Christmas project "Bringing Joy"

In 2016, Micha and Madeleine distributed Christmas gifts in Rundu for the first time, mobilizing donations from contacts and friends worldwide. Over the years, the project expanded, enabling the distribution of approximately 600 gifts in 2019. Not only the children but also their families and village communities quickly appreciated the efforts of the couple and their volunteers, eagerly anticipating their visit during the holiday season.

In 2020, Conambiki supported the initiative for the first time. Around €7000 was donated, allowing the purchase of more than 1300 gifts. The remaining amount was utilized for repairs and the purchase of beddings and cleaning supplies at the "Sion Hostel" student residence (see "Sion Hostel" project). In 2021, due to the challenging COVID-19 situation at that time, the Christmas initiative was initially postponed and eventually canceled for the year. With the accumulated amount of approximately €1440, 120 blankets were purchased for a community in the village of "Likwaterera," 23 km from Rundu. These blankets were distributed in March 2022 to a total of 54 needy families to protect them from the approaching winter's single-digit temperatures. In total, around 3500 gifts were distributed from 2016 to 2022.

As early as August, Micha begins promoting the planned Christmas initiative in local stores to ensure sufficient stock for a large purchase. Additionally, he contacts surrounding village communities to estimate the number of children residing there.

From November, the large-scale purchase commences, with Micha's entire family being involved, packing the car full to the brim. With the help of approximately 35 volunteers, a whole day is dedicated to lovingly wrapping and labeling all the gifts. Another day is required to sort the packages for distribution to different villages. Since there's no other storage space available, the Kühne family's living and children's rooms are stacked with gifts.

On Christmas Day, Micha and Madeleine drive the gifts to the villages. Typically, distribution occurs in the morning to avoid the midday heat. Usually, Micha and his wife carry about 100 extra gifts, as experience shows that more children often attend than initially estimated.

After the welcome, songs are sung together, and Micha narrates the Christmas story to the children. Then, the gifts are distributed from youngest to oldest. Once each child holds a gift, they count together from 10 to 0, and the unwrapping begins!

Boxes are set up to collect the wrapping paper, and everyone pitches in to tidy up. Apart from villages and financially disadvantaged neighborhoods in Rundu, children in the hospital also receive gifts.

"Bringing Joy" was one of the first projects of the association and one of the reasons for founding Conambiki. Some of our founding members had previously worked as volunteers at the Treehouse Academy in Rundu. These experiences led to a close connection between the director, Micha Kühne, and the subsequent association. The Christmas initiative had existed for several years, but donating to a private individual in Namibia was relatively complicated for someone from Germany.

One of the reasons that sparked the idea of founding a nonprofit organization with a German donation account was to simplify donations, make them tax-deductible, and save transaction costs by bundling amounts transferred to Namibia. Thus, we founded Conambiki and have since provided our donation account for the Christmas initiative.

In the years 2020 and 2021, the Christmas initiative was part of Conambiki's active project portfolio. From 2022 onwards, we decided not to actively promote the Christmas initiative for two reasons.

Firstly, the capacity limit of the Christmas initiative is reached even without our support. With Conambiki's involvement, the number of gifts increased from 600 in the previous year to 1300 in 2020. This impressive generosity brought logistical challenges because the gifts needed to be bought, wrapped, and distributed. Micha Kühne himself continues to actively promote the initiative, so enough money is collected even without us to distribute hundreds of gifts.

Secondly, Conambiki as an association has evolved, focusing primarily on projects with long-term and sustainable impacts. We prioritize projects like school construction, our Community Center, or Annette's Soup Kitchen, emphasizing basic needs, health, and education.

Despite not actively promoting the Christmas initiative anymore, it still takes place annually, and all donations with the designation "Bringing Joy" are used for purchasing gifts. Conambiki and Micha Kühne continue to collaborate closely, and we are proud of what Micha, Madeleine, and the many volunteers achieve year after year, bringing smiles to the faces of the children in Rundu.