Hairdresser needs N$190 000 to build classrooms for 53 children

Monika Alfred has spent years using the little money she earns from plaiting hair to feed vulnerable children and people living with HIV in Rundu.

Now, the hairdresser faces a challenge she cannot overcome alone: finding enough money to build classrooms for 53 children who risk missing the start of the 2027 school year.

Alfred, who founded the Heart of Hope Foundation in 2013, is appealing for financial assistance to construct two temporary classrooms at Ten Mile in Babylon Village, Kavango East region, where 21 kindergarten children and 32 Grade Zero learners are waiting for a place to begin their education.

Among those needing assistance is a seven-year-old who has yet to start school, while other children come from families living too far from existing schools to access early education easily.

The charity has secured land for the proposed learning centre, but it does not have sufficient funds to put up the facilities before schools reopen in January.

“We have our own land at Ten Mile (Babylon Village), but we cannot afford to build on our own right now. We need help from the public so that we can continue with our work,” Alfred told Namibian Sun last week.

The immediate plan is modest: two corrugated-iron classrooms, three toilets and a small office, together with chairs, tables, two chalkboards, four swings and a shaded play area.

“This is not a permanent brick building. It is a temporary zinc structure to allow 53 children to start with their early education,” she said.

The project budget includes N$130 999 for building materials, N$32 000 for labour, N$10 000 for transporting materials, N$10 070 for chairs and N$7 200 for tables. These items amount to N$190 269, excluding other equipment and facilities.

Alfred is asking individuals and businesses to assist with money or building materials. Those uncomfortable handing over cash can pay suppliers directly.

“Help with a bag of cement, a chair, a table, corrugated iron, or any amount will make a difference,” she said.

A hairdresser with a heart for others

Long before the foundation began planning classrooms, Alfred was already using her hairdressing earnings to help people who struggled to afford food.

Her concern was particularly for children wandering the streets of Rundu and people living with HIV who needed meals while taking antiretroviral medication.

What began as an individual effort eventually grew into the Heart of Hope Foundation, with her younger sister and other community members joining her work.

“I would finish plaiting hair, take that small money and go buy food to cook for people living with HIV on ARVs from poor families, and for children roaming the streets of Rundu,” she said.

Over the years, assistance from the American embassy, former first lady Monica Geingos, a local private school and Rent-A-Drum helped the organisation provide food, school uniforms, stationery and other necessities.

The foundation went on to provide two meals daily to 47 patients at Ndama Clinic and 64 children at its centre in Sun City.

Keeping Heart of Hope going has not been without disappointments.

At one stage, a local businesswoman donated corrugated iron for a temporary shelter, but Alfred said community members allegedly dismantled the structure and used the materials to build a house.

The setback forced the foundation to move its operations to a family property, but it did not bring an end to her efforts.

Securing land in the organisation's name at Ten Mile has now given Alfred an opportunity to establish a dedicated learning centre, although the lack of construction funds remains a major obstacle.

'I cannot build alone'

Despite more than a decade of helping vulnerable people, Alfred continues to earn her living as a hairdresser, and the proposed classrooms are beyond what she can finance from her own income.

“I am still just a hairdresser. I cannot build alone,” she said.

Her appeal is not limited to wealthy donors or large companies. She believes ordinary Namibians can make a difference by contributing whatever they can afford, whether it is a building material, a piece of classroom furniture or a small amount of money.

With January approaching, the foundation's immediate concern is ensuring that the 53 children have somewhere to begin learning when the new school year starts.

Alfred hopes the same spirit of generosity that helped her feed struggling families over the years will now help provide classrooms for children who might otherwise remain at home.

“Money shouldn't stop you from helping the next person, but your heart, your patience and mercy bring access to making an effort,” she said.