steps for children - Genesis of the Project

In 2004/5 the initiator of steps for children, Michael Hoppe, went to Kenya, South Africa and Namibia twice. He was looking for a suitable project location in order to realise his vision to help children in need in a sustainable way. Erika von Wietersheim, a German Namibian, introduced Michael Hoppe to the town of Okakarara.

 

How steps for children came into being – narrated by Michael Hoppe

A vision comes into being

In 2002 after 30 years I quitted working as an independent businessman as Managing Director of my German and international company in order to enter a new phase of my life and to undertake something meaningful. Until 2004 my wish to do something for children and youths in need grew ever stronger.

At this time I had the idea of a project for children in countries which need support. I drafted a first project sketch, which included an orphanage, a school and a soup kitchen. The continent on which the project should come into being had not been decided on; however, back then I already laid out the existing visions and principles.

 

Learning from others – an excursion to Africa

As my experience to that day had only been with entrepreneurial but not social projects I first wanted to learn from others to avoid beginners’ mistakes. What do the people in need really need? How do I create something sustainable and help people to help themselves? I went looking for answers to these questions at similar initiatives. Friends and experts hinted at projects in Africa again and again – a continent still unknown to me then!

End of 2004, beginning of 2005 I undertook a first excursion through Kenya, South Africa and Namibia. There I saw several projects for children and youths in operation and talked to hundreds of people. I visited slums and saw people dying of Aids in the streets for the first time in my life. All this intensified my wish to support children who were in need because of HIV/Aids.

 

On this journey, in Namibia, I met Erika von Wietersheim who was to become the first chairperson of the steps for children Trust later to be founded. Having grown up in Namibia she had established among other things a school for the farm workers’ children on her farm.

 

The concept of the “Income Generating Projects” is developed

Many of the projects in Africa I visited were well organised and equipped in parts, but were always dependent on new donations and third-party-support. Some were about to give up, because donors in far-away Europe or America had turned their backs on them. In order to avoid this problem, I developed the concept of the Income Generating Projects.

According to this concept the local people involved act as entrepreneurs by offering goods or services which secure their own income. From this income also the social projects – e.g. a preschool or soup kitchen – are paid. Both modules, the social projects on the one hand and the income generating ones on the other hand, make up the overall project.

 

First contact with Okakarara

After the concept of the Income Generating Projects existed in theory it called for being put into practice. In March 2005 I went to Namibia a second time and went together with Erika von Wietersheim to Okakarara near the Waterberg. A local took us around the community and introduced us to the late Chief David Kambazembi. In this community there was a big interest in setting up a social project.

 

 

The Traditional Chiefs in Okakarara welcome the project

During my second visit to Okakarara in August 2005 Pastor Assaph Kandjeo came looking for me. He had heard of my plans and shared my vision to do something for children in need.

For two years Assaph with some members of the community had been thinking about a similar project; so far, however, they had lacked the necessary funds and support. After long talks we agreed to present the idea of the project to the traditional chiefs in order to listen to their counsel and receive their blessings. Therefore I presented our plans to the late chiefs Kambazembi and Tjikuua, their Counsellors, the Regional Councillor and about 20 other members of the community.

 

After many questions and long discussions Chief Kambazembi announced: “We welcome you and your project in Okakarara. The mark that your foot will leave in the sand, will never be blown away by the wind.” I thanked him and asked the community for a bigger piece of land for the realisation of the project idea. After about four weeks I received the message that the community wanted to provide us with a 60.000 m² piece of land at the entrance to the town.

 

Therewith the decision for Okakarara had been made. All things had fallen into place: I had found a community in need that wanted the project and wanted to support it. In addition there was a pastor with the same vision and a town council who provided the necessary piece of land.

 

A village for children is planned

After the Town Council had promised the piece of land I intensively discussed the basic draft of the project with Erika. It was clear that there would be single modules, the present “steps”, and that each module would be headed by a responsible person.

 

During my next visit to Windhoek in November 2005 I met Gertrud and Jürgen Schmotz through Erika von Wietersheim. They live in Namibia for half a year and in Augsburg/Germany for the other half of the year.

 

 

As early as 2004 these two had founded a sewing workshop together with a meeting place for youths in Okakarara. Here two women were sewing mainly bags most of which were sold in Germany. The sewing workshop was situated in the Red Cross building and was managed by a local young man when Gertrud and Jürgen Schmotz were not present. The two mentioned their interest in joining the overall project as a self-contained independent unit (step).

 

The sudden start of the project

In December 2005 Assaph and the Task Team surprised me with their wish to start the project ealier than I had expected. They had realised that the transfer of the piece of land and the erection of the prospected buildings would still take a very long time. However, there were already 30 children in Okakarara who wanted to start their education. Furthermore there was fortunately one free room for the preschool and one for the kitchen in the Red Cross house where Gertrud and Jürgen Schmotz had been running the sewing workshop since 2004.

 

The Foundation and the steps for children Support Organisation are launched

Still in December 2005 I founded the steps for children Foundation in Hamburg and deposited enough money for the investments of the first year. In order to be able to cover the running costs in the long run the steps for children Support Organisation was also founded in Hamburg on 21 January 2006. Almost 50 founding members participated in the founding event.

 

The steps for children Trust is founded

With the help of a lawyer I could swiftly set up the foundation agreement for the steps for children Trust in Windhoek at the beginning of 2006. Founding members were Erika von Wietersheim as chairperson, the German-American Dr. Lucy Steinitz who is very experienced in the field of NGOs and social organisations and Festus U. Tjikuua, a Namibian born in Okakarara who studied engineering in Hamburg. These three formed the (founding) board. Together with me as initiator and representative of the sole project sponsor, namely the steps for children Foundation, we were the decision making committee for the project in Namibia.

 

Beginning of March – Start of the project in interim house I

In the second week of March we took off: Jürgen Schmotz helped to transport the finished school desks and chairs to Okakarara, and took a used carpet and some paint along. With him went a protestant vicar and Sonja Klose, one of my daughter’s teachers at Sophie-Barat-School in Hamburg. Sonja had already helped me with translations and other project preparations in Hamburg and was thinking of going on a sabbatical with steps for children in Okakarara.

 

Jürgen, Sonja, Assaph and the vicar painted the walls, fixed some shelves, set up the school furniture and unpacked plates and cutlery. Finished: We were ready for the children. There were now two projects in the same house, Gertrud and Jürgen Schmotz’s sewing workshop and steps for children.

 

Purchase of interim house II

In September 2006 I learnt that a bigger house with an expansive compound was on sale now. Together with Assaph and Sonja I visited the owner of the house at their village. After exciting negotiations we agreed on the price and additional conditions.

In November 2006 Jürgen Schmotz, who was back in Windhoek for his winter term in Namibia, could take the contract to Okakarara to the sellers and to the trustees of the board for signatures. Now the house belonged to the steps for children Trust, co-financed (together with the first mobile house some time later) by the steps for children Foundation and its sponsors and the Augsburg Friends of Namibia and its sponsors.

Immediately after the signing of the contract we began with extensive renovations, changes and the construction of an ablution house. Our aim was to move into the house with the beginning of the new school year: right on time in mid January 2007 two new teachers could start with the lessons. Just the sewing ladies had to work in one of the bedrooms, since the mobile house planned for them would only be ready in March 2007.

 

Partner and Employees

After the cooperation with the sewing workshop initiated by Gertrud and Jürgen Schmotz had become closer and closer in mid-March we decided to act together under the name of steps for children. As a consequence the “Augsburger Freunde Namibias” who are behind Gertrud and Jürgen Schmotz contributed to the costs of the house and, from 2007, to the running costs of the project.

Sonja Klose, Festus, Michael Hoppe, Jürgen(†) and Gertud Schmotz, Assaph

 

The German teacher Sonja Klose decided to spend her sabbatical with steps for children in Namibia. Since August 2006 she has became a valuable help to the project and a link between the cultures. In August 2007 she extended her contract for another two years. Today together with Assaph she represents the Local Management and takes over ever new tasks. She gives extra classes for school learners, is direct superior for the sewing ladies, is involved in the training of the preschool teachers, is responsible for the bookkeeping and reporting and has become the contact person for almost all employees and visitors as well as the volunteers.

 

to the Projects

Okakarara
Namibia