Catwalk queen remains grounded in her passions
Bongeka Kweyama, Miss KwaZulu-Natal 2018, plans to push as much charity work that she can during her reign, which will include visiting children's homes and old age homes to donate items such as clothes, food and blankets for them.
A PURE heart, passion for modelling and her love for people is what Pinetown model, Bongeka Kweyama, believes earned her the crown for the Miss KwaZulu-Natal 2018 pageant at La Montagne Hotel in Ballito on 7 April.
She said she entered the pageant online last year and was notified about being a finalist in the first week of February this year.
What started as a hobby for her at the age of three because she thought she had a natural passion, evolved into a full-time career for the aspiring young woman.
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She said she’s totally in love with pageantry and has entered many pageants and holds many titles from Miss Sunday School 2002, Miss Toddlers and Tiaras 2016, Queen of the Universe 2016 (2nd princess), Miss Ambassador KZN 2017 (1st princess) and now Miss KwaZulu-Natal 2018.
The 27-year-old matriculated at Pinetown Girls’ High School in 2008 and studied a Bachelors degree in geography and environment management. She graduated and obtained her Honours degree in environmental management at Unisa in 2017.
She described herself as a generally friendly person and believes that education in environmental studies, specifically waste management, connects her to people.
“I go to schools and do presentations to teach children to take care of themselves first before they can take care of the environment. I link the two, my modelling career and my education, to be a good role model for future generations,” said Bongeka.
This pageant, Mr and Miss KwaZulu-Natal, is a charity fund-raiser for Rolemodels Foundation, which is an organisation that intervenes in impoverished communities throughout South Africa.
“Throughout my reign, I will be pushing as much charity work that I can, which include visiting children’s homes and old age homes to donate needed food and blankets and also attending events,” she said.
She also plans to work closely with the municipality, specifically in their environmental campaigns.
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Although modelling is her passion, she enjoys reading and her favourite book is the Bible, as her father is the retired Rev Dumisani Kweyama of the Methodist Church.
She said her role models are her parents. “Being raised by a priest and my mother who is a teacher has taught me to have a heart to give more and teach others.”
“My advice to the youth s work hard, put God first and believe in yourself. Whatever talent you have, use it, go for it. Don’t let anyone tell you, you can’t do it. I’m not the tallest or skinniest of girls, yet I won a provincial title, because what matters is how pure your heart is, my passion for modelling and the love I have for people,” added Bongeka.
She thanked her family, her sister, Zama Kweyama, including her agent, Karen Landman, owner of Simply Models Agency, as well as those who supported her modelling journey.
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