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nelson mandela bay's family lifestyle
author:
xandre van der berg
inspirational rolemodels
photography:
zuko, lifegate photography
issue:
7, spring 2008
On Women's Day a very special event took place in Nelson Mandela Bay's Feather Market Centre. The annual Mrs. PE Pageant. It was a rich bouquet of wonderful and inspiring women. All of it in aid of charity. people talk magazine attended the event & found out from organizer, Juanita Staines where it all started & how this wonderful annual event makes a difference in our community. In 2005 the idea of creating a Mrs. Port Elizabeth pageant was born in Juanita's heart. “I started a business called Rolemodels Pageants and it occurred to me that so many women that were able to inspire people were married. Women who could be role models, who could set an example for future generations through their lifestyle, need to be in the spot-light.” This is exactly what Mrs. Port Elizabeth is about. The first pageant was hosted in July 2005 and the event brought forward women of immense caliber who wanted to make a difference in the community. At that event Robyn Rütters, aged 35 and the mother of 3 children, was crowned. She served the Algoa Bay Council for the Aged and assisted many individuals during her reign. In 2006 Robyn was succeeded by the beautiful Anitha Sharma, an analytical chemist who had the dream of helping the children of Chief Conerstone Children's Home. Anitha's efforts ensured that this children's home could operate effectively and sustainable. She was instrumental in the initiation of much needed renovations, as well as the provision of a full year's working budget. Susan de Kock, 2005's Weighless Winner of the Year, was crowned Mrs. Port Elizabeth in 2007 – she chose the Lakefarm Centre as beneficiary of her efforts, working tirelessly to raise funds and create awareness for the Centre that is a haven for mentally and physically disabled people. This year the Mrs. Port Elizabeth pageant was hosted at the Feather Market Centre, with Bojangles providing a fine dining experience with a perfectly prepared three course meal. Aptly the pageant took place on Women's Day. Amongst the guests were inspiring women such as Jill Stewart of Kingfisher FM, Kobie Potgieter of REMAX Lorraine and Lizelle Burchell who was recently crowned as Mrs. Worldwide at a pageant in Minnesota, USA. Nadine Blom, from Tswane was the VIP guest artist who entertained guests and the very charming Jason Wayne, popular Kingfisher FM breakfast show host, acted as master of ceremonies. Contestants represented women of all ages, some being as young as 25, others aged 60, but each one revealed character and humility that would inspire hope. SMAT Clothing provided everything the contestants needed, including the elegant evening wear for the second round of judging. Paula Duffy was eventually chosen as the new Mrs. Port Elizabeth and she is certainly going to make a huge difference during her reign. This young woman has already shown immense dedication to the Kleinskool Community and the Algoa Bay Council for the Aged, during the lead up to this year's event, securing a contract with SASKO, to provide residents of Kleinskool's Mission Outreach with bread on a weekly basis, for an entire year. Charity sponsorships, raised in the form of goods and services during the five weeks leading up to the gala event, exceeded R300 000 – and the new Mrs. Port Elizabeth received a Geely Motor Vehicle from Gerhard de Lange and Motorland PE. “This year's event was definitely the biggest and best, yet. Having Kingfisher FM and people talk magazine on board as media sponsors has made a massive impact, quite obviously because of their wonderful new service to our city and in the community. It is a privilege for us to be able to partner with such media professionals, who has not forgotten what it is all about.” Some of the other major sponsors who contributed to making this year's pageant such a huge success, included Exclusive Nails, Bukela Game Lodge, FreRoux, A & S Printers, Flowers PE, Gos Hawk, Havilah Jewellers, Matis, Paxton Hotel, Addo Elephant Back Safaris, Oligo Spa, Planet Fitness, Pro Dive, Hair Company, The Sands, Varsity College, Rare Beauty, Villa Tuscana, Badge Guy, Knysna Elephant Park, Keith Johns Gallery, Urban Lava, just to name a few. The Mrs. Port Elizabeth Pageant, conceived and organized by Juanita Staines, Blend@Rendezvous and her dedicated team, seem to be a welcome addition to Nelson Mandela Bay's charity event calendar & we will be looking forward, not only to next year's pageant, but also to the input Paula Duffy will be making into our community, during her reign.
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