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Gqeberha woman, Mariska van Blerk, had a skin condition in her younger years that resulted in her being constantly bullied at school.
Even then, the bullying did not stop her from modelling and singing – she went as far as being a member of the Eastern Cape Children’s Choir in primary school. However, when the bullying became severe at school, her mother, Linda Pienaar, put her young daughter in a different school.
“The trauma that came from the bullying was so bad that I believed all the nasty things that were said to me, that I’m ugly, no-one will ever want me, and that made me hate mirrors for a long time. The boys even used to throw food at me. I’ve had several eating disorders and I cried a lot, just never in front of the kids that were bullying me,” said Van Blerk.
After completing her matric, Van Blerk studied towards her under-graduate and post-graduate qualifications at the Nelson Mandela University, but modelling wasn’t done with her yet.
Early this year the 27-year-old approached V-Models and picked up where she left off in modelling. Not long after that, she entered the Mrs Universe South Africa competition.
“The owner of the agency, Venessa Weber, encouraged me to enter, actually. She believed in me and I entered. I can’t believe I’ve now made it to the top ten,” Van Blerk excitedly said.
As a small town girl, flying to Johannesburg for the Top 10 Finalists competition was both exciting and nerve-wrecking for Van Blerk, but after scooping the Best Modelling Award, she has a newly-found confidence and determination.
“It’s funny actually, after I did my walk I was criticising myself so much because I felt I didn’t do my best.
“Then I won an award for it, which really just goes to show that sometimes we’re too hard on ourselves instead of patting ourselves on the back,” she said.
Van Blerk went from being shy and having low self-esteem, to not only being a beauty queen but a voice for the voiceless as well.
“I want everyone to see their value again after whatever trauma they might have faced, we go through so much and stop seeing ourselves,” the soft-spoken beauty said.
“Some women, because of gender-based violence, end up giving up on their dreams and aspirations.
“I am here to encourage those exact people that there is so much more that life has to offer you. And nothing is impossible with God,” she added.
The final competition is in March, and Van Blerk has a lot of work to do before then, “and I’m looking forward to it all,” she quickly added.
Apart from the outreach programmes and community work that Van Blerk is required to do, she also has to find a sponsor for her journey to the finals.
“After that, my plan is to eventually write a book about my childhood and all the lessons I learned from it, and to finally release all the music I have written. One goal at a time!” she concluded.
To contact Van Blerk about sponsorship, call 079 481 1293
If you’re an aspiring model, contact Venessa on 079 536 2818.
