Finalist educators for Windhoek Lager Ambassador award

Helena Namene; Nikodemus Petrus Hawaseb; and Thea Seefeldt have been chosen by the judges as finalists in the first category of the Windhoek Lager Ambassador Initiative.  
They are all active in the education sector and were nominated by Namibians in this category of the awards programme.
Helena Namene is the first teacher and founder of the Amateta Primary School in the Omuntele constituency.  Her teaching began 21 years ago as a means to an end but it became a lifelong passion.  She says: “Being a teacher feels so good to me, whenever I educate a learner I feel so fulfilled, and whenever my learners understand then I feel peaceful.  
I love people who love to learn and being a teacher is the best thing that ever happened to me.”  She is a mentor and patron of the school and one of the school blocks has been named after her.
Helena said education is essential for everyone and that it is the level of education that helped people earn respect and recognition.
“In my opinion, it is an indispensable part of life both personally and socially. It goes without saying that education has a positive effect on human life. Only with the advent of education can people gain knowledge and enlarge their view over the world.”
Nikodemus Petrus Hawaseb works for the Ministry of Education in the Kunene region, at the Dawid Khamuxab Primary School in the resettlement farm of Seringkop (Outjo district).
“ My passion for education is reflected in working hard to teach the learners, as teaching is a call to plough back into the community of my San hai//Om people.  Education is the only way to get out of our current situation of poverty and slavery.”
 Nikodemus is of the opinion that education is important since it is the key to a healthy and successful life.  “Without it you cannot live with dignity”, said Nikodemus.
Thea Seefeldt hails from Tsumeb and is the Director of Education in the Khomas Region.
 She holds a Master’s Degree in Education, specializing in Policy Analysis and Educational Management from the University of Western Cape.  She coordinates the programmes and projects in the region and is responsible for the timely appointment of staff at schools and hostels.
  She further ensures that the budgetary needs are met and procurement is executed as well as numerous other tasks.
Thea said she is thrilled at having been nominated and reaching the top three.  “To me, education is like a big puzzle, where all the pieces fit together and it presents a big picture.
If some pieces are missing or lost, the picture loses crucial elements to make it whole. I am in principle an analyst who tries to figure out how to get the missing pieces put together for the most important beneficiary – the child. Education is important because it opens new vistas for children and makes them see that there is a different future for them out there.”
Thea added: “I subscribe fully to the O&L Group’s purpose: ‘Creating a future, enhancing life’. That is what we do in education. We create a future for our children and try to enhance life for our Namibian citizens. If we fail in this effort, we have failed in our duty as citizens of this wonderful country.”