Donations made to Kanana fire victims
One of the teenagers, who wants to be a surgeon, admitted she was unsure about what subjects to pick to study to be one.
Mirriam Bila (24) from Ivory Park, a Miss Heritage SA semifinalist, and the Mkhabela Obedience Foundation (MOF) visited the informal settlement of Kanana to distribute clothes and sanitary items to eight families who lost their belongings in shack fires on March 18.
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At the handover, some of the girls received encouraging words from Bila.
She gave them career guidance and asked if they had ever needed counselling because of the fire.
One of the teenagers, who wants to be a surgeon, admitted she was unsure about what subjects to pick to study to be one.
The Charlotte Maxeke High School learner wished more of her peers could get help to conduct further research on their potential career paths.
According to Bila, for all South African citizens, having a place to live and having their basic necessities covered is a human right.
“Local NPOs have devoted their resources to concentrating on this task.”
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Because helping others is what she is most passionate about, even as a finalist, she will keep doing so.
The Talk with Obee, a YouTube podcast, and a radio appearance on Hope Alive FM marked the beginning of Bila’s community engagement activities.
“I visited two local preschools and helped out with their daily activities. My old preschool was one of the institutions.
“They welcomed me back and showed me images of when I graduated. Looking at where we came from encouraged us to believe that nothing is impossible,” said Bila.
She thanked Boston City College for sponsoring the pageant and allowing the winner to take any course for free for a year.
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“Shoose Life, a charity organisation has also partnered with the pageant to enrich the lives of the less fortunate one pair of shoes at a time.
The partnership will enable us to give back to school learners in five provinces, namely, Limpopo, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, the Eastern Cape, and KwaZulu-Natal, where the semifinalists reside.
“The good news is that a pair of shoes is R35. We ask anyone who wants to donate to do so through the semifinalists or the pageant,” said Bila.
The vice-chairperson of MOF, Raphael Dhlamini, said they would continue to gather clothing and deliver it where required.
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“We also collect sanitary products for donation at primary and high schools.
“Contact us at mkhabelaobediencefoundation@gmail.com to donate. We continue to touch the community we serve, and this is made possible by their support,” said Dhlamini.
Kanana community representative Manakelang praised the partners for their donations. He said it has been challenging to recover from the fire because he lost his job in 2019.
The father of three is skilled in manual labour such as bricklaying, plastering, and other such tasks.
Follow Bila on Facebook at Mirriam Bila or the pageant’s Facebook page at Miss Heritage South Africa to track her progress as a Miss Heritage SA semifinalist.
