Having had a year to prepare for the moment when the next Mrs South Africa will be crowned on Thursday 18 March, top 25 finalist Liz-Meri Holton says she is ready for whatever may come.
“I believe what is meant for you won’t pass you by, but I’m feeling blessed for how far I’ve come,” says Holton.
The 25-year-old was chosen as a top 25 finalist at the Mrs South Africa Summer Soiree on Friday 13 November last year. The mom of two boys and owner and manager of a beauty and aesthetic business says she was both honoured and humbled to hear her name called.
“I was really shocked because each one of the top 50 deserved to be in the top 25, and my heart was broken for the women who didn’t make it,” she says.
The southern suburbs resident says she entered Mrs South Africa because she wanted her life story to help others, to let young women – going through what she went through – know that they aren’t alone and that their life is valuable.
“As a young girl, I experienced abuse which had a tremendous influence on my early childhood development. I started dating from an early age and this led to teenage pregnancy at the age of 17. Unfortunately, my partner was addicted to drugs,” she says, adding that, thanks to being given the opportunity to study and qualify as an international trainer, facilitator and moderator in the beauty industry, she managed to break free from the abusive relationship.
Now she too aims to educate and up-skill unprivileged young girls to become independent and self-reliant.
“I believe being crowned the next Mrs South Africa would give me a platform to use my voice for the voiceless,” Holton says.
And she wants to do that through her non-profit company (NPC) Khanyiswa Training, which means “to be shown the light”.
Holton says her NPC is already helping young women become independent by upskilling, uplifting and educating unprivileged young girls in the beauty industry.
The NPC not only provides them with skills, but with the tools (kits) needed to start a business in their communities.
“Being Mrs South Africa means that you get to lead by example. I don’t want to use this title for my own benefit but to benefit those around me who need it most,” Holton says.
