Lifted to new heights by stilts

Determination and consistency has made him rise above the rest – literally.

As he walks through a crowd balancing on long steel stilts, Delvacio Eitabeb (27) says he has turned his passion into a job.
Eitabeb, who is from Windhoek’s Freedomland, says life was not easy being raised by a single mother.

Things got better after his stepfather moved into their home and became the family’s father figure and breadwinner.
“In 2013, after failing Grade 10, I enrolled at the Namibian College of Open Learning to improve my grades, but I didn’t want to be home doing nothing productive.

“A friend introduced me to walking on stilts in 2014 and I haven’t looked back since,” he says.
Eitabeb says he appreciates his mother’s support.

“She told me to do what I love, saying I could always go back to school whenever I wanted.
“I am very passionate about my work, because not everybody can walk on stilts.

What I enjoy most about it is the excitement on the children’s faces and people taking pictures when they see me.”

Eitabeb says he makes appearances at various types of social events.
“I can humbly say being a stilt walker has helped me be self-employed, using the money to buy equipment for gigs to be a DJ at events, dancing and doing photography at weddings.”

‘MONEY CHANGED MY LIFE’

He started earning money, he says, which changed his life and family’s.
“In 2021 my stepfather died and I was motivated to work harder to help my mother and sibling, since my mother was unemployed. We used to depend on my stepfather’s social grant, since he was a war veteran,” he says.

From the money he earned as a stilt walker, Eitabeb says he managed to build a backyard bedroom and buy groceries and furniture.
“I also bought two computers and two laptops to offer the children in my street computer lessons for free. I love computers and I fix them, too,” he says.

PEOPLE TO MEET, PLACES TO SEE

Eitabeb says he likes taking risks.
“Because of walking on stilts, I get to meet different people. I have learnt a lot and have travelled to all the regions in the country to attend social events,” he says.

Eitabeb says he has seen things and places one would normally only see on television.
“If it wasn’t for the stilts, I wouldn’t be where I am,” he says.

Having mastered this skill doesn’t guarantee success all the time though, he says.
“I have fallen seven times – twice alone and five times in public.

That hasn’t demotivated me. I just had to learn how to fall safely,” he says.
Training how to fall the right way is key to preventing injuries, he says.

Eitabeb recalls the reaction of people when he has fallen before, saying some laughed while others were concerned.
“I don’t regret doing what I do. Some people think I have failed school, however, this has been a good experience in my life.”

ADVICE

“My advice to those who want to take up the same skill, is: If you like attending social events and making children happy and you’re ready to fall from a height, you can do it.”

Eitabeb’s mother, Susanna //Uiras (53), is currently temporarily employed.
She says she is extremely proud of her son and supports anything “decent” he does.

“I don’t have a problem with what he does, as long as he is safe. The unemployment rate is high and I had to allow it,” she says.
//Uiras says she believes her son will go back to school eventually.

“I am grateful for the skills he has acquired and being able to help out with buying groceries at home.”
Amor Basson, the founder of Amorlamor Promotions and Eitabeb’s employer, has described him as hard-working and ambitious.
She has known him for nine years, she says.

“He is a knowledge seeker and a very good guy,” Basson says.
She says the company educates the public through entertainment and theatre.

Eitabeb’s trainer, Leonard Uirab, says he is a fast learner, who has mastered stilt walking in just three days.
“He is a good guy and we grew up together.

I saw potential in him and taught him in three days on safety tips, standing by yourself and how to handle unfavourable weather conditions,” he says.

Eitabeb dreams of studying languages.
“I love teaching, but financial challenges remain.”