Tom Sebastian: ambassador for Vijana Reloaded
In December 2014 you could already briefly read on the co-operation between ICS and Dutch beauty stylist Tom Sebastian. Tom works for VROUW Telegraaf, a weekly supplement of Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, several tv programmes and he is author of the book ‘Happy Go Beauty!’ This coming weekend he travels to Kenya to meet the trainees of Vijana Reloaded in person and to attend the graduation event of the first batch of students. In the interview below Tom tells more about his motives.
“I work as a beauty stylist for more than 25 years now. Every single day I was occupied with appearances, looks. But a couple of years ago I started longing to more immersion. Besides there is a natural link between appearances and one’s inner world and I wanted to focus on that too. The things I learned along the way I would like to pay forward. To me, that is also part of immersion. That you look beyond, that you are willing to help other people and that you contribute to society.
I’m looking much forward to travel to Kenya and to meet the young trainees personally. I’ve read a lot about the program and I’ve extendedly spoken to ICS employees but I’m sure a personal meeting will make their stories really tangible. I want to tell my network about Vijana Reloaded and show them the importance of this traineeship. My connections can contribute to a broader reach and therefore a bigger impact. I’m sure that well educated young people with an entrepreneurial spirit can really make a difference in this rural area.
ICS has a different approach in development work that immediately attracted me. Instead of just giving they also ask for effort and dedication of the people themselves. ICS works in a sustainable way and do not just offer a solution for this very moment. I have spoken to several organizations but ICS stood out for me. Charity should be synergy to get the best results possible. It’s giving and taking in life, and so it is for development work.
I strongly believe in attention and taking initiatives. Every day opportunities arise. In a conversation, a telephone call or an email. The basic starting points in live in the Netherlands are naturally a lot more favorable than on Kenya’s countryside but there also will be chances. On another level and probably less, but still: there are chances.
This coming weekend I travel to Kakamega, in West Kenya. I will share updates via my website and social media. I’m convinced that the Vijana trainees, with their boundless energy and enthusiasm, will achieve a lot.”
Vijana Reloaded focuses on young people in Kenya who have the potential to go far but are nevertheless unemployed. The six-month traineeship supplements regular studies. The aim is to train young people to become enterprising, solution-oriented thinkers in a short time, who can create their own job in the absence of other work. The program is based on the three cornerstones of IT, social skills and entrepreneurship.
