News from Namibia

Thursday 7th March 2013

Mourning for our child

Shindume Hangula was 10 when he died from a seizure, in Opuwo Hospital on the night of February 25th. He was a wheelchair user and I think, although I'm not an expert, that his condition was cerebral palsey. You can see him in quite a few pictures on this page - he was always present at NCCV activities, enjoying himself along with the other children. In a country that often hides it's children with disabilities, sends them away to the village and hides them in a hut, Shindume was a real part of the Katutura community and automatically included.

The whole community mourned for Shindume. Following the traditional custom for mourning, from the time of his death on Monday night to his burial on saturday morning, his mother sat in the hut receiving visitors. I don't think she was ever alone - family, friends and community members were in and out of the hut for the 4 days prior to the burial.

I first visited her on Wednesday - I sat on the floor of the sticks and mud hut and chatted with the women for about an hour. Small children wandered in and out and men from the community were busy in the yard preparing for the burial. I took with me on this visit a large food donation for the funeral, everyone has to be fed and it's a matter of pride to the family that they have enough food to offer. I didn't take meat as I knew cattle would be slaughtered. On behalf of the project I took 50kg maizemeal, oil, sugar, salt, tea, dried pasta, packs of soup (for mixing with the maizemeal) soap powder and some juice cordial for the children.

I visited again on Thursday morning and took presents of a new mattress for the floor of the visitors hut where Shindume's mother was. In addition I took a new blanket, also for the floor of the hut and a new mosquito net. It's very important to the family for their hut to look nice as they receive so many visitors. I arrived at what was for me the wrong time, just as they were slaughtering a cow in the yard… so this time I didn't stay so long. Shindume's grandfather helped me unload the car and I left.

Friday was the memorial service in the familiy yard at Katutura and Saturday was the burial day.
I arrived at the family home on Saturday at 10am and the service was already underway. The yard was full of people; a few on chairs, some sitting on the ground and some standing. The mother sat beside Shindume's small white coffin and people filed past to give comfort, a hug, or a kind word. After about an hour of hymns and prayers we piled into whatever cars were available (mine was packed like sardines) and began the procession over the hill to the Katutura Cemetry - most people walked and the sun was already unbearably hot.

Such a sad thing, to bury a child. The two hours or so on that katutura hillside under the blazing sun will always stay in my mind. People stood or sat wherever they could find shade - singing hymns and praying.

The Headman said some nice words about Shindume and his family and reminded the community to continue supporting them. I heard my name mentioned in the middle of his Oshiwambo speech and he pointed in the direction of the NCCV plot. Monica later told me he was saying how lucky they were to have both me (^^) and the project in the community and that we are always there to suuport people when they have problems. I felt very proud to be part of NCCV and this close and friendly community.

As a final hymn was sung - everyone took turns with the shovel to help fill in the grave.......the men collected rocks to build a mound on top of the soil. As, I assume in most cultures, we all went back to the family yard for a meal. I felt very honoured to be treated as a special guest and my meal was presented to me in a large clay pot on a woven tray. Feeling awkward I forced Monica to share it, so we sat in the yard, facing each other, with our knees touching and the enormous pot on our laps. The cow so recently slaughtered was cooked to perfection with potatos and onions.

I sit thinking about this lovely boy who died so young. To be a person with a disability in a developed country can present lots of barriers; imagine living in an environent such as Katutura with all its additional environmental health issues!!

If you are a friend/supporter/donor of NCCV I want to send a sincere Thank You for helping to improve the quality of life for these children.
Please spread the word of NCCV among your family and friends - we need all the help we can get.
Diane Mills

Click on the picture to see him larger.

Shindume Hangula with Monica receiving some gifts at Christmas

Monday 21st January 2013

Long awaited latest newsletter!

See what NCCV has been achiveing since July last year. Stuart Lee

Sunday 30th December 2012

Katutura Boys football team

Today our Katutura Boys football team played their first match proudly wearing their new kit - a big Thank You to the visiting owners of Kapika Camp in Epupa who made the donation. Diane Mills

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Monica, our NCCV Community Advisor, and her brother Simon who is th Coach with the team.

Tuesday 25th December 2012

More visitors from abroad to see project in action

Please enjoy this pre-Christmas newsletter from Opuwo. It’s our way of keeping you up to date with events and everyday life in Katutura and of course saying ‘Thank-you’, for all the support.

Highlights include; the completion of our first small building – the kindergarten classroom, planned sports activities, donations and visitors from overseas and as usual we continue to support the families and children who need help. Support in education continues to be one of our top priorities.

Here in Opuwo we are now into our hottest time of the year and water shortages continue – some afternoons the temperature is well above 40 degrees. Most years we only get rain in December and January – and then it’s torrential. What are dry river beds for ten months suddenly become rapids. The rain hasn’t started yet but we are waiting…and hoping!

The families we support live in a very challenging environment…conditions are terrible before the rains but can be catastrophic afterwards!Diane Mills

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Monday 17th September 2012

African child mortality
The best story in development, but not for Namibia and a few other African countries

Article posted 19th May 2012

Of the 20 africa countries surveyed 16 reported declining numbers in infant mortality.  4 are going the other way - Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Namibia  and Liberia. Diane Mills

Sunday 16th September 2012

More visitors from abroad to see project in action

Today brought more visitors to the NCCV Project, this time from the UK and the Netherlands. And of course they brought gifts for our children. The people of Katutura planned a welcome and we had music and lots of dancing.  Food was provided for the children and yet again our kids had a great time.

Thank you to Marjolijn, Kat and Lexi. Diane Mills

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The girls can really dance		Diane and Marjolijn - stretching the food		Waiting patiently for lunch
Trying on new clothes		Even our visitors joined in the dancing		Heading home after another great day

Monday 10th September 2012

Donors help Katutura learner head for Grade 10

This is Adedapo Alalade, the oldest son of a Katutura family who goes to school in Windhoek (7 hours drive away from his family in Opuwo). His mother lives in Katutura and his father passed away some years ago.

As the first born Adedapo will be expected to care for his mother and other family members when he is older. He has to do well in school if he is to get a job and look after his family.

Having been informed by the Headman that Adedapo was failing at school and in danger of dropping out because he couldn't see, we decided to help the family and send him for an eye test. NCCV money also bought the smart new glasses you see him wearing that his mother says have, 'changed his life'. In a message to Diane at NCCV his mother said, 'This morning I woke up crying uncontrolled because my son told me how he has improved at school. I really thank you for your support'.

That message of 'Thank You' is to ALL our donors
Diane Mills

Click to on Adedapo to see him a bit bigger

Friday 7th September 2012

Party time again with friends from Zimbabwe

September 7 - was another exciting party day for NCCV in Katutura.  Fortune and Orbert were in town again and straight over to Katutura to visit the kids.  They had brought with them new clothes, shoes, boxes of toys and chicken and chips and a drink for every child.  Their son had even sorted out and donated lots of his own toys.  Fortune had even ordered a huge cake and even the adults had a chunk of that.
Another great day for us :-)    
Diane Mills

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A small boy enjoying his new toy and a piece of cake		Posing in her new shoes		Christine (Monica's sister) on the left, with Fortune and Diane organising the childrens clothes
Lots of fun with new toys - inside the NCCV building		Even Diane's dog, Mary, is joining the queue for chicken and chips

Monday 3rd September 2012

Planning session for, 'Learning Through Play'.

These are the Namibian SCORE volunteers, based in Opuwo, who will pilot the Learning Through Play activities at the NCCV centre.  

/
'SCORE - 'Changing Lives Through Sport'.
SCORE is an international non-profit organisation specialising in community development through sport and recreation. With its origins in South Africa in 1991, SCORE now has autonomous national offices in South Africa, Namibia, Zambia and the Netherlands, each supported by the SCORE International office in Cape Town'. Taken from the Score website.
 
We are lucky enough to have active volunteers in the community who are eager to join us and do well planned, fun activities with the children in Katutura. Currently the plan is for three sessions a week - to coincide with the start of the food program.

Things don't happen overnight here- the pace of life is slower and the correct procedure always has to be followed. Now the plan is in place we will have one final meeting with Tate Hipandulwa and the Committee. That meeting takes place on Saturday 29th September - when the plans and the volunteers will be introduced to the committee. The committee will also nominate two teenagers from Katutura who will take part in the activities and be trained by SCORE to eventually take over.

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Saturday 1st September 2012

Our New Building

It’s small and very basic but it’s cool inside and once decorated will be a nice room for our NCCV Kindergarten. We are already collecting posters to decorate the smoothly plastered interior walls, local people from Katutura will do the painting. A toy collection is underway but we would also like educational play equipment and books – if you or anyone you know have anything you can donate please email us or contact us through the website or the Facebook page.

The digging of the foundations for our second building has already begun.
Diane Mills

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The building so far

Sunday 26th August 2012

NCCV Plans for September - December 2012

• Finish the first building - the classroom for NCCV Kindergarten
  The main structure of the building is finished and the roof is on. All that remains is the concrete floor and the plastering on the walls.  We assured that everything will be finished by the end of September.
   
• Build the outside kitchen area
  Local people will build the shade area that will be used as the NCCV kitchen. It will be just poles and a thatched roof for shade.  A stone surround will form the base for a mopane wood fire over which the food will be cooked.
   
• Feeding Program
  To begin with this will be just 4 days per week to coincide with the beginning of our, 'Learning Through Play', activities.
  We have already identified a local woman who will cook the maizemeal and soup for as many as 100 children.
  Local businesses who have supported us in the past will be canvassed for food donations.
   
• 'Learning Through Play', activities.
  NCCV are linking with the SCORE (Sports Coach Outreach), an international volunteer organisation, to begin these 4 times a week sessions for our kids. The SCORE volunteers active in Opuwo will also train 2 Katutura teenagers who will eventually take over the running of the sessions.
   
• As in the past we will continue to support the families/children of Katutura to the best of our ability. Decisions for family/child support are made together with the Head Man, Tate Hipandulwa.  
  Diane Mills

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Saturday 30th June 2012

Party Time!

The arrival of a friend from Zimbabwe led to an impromptu party for our kids in Katutura.

Fortune, whose husband works in Opuwo, was here for the week and wanted to do something for our kids. She ordered food, bought drinks and sacks of oranges and we quickly asked Tate Hipandulwa to spread the word that the party was happening!

So once again the kids all gathered under the tree in front of the NCCV building plot. We had music, a little bit of singing and dancing and enough food and drink for somewhere between 90/100 children. It’s hard to count when they’re moving all the time!
No planning but a great time! Thanks Fortune. 
Diane Mills

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Monday 25th June 2012

Climbing the ‘Old Man’ for NCCV

This month Ann P, a long time supporter of NCCV, is going to put on her waterproofs (probably necessary) and climb the mountain known as the ‘Old Man’, in Coniston in the Lake District.

Many of her friends will support her to raise funds for our building project. Knowing Ann, I think many of her friends will also join her for a glass of ‘Old Man’ ale in the pub when she’s finished. 
Diane Mills

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Monday 21st May 2012

!!!!Building begins!!!!

After many community meetings and much discussion the building work on the NCCV Centre has finally begun!

The builder, Hafeni Hauwanga, will use bricks made locally to build our first structure – the Kindergarten measuring 5m x 4m. He will also use local resources to make the outside shade area where maizemeal will be cooked daily to provide a meal for the children.

The ground is very rocky but the digging of the foundations had begun. 1000 large bricks are already on site as is 16 cubic metres of sand. Tate Hipandulwa, the Headman of Katutura, arranged for the huge water tank (10,000Lt) to be transported to the site and the town council delivered the water to fill it.
In just a few short weeks the main structure of our kindergarten will be finished.  
Diane Mills

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Saturday 31st March 2012

A FUN FUN FUN Sports Day in Katutura!!

What a great day for the kids of Katutura to remember - our first NCCV sports day!!  It took place last Saturday, March 31 and about 150 kids and 50 adults crossed the road to our sports ground (under the Katutura meeting tree where the land had been cleared for the event).

The event went overtime by about 2 hours but no one minded that at all - everyone was having such a good time. The kids were introduced to the egg and spoon race, which over here we renamed 'egg and spoon and then eat the egg' race. Parents as well as children took part in the sack races - which again was a new experience for them. Monica and I showed our prowess by first demonstrating both races :-)

Tate Hippandulwa as well as other community elders were also there to see the fun and games and show support - at the end of the event Tate Hippandulwa gave a 'thank you' speech and presented the kids prizes (small toys and sweets).  Other events on the day included, skipping races, relay, bikes, 3 tied together race and Akahe, a tradional African game.  Helpers were plenty so the day went very smoothly. Thanks to the local guys for helping organise on the day and the local women who prepared the food… …also thanks to our 2 resident VSO volunteers Dickson and Joel who really threw themselves into the event.
 
NCCV is really getting local support - all the food and drinks for the children were donated by local Opuwo businesses. Between 150 and 200 kids all had plenty of cold drinks and lots of nice food - boereworst and brochen (sausage in a bun), crisps, biscuits and sweets.
 
We were exhausted by the end of the day… …but it was worth it :-) I hope you can see from the pictures what a great time our kids had. A day to remember!!
 
Next - I'm cooking a 'thank you' dinner for all our helpers.  Easter Sunday at my house (and I wont warn them about my cooking in advance!)
Diane :-)    
Diane Mills

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Saturday 21st January 2012

Music and Dance Day

You can see a short video of this event on NCCV FaceBook page.

January 21 was an exciting day for us in Katatura – and one we’d been really looking forward to. Doris, a Zulu lady, music and dance teacher and old friend of Diane’s came to NCCV to entertain our kids.

We gathered together and cleared the ground outside the NCCV plot and created an outdoor dance studio. Tate Hippandurua, Headman of Katatura and NCCV Committee Chairman, and some of the other elders came over with their chairs and settled in the shade to enjoy the entertainment.

Doris is a very lively, vocal, and colourful entertainer. She plays traditional drums and teachers the children Zulu songs and dance movements. Some of us adults were also pushed into joining in – you don’t say no to Doris.

A big thank you to Doris and friends – it was a day I’m sure our kids will remember.
Diane Mills

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				Monica - showing us her moves and leading the dancing :-)
Our kids dressed in their best for this exciting event – playing the dance beat with drink cans!

Friday 20th January 2012

NCCV Christmas in Katatura

Thanks to kind donations we were able to make Christmas special for our children and families in Katatura.  Approximately 50 children received goody bags with small toys and sweets.  

All our families received substantial food parcels which meant that none of our children were hungry on Christmas day.  The food parcels were made possible by one donation of £250 from a friend of NCCV.

Thank you everyone – once again you made a difference and put smiles onto small faces    
Diane Mills

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Saturday 6th November 2011

The building starts!!!

October saw the beginning of building in a very small way on our NCCV plot. Zeb, a local man from Katatura, has begun to build a small hut for himself to live in and guard the plot. He will also oversee the brick making project when we begin next year.

Zeb was recommended to us by Tate Hipandurua - he needed somewhere to live and we needed someone on our plot.
Diane Mills

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Monday 31st October 2011

Fund raising is FUN!!

The pictures prove it.....David Orr and his friends has a fantastic time at his Halloween party and managed to raise £200 for NCCV.

David, an ex VSO volunteer who worked in Namibia, is now a social worker in Edinburgh - children are very dear to his heart. He knows of the poor living conditions and how some of the children in Namibia suffer every day.  Thanks to people like David, who not only care but do something about it, we are slowly raising the money for our Katatura Childrens Centre in Opuwo.  We still have a long way to go.

Please consider this when you're making plans for Christmas celebrations- you can also raise money for our children. People are happy to give - they just want you to tell them how.  Every little helps.

THANK YOU David and to all friends of NCCV for your support.
Diane Mills

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Thursday 22nd September 2011

Angus completes Triathlon in 1 hour 46minutes (including a tyre change)!!!

Fantastic news that Angus completed the Triathlon in 1 hour and 46 minutes. Angus writes "The event went well for me I did it in 1 Hour 46 minutes which is better than my target of 2 hours, it would have been quicker but for getting and repairing a puncture on the bike."

Angus also raised in total £150 for NCCV (including a generous personal donation).
Stuart Lee

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Angus Brummitt-Brown

Sunday 19th September 2011

NCCV Cyclist comes 4th!!!

Erwin Jonker, VSO volunteer and Occupational Therapist at Opuwo Hospital came 4th in the 35km bike race around Spitzkoppe Mountain. Money is starting to come in from sponsors. We will let you know the grand total when we have the info. Well done Erwin and thanks to all the other people who sponsored and helped NCCV.
Stuart Lee

Sunday 4th September 2011

Sponsors needed for NCCV Cyclist

This is Erwin Jonker, VSO volunteer and Occupational Therapist at Opuwo Hospital. A super cyclist who will take part in a 35km bike race next weekend around Spitzkoppe Mountain, to raise funds for NCCV.

Erwin comes from the Netherlands where he's used to cycling in flat, cold and wet conditions. Next Saturday he will be one of 200 participants who take to the mountain tracks to race their way ...around Spitzkoppe - the terrain is very arduous, challenging and rocky, with steep up-hill climbs and dangerous downhill paths. Temperatures can be as high as 40 degrees at this time of year.
Diane Mills

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Erwin Jonker		Spitzkoppe		Spitzkoppe		Spitzkoppe

Tuesday 23rd August 2011

Food and toy donations reach Katatura!

You can see in the new pictures, taken in the last few weeks, that the donations of food and toys really mean a lot to our families in Katatura. It's so nice to see the kids smiling when they see the toys. And the food items make a huge difference! Sad to say it's just 'papering over the cracks' though - we really need to quickly raise the remainder of the money to build the NCCV Children's Centre and concentrate on something more sustainable. Thank you so much for your continued support.
Diane Mills

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Diane handing out donations in Katatura		Local kids getting some oranges for nutrition		Small child sporting new bracelet
This girl now has a toy		Diane with some of the people your donations have gone to

Friday 19th July 2011

Sponsorship for NCCV

The Cheltenham office of telecommunications company 'Talk Talk' has organised a whole summer full of fundraising events to help 2 children’s chartities. One is UK based Hop Skip and Jump and the other we are lucky to announce is NCCV!! The project co-ordinator is Canadian Kellie Simpson and she has some fun events to raise money for children who need it most!

So far there have been… 'dress down for a pound' days in the office, pub quizzes and five a side football events which have raised over £600 in just over a month!

This weekend on Sunday 24th July there will be a Cotswold Treasure Hunt Rally! Teams of 5 people per car will be embarking on fancy dress treasure hunt for 6 hours around the Gloucestershire countryside. The hunt will then end with a evening of music and fundraising at the Railway Pub Cheltenham. Music by Jo’s AJL Jazz Quintet – come down and join the fun from 8pm onwards! We’ll be sharing some fun photos from the 24th soon!
Jo Stimpson

Charity Sponsorhip by Angus

On the 30th July Angus Brummitt - Brown will be taking part in the challenging Virgin London Sprint Triathlon for NCCV. The event consists of 750m Swim (open water), 25km Cycle, 5km Run. Angus decided to support NCCV as one of his close friends who sadly passed away this year was a keen supporter of the work Diane Mills has done for years for the children children of Nambia. We wish Angus good luck for his physical challenge and look forward to some snaps for you to enjoy! Please let us know if you would like to sponsor Angus and we will put you in touch.
Jo Stimpson

Friday 8th July 2011

Diane's return to Namibia

I arrived back in Opuwo last Friday, July 8th - almost 3 days after leaving Nottingham bus station.  I had been in the UK not only to visit family and friends but also to raise awareness on NCCV and the plight of our children in Katatura - to raise desperately needed funds!!
 
I was hoping and expecting the cold weather would be over by the time I got back to Namibia, but was disappointed.  It's colder than ever, especially during the night - also very very windy and dusty. You think of Africa and imagine it's really hot all the time but the desert climate here in Opuwo is very harsh - it's either one extreme or another. Katatura families are really struggling during this time - their shelters offer very little protection from the bitterly cold nights.  It's dry season so the vegetable garden is empty – but children need the vitamins from a nutritious diet now more than ever. 

If you think you can spare a small amount of money per month, or even make a one-off donation to alleviate some of the suffering please contact NCCV through this website by clicking on Donate button to the left.
Diane Mills

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Daughter Nangula with the 3 smallest boys

Saturday 25th June 2011

Toy Donation for NCCV Children in Katatura

During Diane's visit to the UK two kind friends of NCCV decided to buy toys and send them to Namibia for the children in Katatura. It doesn't sound a priority, toys, considering the harsh life these children are subjected to on a daily basis. However they have so little in their lives that is brightly coloured, fun and just basically 'children's stuff', that small toys are amazing to them and something they will never forget.

Many of the children in Katatura are living an adults life, heading a family and caring for siblings from a very early age. Some are also care givers to sick parents - they've never really had a childhood, only responsibilities far too big for their small shoulders.

NCCV is still desperately looking for people who are willing to donate a small amount of money per month to pay for food and medical supplies, to make the lives of these children tolerable – even to give them a life…
Please think, 'would I really miss £10 per month?'
Diane Mills

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Toys collected so far

Wednesday 22nd June 2011

Success Story
This is Verarapi Ngombe, a Himba boy who lives in Opuwo Namibia, who has been sponsored by a friend of NCCV since 2005. During that time he has been away from his family but supported through his education due to donations.
He has recently completed his education and has secured a post of Trainee Teacher with the Ministry of Education in Kunene Region. He will complete his training in 3 years but in the meantime he is earning a small salary and can now be self sufficient.
This success story and happy ending was brought about for less than £10 per month.
Diane Mills

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Verarapi

Late December 2010

In the week prior to Christmas I spent most of my time making up food parcels for some of the families in Katatura. As you can see in the picture the parcels consisted of the staple foods such as maizemeal and sugar but we also managed to buy things like tea, oil, salt and even tinned fish. Fresh vegetables from our garden were also a welcome addition. Parcels were given to ten of the most needy families - the families included 58 children. 50% of the food was given to the Ovatua and Ovazemba community who live in the most impoverished conditions on the far side of Katatura next to the local rubbish dump.

One of NCCV goals for 2011 is to work with the families to begin a garden project on the building plot and to help and encourage them to grow their own vegetables. The main barrier we will face will be the lack of water in the area.
Diane Mills

Friday 3rd December 2010

The snow kept a lot of people away - but thankyou to the band and small but perfectly fomred crowd who braved the weather to rasie £270 and also to Adrian and John who both have signed up for regular monthly contributions to NCCV.
Jo Stimpson

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Thursday 28th November 2010

My colleagues and I from GSK held a cake bake, book sale and raffle and rasied a stagerring £1,274.54

Thank you to all the girls from the  Training  and Marketing teams at GSK for all their hard work baking and selling like crazy to raise such a huge amount! and for the wonderful doantions of clothes and vitamins that Jo tokk over on her recent visit to Opuwo in Novembe.
Jo Stimpson

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On the move		Cakes 2		Group 1
Group 2		Cakes Galore!

Wednesday 17th November 2010

NCCV Day in Katatura … we planned this mainly for the children so the food provided was kids stuff, bags with oranges, crisps, biscuits and jam and peanut butter sandwiches etc. The aim was to introduce the project to the wider community. Jo was introduced and gave a small speech, even greeting everyone in Otjiherero (or something fairly close judging by the amount of laughter). Diane was already well known in Katatura. Headman Hipandurua gave a lovely speech about the project plans - another member of the Katatura Committee also gave a speech. Ladies of the community had arranged for the children to do some cultural dancing which we all really enjoyed. Balloons, music, dancing, food, it was a lovely, lively afternoon and we estimated that 200 people from the community were there.
Diane Mills

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Diane Mills, Headman Hipandurua, Jo Stimpson and Monica Limao		So happy about NCCV in Katatura		Beautiful kids of Katatura
Helping with the food		The gate and outlook of the NCCV plot		Childrens day at nccv

Tuesday 16th November 2010

Work was carried out to waterproof Lusiana's house - we had planned the work to begin before the rains came but unfortunately we were one day too late. Heavy rains began the previous night. Monica Limao translated for the builder and told him exactly what Lusiana wanted - Headman Hipandurua came to inspect the work on completion.
Diane Mills

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Lusiana with 7 of her 12 children		Gideon the builder, hard at work		Monika, our community advisor, looking at the roof
Kids at gate		Lusiana's youngest two

Monday 15th November

The day was spent in Katatura … introducing Jo to some of the families. A visit to Lusiana's to check on what work needed to be done to waterproof her home, a visit to one lady who's husband had just passed away and to another whose house had burnt down. Jo also met several ladies like Jacobina, an Ovambo lady with twelve children. Sacks of maizemeal, veg' from the NCCV garden and childrens clothes were given to the families.
Diane Mills

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Monica and Jo with Herero family outside the hut		Herero lady outside her house		Jacobina's boys
diane gets some help loading the maizemeal		Diane with baby		Typical katatura houses

Wednesday 10th November 2010

Jo was stung by a scorpion inside Diane's flat … not deadly but very painful. Pain relief via a poultice of onions and lemon!!
Diane Mills

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The scorpion		Poultice

Wednesday 10th November 2010

Trees were bought from the local Ministry of Agriculture for the NCCV plot … fruit trees amongst others; papaya, guava, lemon. Shade trees still have to be bought but that will be done at a later date. The trees will be planted once the building work commences but meantime they are being cared for in the garden of a Katatura family.
Diane Mills

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Jo at Ministry of agriculture		Vicki Limoa - who will be watering the trees for us		Loaded in the car

Wednesday 3rd November 2010

Jo Stimpson, the NCCV UK Cordinator arrived in Opuwo for a 3 week visit. Her first few days were spent settling in and getting to know the area and the people of Katatura. Diane introduced her to Headman Hipandurua and together the three of them went to look at the NCCV plot of land where the children's centre will be located. Later Jo also met Monica Limao who is a friend and volunteer community advisor/translator for NCCV.
Diane Mills

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Harry, building coordinator, with Jo at the nccv plot		Katatura Headman Hipandurua		Opuwo houses		Katatura

Monday 11 October 2010

I spent the morning visiting families in Katatura - so pleased to be able to take vegetables from our garden, spinach, beets and turnips, along with the usual maizemeal.

As you can see in the pictures, Monica Limoa, a katatura resident and friend who works for the Ministry of Health, was with me for the visits. We spent time with Lusiana and her children and even brought in local men to look at the roof that is worrying her. It's important we try to find a way to make the hut waterproof before the rains come.

I'm hoping that Monica will have time to work with and support NCCV in the future - the community visits are so much more effective if she has the time to accompany me. She can translate and is well known and respected in Katatura.
Thursday evening I was invited to her house for dinner :-) It was such a nice time.
Diane Mills

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Lusiana and the 2 youngest		Monika with 2 local guys - inspecting the roof		Monika - looking at the roof		Luciana's daughter Nangula with the 3 smallest boys

Friday 8th October

Finally collected all the money from the cahrity race and managed to raise and donate £200!.
Stuart Lee

Thursday 23rd September 2010

This morning I visited a family of 8 in Katatura - I had $100 Namibian to spend on food for them (that's just less than £10). I had to get as much staple food as I could for the money - the children in this family are always hungry. The photo shows my shopping:

• 10kg maizemeal
• 6 pkts soup (for flavouring the maizemeal)
• 2 kg of sugar (to mix with water for the children)
• 2 bottles cooking oil (for cooking the maizemeal)
• Bag of meat bones - for soup
• box of 40 tea bags
• 8 oranges
  

Maizemeal is the main food - not very nutritious but it fills the stomachs. I'm always tempted to buy more vegetables and fruit but the money would not go very far then. Hopefully we'll be sharing the vegetables from the garden soon. Diane Mills

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Food for £10

Wednesday 1st September 2010

This morning I visited our plot of land expecting to see the poles in place ready for the wiring of the fence. I've been in Windhoek for 2 weeks and left money and instructions before I went. - Don't plan in Africa - I should know that by now :-))

Misunderstanding, miscommunication, whatever - it all boils down to the fact that I'll have to learn Otjiherero.

As you can see from the pictures the holes aren't dug and the poles aren't in - Harry Tjiposa had told the labourer to get started but he thought he had to wait until I was back. This morning the 4 of us went up to the plot, Headman Hipandurua, Harry, myself and the labourer. We clearly marked the corners of the land with small piles of rocks and he will start the holes tomorrow. At least the poles are cut, stripped and ready :-))
Diane Mills

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NCCV Plot

Wednesday 1st September 2010

'As you can see the veggie garden is coming along well - things seem to grow very fast. Hopefully in a month or two we'll be able to help several families with a bit of nutritious food. At the moment the garden is just at my house but once we began work on the NCCV plot I hope to have a much larger garden and maybe local people will help. We're growing at the moment: tomatoes, sweet potatos, spinach, carrots, beetroot, green beans and butternuts'.
Diane Mills

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NCCV Garden

Wednesday 28th July 2010

I finally managed to track down Lusiana, the blind woman I had been looking for for several weeks. Her house had burnt down while I was away and she'd had to relocate.

I was distressed to see how she was living - still with 8 children at home she is living in one small hut built for her by the people from her Church following the fire. The children looked in very poor condition but were excited when they saw I had taken food. Lusiana cried!!

I only had $N100 (about £10) but managed to buy : maizemeal, oil, bread, macaroni, eggs, sugar and a bag of meat bones. Stretched to its limits the food may last them 3 days.
Diane Mills

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Lusiana		Lusiana and her family		Lusina's youngest

Tuesday 20th July 2010

After several meetings I am so happy to say that NCCV have recieved a plot of land - Kindly donated by local Chief Hipandurua. The land is on the hillside above the Katatura location on the outskirts of Opuwo. It has not been measured as yet as the land was shown to me by the, 'it's from that tree to that tree', method!! Its a beautiful piece of land - very rocky but hopefully there will be plenty of help to clear it.

The first task facing me is to get local people to chop trees to make poles that will be placed to mark off our ownership of the land - hopefully that will be done within the next week.

Katatura is the ideal location for a children's project - it is one of the most poor areas of town with lots of children. Chief Hipandurua said there is a great need for a kindergarten and asked if NCCV could help - hence the donation of land. He stated quite clearly that his community needed support and he hoped our project would make a difference in the area.
Diane Mills

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Diane with Chief Hipandurua		Harry Tjiposa, friend and translater, with Chief Hipandurua (right) - both proud to show me the land		view from the plotl		Looking out from the NCCV plot

Tuesday 13th July 2010

I went out to visit one of the nearby villages - I had a friend visiting from Angola so I took her with me. We took staple food for the Himbas: maizemeal, sugar, oil, bread etc.

They were happy to see us once they understood we were not tourist but that I lived in the area. This was the first time for me to be invited into the 'womens hut' - we sat around the fire inside the hut and somehow had 'girly' conversation about skin, hair, handbags etc.
Diane Mills

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Happy faces		Diane with the villagers		Himba boy carrying food		Village scene

Saturday 3rd July 2010

I Just enjoyed a walk around the outside of town - met some lovely kids. One boy - who is in the photo - remembered me from two years ago and tried to follow me home. I was shocked that he remembered me and even my name. He is very thin and does not seem to have grown at all in the last two years. He is one of the first children I would like to benefit from NCCV.
Diane Mills

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Tree kids		Back of house and part built extension		Herero boy at the goat coral

Friday 2nd July 2010

Am. I had a meeting with Bernadette Jagger who is the School Inspector for all the schools in this area. She travels out a lot and has the best knowledge of the poorest areas where the need is the greatest. It was also a chance to give the Ministry of Education more details about NCCV. Long term plans are for remedial lessons to help keep kids in school - for this NCCV has to work alongside the Ministry.

Pm. Was taken by a local businessman to look at a house he had heard was for sale outside of town. The house is in the new location and is only half finished - the land is good and has water but as yet no electricity. I was told the lady who is selling is out of town until monday so hopefully I will meet her then.
Diane Mills

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House for sale		New location

Wednesday 30th June 2010

I'm back to the same area to collect some people who had to come into town. Camped overnight in the bush - air matrress went down in the night so slept on the hard stoney ground :-(
Diane Mills

Monday 28th June 2010

I drove out to ...... area (about 2.5 hours out of Opuwo on the Okorosave road). A chance to visit kids in a more remote school and to see how people were living. Most of the kids in this area aren't going to school - their job is to look after the goats and cattle.
Diane Mills

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View from outside the school		3 girls		2 goat herding boys
With the English teachers at the campsite		Kids in the village

Friday 18th June 2010

Meeting with Meme Ndinelao Shiningayamwe – who is in charge of land sale for Opuwo Council. We spent time driving around together so she could show me plots that had been surveyed and were for sale. It seems a good size plot for NCCV will cost about N$20,000 (about £1800.) Not all of the plots have services yet – in fact it may be difficult for us to get a plot in an area with water and electricity but she has my phone number and we are going to meet regularly.

Spent the afternoon driving around all the locations (shanty towns) outside of town with the help of a friend who is a community volunteer – Steven is a great help as well as a friend. He knows everyone in the community and can also translate for me. Many more people have moved to this area since I’ve been away – they think the tar road will bring prosperity so they move out of the bush nearer town and just build shelters from whatever they can find. The living conditions are very very poor. Cholera is around still!!
Diane Mills

Thursday 17th June 2010

I worked in the local kindergarten during the morning. Seems a good way to get to know some of the younger children an I have also offered to do some training for the teachers.

In the afternoon I went out to Orumana School – (about 40km outside of Opuwo) to check on one boy who is sponsored by a friend. As usual I was surrounded by small children – when I asked one little boy his name he said, ‘Drogba’. This whole continent has gone football crazy!
Diane Mills

Wednesday 16th June 2010

NCCV now have small office – donated by friend (will also have wireless internet in the office when we sort out the problems) so have to learn how to get blog up and running.

In the afternoon I went outside of Opuwo to Ondura area (about 20 km out) – with same friend Pam Peterson who is from the local church. Took her bakkie to visit Himba friends – loaded the bakkie with mealies and drove it from the fields to the village. This was a nice way to help friends – the women would usually have to make numerous journeys carrying it on their heads. They put the mealies on the roof to dry. Also watched them picking Ozongaru – quite nice tasting berry-like fruit.
Diane Mills