The Kalkrand Village Council, in collaboration with local businesswoman Corne Smith and local youth group Never Give Up, planted trees at the village cemetery at Kalkrand on Wednesday.
Kalkrand chief executive Johannes Herero said the project began last week as part of a wider effort to improve the condition of the cemetery.
“The condition of our graveyard is terrible, and we thought as the leadership, why not start by planting trees in honour of our forefathers who are resting here?
“We also wanted to involve local businesspeople in development initiatives, so we included local businesswoman Corne Smith, who generously donated 80 seedlings,” he said.
Smith, who has been a resident of Kalkrand for 13 years and works in the tourism industry, said her reason for taking part in the project is to make the village more attractive, particularly for tourists passing through.
“Many people just pass through Kalkrand and think nothing happens here, apart from hearing about flooding on the news. My assistant and I have ideas on how to clean up the town, so when we learnt about the Never Give Up youth group here in our community, we knew we had to support them.
“They are a group of unemployed people and in the process we will work with them, providing donations to help with their mission ahead,” said Smith.
The group donated flamboyant trees and rain trees.
According to Smith, the graveyard is a place of rest, yet at present there is no shade and people must stand under the sun when visiting their loved ones.
A member of the Never Give Up youth group, Imelda Aochamus, explained why she volunteered to clean up the graveyard.
“We are a group of 19 unemployed young people from Kalkrand who have been coming together to clean up the graveyard for three months now.
“We started in August and what we do is just to remove the waste and gather rocks, but we are determined to keep our community clean,” said Aochamus. – Nampa
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