Extending a helping hand to vulnerable kids
Appeal for support to assist children in need
Despite limited resources,Lineekela Shikongo and Wilhelmina Jonas have created a supportive haven for children in need.
Lineekela Shikongo and her friend Wilhelmina Jonas have been assisting vulnerable people in Oshakati by transforming Shikongo's kindergarten into a charitable school.
According to Shikongo, the idea came to her when she took a day to observe the living conditions of street children and realised that much more needed to be done.
"There are a lot of vulnerable children and adults on the streets that need assistance, but they do not have any helping hands," she said.
Shikongo (34) told Namibian Sun that she became involved in charity work after realising she could offer help even with the little resources at her disposal.
"I would help anyone that I come across with the little I could, whether it is money, clothing or food items," she said.
Foster potential
The mother of three runs a kindergarten, which she opened in 2016, and enrols children from informal settlements and poor backgrounds.
"Some children cannot afford to pay, so we take them in for free and give them bread and oros; however, some have supportive parents, and they do not struggle," she said.
She underlined that the children who lack support and resources and are suffering are smart and all have potential.
"I want a better future for the children and to be someone in life so they do not end up on the streets," she said.
Boost support
Currently, the charity school has cares for 35 children. While Shikongo aspires to accommodate more students, she faces limitations due to resource constraints.
"We are renting the building where the school is, and sometimes we cannot afford to meet the children who are suffering halfway," she stressed.
Jonas, an unemployed teacher, sustains herself by buying bales of clothes in Angola and selling them locally. She has also donated clothes to those in need.
"I only depend on the little that I get from selling second-hand clothing and from doing nails to meet Shikongo halfway," she said.
Both Shikongo and Jonas appeal to kind-hearted individuals to extend a helping hand in whatever way possible, to enable them to offer care and essential support to the underprivileged children.
According to Shikongo, the idea came to her when she took a day to observe the living conditions of street children and realised that much more needed to be done.
"There are a lot of vulnerable children and adults on the streets that need assistance, but they do not have any helping hands," she said.
Shikongo (34) told Namibian Sun that she became involved in charity work after realising she could offer help even with the little resources at her disposal.
"I would help anyone that I come across with the little I could, whether it is money, clothing or food items," she said.
Foster potential
The mother of three runs a kindergarten, which she opened in 2016, and enrols children from informal settlements and poor backgrounds.
"Some children cannot afford to pay, so we take them in for free and give them bread and oros; however, some have supportive parents, and they do not struggle," she said.
She underlined that the children who lack support and resources and are suffering are smart and all have potential.
"I want a better future for the children and to be someone in life so they do not end up on the streets," she said.
Boost support
Currently, the charity school has cares for 35 children. While Shikongo aspires to accommodate more students, she faces limitations due to resource constraints.
"We are renting the building where the school is, and sometimes we cannot afford to meet the children who are suffering halfway," she stressed.
Jonas, an unemployed teacher, sustains herself by buying bales of clothes in Angola and selling them locally. She has also donated clothes to those in need.
"I only depend on the little that I get from selling second-hand clothing and from doing nails to meet Shikongo halfway," she said.
Both Shikongo and Jonas appeal to kind-hearted individuals to extend a helping hand in whatever way possible, to enable them to offer care and essential support to the underprivileged children.
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