“I want to be a voice to women who cannot speak for themselves and I want to be a role model to children in my community,” so said Tamaryn Williams.
The 26-year-old from Ocean View is a finalist in the 14th annual Mrs Western Cape pageant.
She hopes to use the platform to help women and children in her community.
“I also want to help other women, to empower and encourage women in my community that it is never too late to achieve your goals.”
Williams, who has lived in Ocean View all her life, said she knows the challenges women and children face in the community which is why she has started an anti-bullying campaign at schools.
“I’m a survivor of abuse, I’ve also experienced family members who were addicted to drugs and I’m aware how it affects the community. I’ve suffered from depression and when I matriculated it was hard to get myself out of that mindset.”
The mother of three said she started her anti-bullying campaign after witnessing how children from her community treated each other.
“Every day I will see one child walking home alone, vulnerable, and then there is either a group of boys and girls calling the child names saying the learner either has messy hair or dirty clothes. It’s very sad because many of these children walk home to drug addicted parents.”
Williams said she has taken her anti-bullying campaign to schools in Ocean View started out with classes of Grade 5 learners.
“I don’t want to put down the bullies because they also experience things at home that bring out their anger. I try to teach them that hurting others will not solve their problems. A lot of children have come to me and told me their home problems. I just try to encourage them.”
She added that many children needed someone they could trust in their lives.
“You don’t know what they experience at home. My programme is ongoing and provides them with coping skills and I always encourage them to remain humble and take the opportunities open to them.”
With 27 pageant titles under her belt, Williams won Miss Sun Valley in 2006 and 2008, was crowned Miss Congeniality at the Miss Africa Pageant in Benoni in 2005 and also won several local pageants.
“I am entering Mrs Western Cape because I am doing charity work and wanted a bigger platform to reach more people.”
A charity close to her heart is a community kitchen run by her mother-in-law.
“She is my role-model. I have seen how she runs the soup kitchen every day and provides clothes or shoes for kids. She makes a plan for everyone to eat something. It is wonderful the work that she does.”
Dylan James, board secretary at My Father’s House NPO, said during this women’s month they are supporting Williams to raise funds for her charity.
“What a better way to start Women’s month than with supporting local entrant Tamaryn Williams in her quest to be Mrs Western Cape 2022.
“The proceeds of our Saturday sale, together with dry ingredients for her charity, will be handed to Tamaryn on Saturday.
We managed to raise R2 000 for her and we donated a whole lot of dry food.
“She raised R3 000 for her NGO; because she is a local, each Saturday My Father’s House makes a meal and sells it. We at My Father’s House believe women need to be empowered and we need to build our community and that’s what we are all about.”
