Her passion is helping women, girls

POLOKWANE – As a young mover and shaker herself, her real passion is helping women and girls of all ages.

Grida Valoyi (26) was born in Nwa Matatana village outside Giyani and currently resides in Polokwane.

Her philosophy of life is: “Dream until your dreams come true through hard work and dedication”.

This is the driving force behind this young model, motivational speaker and young entrepreneur’s dedication and hard work.

With her passion, confidence and enthusiasm, she has already won several beauty pageants such as the Miss Sun Babe 2013. She obtained her Diploma in Media and Journalism at Jeppe College and is currently studying at the University of South Africa (Unisa) towards her Diploma in Public Relations.

Valoyi is the mother of a nine-year-old girl named Ndzalama and she says her daughter keeps her going and motivated.

She launched her Hugs for Hope Organisation in 2012, an organisation to enable youth and women to learn and be motivated by peers who share the same values.

“Hugs for Hope was created because the youth and women needed a framework of support and motivation to pursue their dreams. Here they can develop and discover their skills and overcome their own difficulties,” Valoyi says.

One of the current campaigns Hugs for Hope is involved with, Empowering Girls for Greatness, is to collect 3 000 sanitary towels and donate them to 10 schools and 10 orphanages and shelters.

Her own difficulties inspired her to reach out with this project. Most girls end up not attending 20% of every school year due to not being able to afford sanitary products. This hampers their chances of getting a good education and their self-esteem.

Valoyi urges everyone to help with the campaign.

“Hugs of Hope believes in the transformative power of education. We would like to improve access to enhance quality and therefore boost achievement. We support the educational aspirations of girls and women in our province,” she adds.