From Okahandja hails the young and vibrant Lydia Garises who loves to give back to the community with her talents.
Garises was born and raised in Nambia’s Garden Town and completed her high school at the A. Shipena Secondary school. She is passionate about working with children as well as the youth. Every year she would visit various schools or communities to teach and impart her performing arts skills to young people teaching children and the youth how to sing, dance and do drama, write and recite poems and so much more. “I worked at different schools and communities in Katutura for over 14years. I facilitated at schools such as Moses Garoeb Primary, Hage Geingob High, Olaf Palme Primary School and many others ’’says Garises.
Garises recently hosted an event at the Ida Hoffman crèche during the crèche’s 30th anniversary and she wrote a heart-warming poem that the children under five to six years at the crèche rendered in their mother tongue. “The staff, the parents and the community at Ida Hoffman are making all the effort I put on the stage production worthwhile because of the support and positive response I get. I’m grateful for all the help I got from the teachers and the parents because working with the children is a blessing. I will continue to teach and develop children,’’ determines Garises.
She enjoys working with children from disadvantaged backgrounds and know how arts activities could develop the society. Garises urges the government invest in arts and take arts education seriously as part of the formal school curriculum. She adds that career in arts is very broad and there could be more opportunities if the government sees it as part of a social development.
“Arts can be used as a form of recreational activities and it will help many of the youth to stay away from places like shabeens and from drugs intake,” she says. Garises is currently studying Performing Arts, Drama and Music at the University of Namibia(Unam) and working as a facilitator at the Ministry of Youth, National Services, Sport and Culture on a part time bases. She also works for the National Arts Extension Programme, an outreach that makes her showcase her artwork.
In five years, Garises hopes to be a co-owner of a Multipurpose Art House, to serve disadvantaged communities in Windhoek.
“To the youth out there who want to pursue a career in arts, one is required to have talent, skills, determination and discipline and you must be focused and believe in yourself and let your integrity and moral values guide you,” she advises.