Clayton Peters has always been involved with charity work and he hopes to do more now that he is competing in the Mr South Africa competition.
Growing up in Heideveld with his parents and two siblings, Clayton knew what it was like to be surrounded by crime and gangsterism but his parents made every effort to keep their family grounded and show their children a different way of life by involving themselves in charity work.
Clayton attended Heideveld Primary School and later Heideveld High School and moved to Parow a year ago.
Together with a group of friends he began to raise funds and collect donations for the underprivileged, including sanitary towels and Christmas boxes.
In August this year he came across the Mr South Africa Facebook page and decided to enter the competition.
An hour later he was added to the WhatsApp group and things moved swiftly from there.
“It’s been hectic so far. We’ve had many challenges including getting our social media accounts up and running and creating a Facebook page. I also completed my first challenge where we had to get 15 businesses to sign up with Mr South Africa. I completed my first photo shoot as well,” he said.
The 33-year-old said while he had always wished to compete in a competition of this level he was never afforded the opportunity.
“Now I hopefully I can give back more with the Mr South Africa title behind my name. It is an exhilarating experience and not knowing what to expect next is fun but also scary. This is good for me as it has pushed me out of my comfort zone as I am meeting new people and face new challenges all the time,” he said.
Mr Peters said his family is supportive and has been his motivation to continue with the competition, which ends on March 30 and currently has 44 participants.
“I am very excited about this and I hope that I can motivate and encourage children on the Cape Flats never to give up and settle for less.
“I know what it is like to grow up in gangsterism and I want them to realise that there is a better life out there. Now that I know what is like I can give back passionately,” he said.
Mr Peters said he hopes to one day open up his own life skills centre for underprivileged children on the Cape Flats.
