“It feels so unreal,” says Tamaryn Williams who has walked away with the coveted Mrs Western Cape 2022 title.
The Ocean View resident was crowned on Saturday 1 October at the MMMA music academy in Blouberg.
“I wasn’t actually planning to go to the pageant because my nerves got the better of me. I felt I was doing what I love in the community anyway.”
The Mrs Western Cape pageant is held annually and women aged 24 to 58, who are married, divorced, widowed or a mother, are eligible to enter.
“When they announced the winners, I became emotional and it felt so unreal. I also worked so hard for this.”
Williams added what made the occasion extra special was that her sickly father was allowed to place the tiara on her head.
“My father was a policeman for 20 years and then he became very sick and became medically boarded.
“I always wanted my father’s presence when I won. He was a policeman and was at work a lot when I grew up. For him to be there meant a lot to me.
“I couldn’t help but cry.”
The mother of three, who started her own soup kitchen in Ocean View, said she is hoping to assist the many unemployed in her community.
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“The main thing I want to do is help people who are unemployed, whether it is helping them with their CVs or helping them prepare for an interview.
“I feel unemployment in Ocean View is very high and many people come to the soup kitchen every day. They also tell me their stories, most of them are single mothers and need money to print CVs.
“The libraries are not always available and you need to pay to use and print at internet cafes.
“Looking for a job they need taxi fare but because they don’t have money many have to walk from Ocean View to Fish Hoek to hand out their CV”.
Williams added that it was heartbreaking to see the way families struggled. “It is very sad for me that they are struggling, it is very sad for me to see men also break down and cry.”
Most importantly, Williams said that winning was not only about a crown and sash but about making positive changes in her community.
“This is a step to go further into the pageant industry and to make changes in my community, in the entire Western Cape and it’s not just about having a crown and a sash.”
