It’s been just over a month since actress and television presenter Lerato 'Zah' Moloi lost her mother Candy Moloi to cancer. Since then, she has decided to shave her head in her late mother’s honour.
Candy, best known for her role as Vho-Makhadzi on the SABC2 soapie “Muvhango”, died in a Pretoria hospital at the age of 67.
Lerato took to Instagram to share the moment of shaving her head, explaining why it was so important to her.
“It was important for me to have my hair shaved off today in honour of my Mama. It was brain cancer that killed her essentially. The last six months of her life, she didn't have hair on her head due to chemotherapy and that bothered her so much. She would often ask me if her hair would ever grow back and I would assure her that it would.
“She never got the chance to grow her hair back, however, she looked absolutely beautiful throughout her graceful battle with cancer,” Lerato explained.
The actress added that she knew that her resemblance to her mother was even more visible with a shaved head, and therefore she planned to keep the look for a while longer.
“I'm a spitting image of my mommy with my hair shaved off, so I think I'll keep this look for a bit longer so that I see my Mama's beautiful image every time I look into the mirror.”
Watch the video below:
At an emotional memorial service for her mother, Lerato described her as a fighter.
“She fought like a trooper. She tried her best, but in the end, she was really tired of fighting. My mother fought throughout her life. What pains me the most is she never got that break. She was always fighting through life, working through life. Always doing something for other people ... She gave and got nothing in return.”
She recounted her last moments with her mom, saying Candy was struggling but she had a few minutes with her.
“I spoke to her with faith that she would fight through this. I thought she would pull through.”