so this must be an unforgettable experience. In the next newsletter we will ofcourse give you all the news from this trip. The tree On Siama’s plot we have many old (rotten) trees. Sometimes they also have heavy storms, as this pictures has proven. Suddenly one of these very heavy trees broke in two. Luckily nobody was playing or even nearby, but you cannot think of what could have happened! We now need to seek a solution for the other trees. Ender wants to cut all of them, but there is no electric saw. Or we need to find someone who can do the job. Anyway, new costs... . Perhaps you want to contribute a bit in these repairs, do not hesitate! Or maybe you know some people amongst your own friends who want to donate to our Project! Our account number is placed underneath this newsletter. All together a lot of news from Omaruru. Until the next newsletter! Loek, Ada, Betty and Theo Siama Children Namibie Siama Children Namibie Account Number 30.11.21.3289 Rabobank, Rijpwetering – IBAN: NL45 RABO 0301 121389 Weeresteinstraat 223 2182GW Hillegom The Netherlands
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