Doing it for the children

Lizette Feris is the founder of Precious Children Foundation, which is an informal welfare organisation that assists community care takers and children to express themselves on issues that affect them.

She is also a child rights activist, Programme Officer for the Children and the Media projects at the Media Institute of Southern Africa.
“I organise successful regional events for children, and representatives of the media and civil society, to engage on children’s issues and advocate for the realisation of children’s rights in the media, but I will be leaving MISA at the end of August,” said Feris.
She describes herself as an adventurous person who is willing to take risks. “I am also innovative, and love to try out new methods, ideas and experiences and look at the same challenge with new eyes,” she says. She also describes herself as funny because she says she can make herself belt out with laughter and she is grateful that she has a sense of humour even in difficult times.
Feris is inspired by children because according to her they have such a different perspective on things and have amazing ideas and by just interacting with them, she has learned so much and she says it is wonderful when they take the lead on projects. “Kindness motivates me, being kind to myself and others, and witnessing random acts of kindness by others, I once saw children feeding each other and that image will stay with me for the rest of my life,” added Feris.
Her recent most proudest moment was in Pretoria, South African on 2 and 3 July, when 9 children from Namibia, Lesotho, Zambia and South Africa successfully hosted a media meeting, after 7 days of training. “I could burst from pride simply because I knew those children,” she gloated.
Commenting on what inspires her, she advised, “Find what makes you, You, nurture those qualities and stand proud.”
Feris said she plans to pursue her dream and nurture her soul, adding that children are her passion as such she will continue her career in child rights advocacy. “I am propelled by Nelson Mandela who once said, ‘there can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children,” concluded Feris.
Feris is also the Vice President of Victims to Survivor, the organisers of the national art exhibition against gender based violence and she is also the founder of KnowNamibia.com a website telling untold Namibian stories.