Favour Rufus, a Nigerian woman who has been blind since childhood, recently emerged victorious in the 2022 Miss Port Harcourt City Beauty Pageant, besting 18 other women.
Rufus was blinded at the age of eight after experiencing eye issues for two years.
Doctors said her left eye became completely blind and her right eye might also be blind if she missed her constant treatments.
Even though she had a visual impairment, she did not let it stop her from achieving great things.
Although many discouraged her, Rufus joined the 2022 Miss Port Harcourt City Beauty Pageant. She believed in herself and rose above the others as she won the title, beating 18 other women.
Meanwhile, a video sharing her story that was posted on Facebook now has more than 1 million views, with a lot of people congratulating her in the comments.
She disclosed that she had not been into modelling before attending to the beauty pageant. “The contest was my first attempt at modelling and beauty pageantry. It was all new to me, but I knew I had to make it. In fact, after the beauty pageantry, I had so many blisters and couldn’t feel my feet for some days, but I knew it was worth it.”
Her navigation of the boot camp was challenging, as Rufus observed. “I found it somewhat difficult to learn the catwalk.”
She further explained, “Additionally, it was financially draining. For example, my mother was compelled to run around in search of additional funds to prepare my dresses and makeup. She had to make sure everything was in place. My mum is an amazing person. She will stay without clothes to see me shine if she has to. She feels good when people compliment my beauty. During the grand finale of the show, she didn’t even wear a fancy dress. She told me that the greatest gift I could give her was to win, and I did, and it was such a proud moment for her.”
The 2022 Miss Port Harcourt City prays and hopes that she’ll just sleep and wake up, finding that all this is a dream. “I want to see my face again. I want to see my mother. I don’t know what she looks like,, and it breaks me every day,” she said.
