Educational Excellence Since 1912
Hamden Hall Country Day School
Educating students in PreSchool through Grade 12

Samantha Schroeder Jooste 1995 Calls Africa Home

Samantha Schroeder Jooste, Class of 1995, has been living in southern Africa for more than two decades beginning with her first job out of college.

She works in Botswana for Habitat for Humanity but also launched a family-run business in 2019 that is designed to give back to underprivileged children in their community.

“My roots are currently in the beautiful city of Cape Town. Aside from raising three cool kids I write for a variety of organizations, foundations, and companies on issues ranging from education to social justice to sustainability,” said Sam.

Sam and her family, which includes husband Luther and children Benjamin, 14, Tristen, 12, and Meg, 10, launched KT Leather in 2019. The company crafts handmade leather wallets.  Megan age 10.

“Our personal investment in social upliftment led us to launch KT Leather to help open access to tertiary education for more children in southern Africa,” she revealed.

According to the company’s website, “Somewhere in the design-to-market process, all five of our clan have helped to stitch and market the high quality, 100% leather, custom-crafted wallets you see today.” A video on the site features all five members of the Jooste family.

The business was named for Katie, a little girl in Zimbabwe who lived with the Jooste family for a time.

Sam, who is the daughter of beloved former faculty Linae and Bob Schroeder, started her time under the pines in 1981 as a prekindergartner. She noted that despite the current miles – and oceans! – that separate her from her alma mater, she nonetheless always feels connected to her former school community.

“I’ve learned over the years that ‘home’ can be more than one place at one time. Hamden Hall will always be one of those places,” she said.
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