Pamper party for Manenberg youth: A celebration of hope and community

With Youth Day around the corner, Manenberg residents Valerie Olifant and Najumah Felix are gearing up to treat about 50 young people from her community to a heartwarming pamper party, a celebration designed to uplift and inspire.

They plan to cater for 100 children in total, providing meals, party packs, and entertainment. As part of the celebration, 50 of the children - 30 girls and 20 boys - will receive special hair makeovers as part of the pampering initiative.

Olifant and Felix started the nonprofit organisation “Valerie’s Soup Kitchen” in 2021. The duo annually hosts various community events to spread joy like a children’s Christmas party, high teas for the elderly, weekly soup kitchens, amid the gloom of persistent gang violence and trauma experienced by residents on the Cape Flats. 

This year, Olifant is pulling out all the stops with a pamper party where the youth will be treated to a day of relaxation and joy. Professional hairstylists will be on hand to give them fresh new looks.

On how the idea came about, Olifant said: “We were sitting in the car and saw some kids coming out of school, we noticed their hair looked a bit messy, it looked like it hadn’t been washed in days, maybe longer. That’s when we said, ‘Let’s do something different this year.’ Instead of just giving them food like we usually do, let’s focus on their hair too, help them feel good about themselves."

She said it’s about making the youngsters "feel seen, celebrated, and special”.

“We are also planning a talk to inspire them because if you don’t nurture a child from a young age, they can lose their way. We want them to feel like they’re not alone, not forgotten. We want them to know they can come to us, like guardians away from home.

"For us, this is important especially here in Manenberg, where gang violence is a constant shadow and many kids are growing up in broken homes with no real stability. We just want to show them that there are people who care, people who are here to support them. So much is happening to children today. They are scared and often they don’t know who to turn to. We want to be that safe space,” Olifant added. 

They are calling on any support in the form of donations to help bring the event to life. To assist, Olifant can be contacted on 062 630 1825.

Cape Times