About Us – Rock Scars

About Rock Scars

Company Overview

Living with skin conditions or scars of any kind can presents unique challenges – physical, emotional, social and psychological to anyone of any age. The society often distances themselves from such issues, and the universal criteria used to define beauty does not make it any easier for those affected by such. People are often told that for them to be defined as beautiful, they have to look a certain type, have a flawless skin and a perfect shape, have a great set of teeth and a smooth skin with no scars. They spend a lot of money trying their all to fit the description, to be called flawless and to conform to the beauty standards set by the society. The truth is perfection is a myth! Rock scars was established in 2015 with the simple mission to redefine beauty. Valentine Mabaso founded the Rock Scars foundation after living with Atopic Dermatitis skin condition for 10 years. She then vowed to use her story and experience to advocate for those living with scars or skin conditions. she believes that people should never beg to fit in when they can stand out

The problem we aim to solve:Health matters, psychological issues caused by physical appearance; raising awareness about all different kinds of skin diseases, restoring self confidence in people; helping people deal with their emotional wounds & love and embrace their physical scars

The solution our project offers:

We help people learn to love and celebrate their scars; we educate people about different skin conditions and help them learn to celebrate their differences. We restore self confidence in people and help them heal their emotional and physical wounds. We encourage people to stand out instead of trying to change how they look just so they could fit in. we encourage the society not to discriminate against people with skin conditions and/or scars

Target market

Our target market is very broad. Our campaign is not age, gender, race, nationality or religion specific, we welcome people from all walks of life. Also, we do not only cater for people who have scars or skin a condition, our mission is to reach even those with no skin conditions or scars. Our belief is that nobody is born with a scar, which means that anyone can get a scar at any age and at any time, so we try to make people aware of such and then prepare them to know that in case it happens that they get a scar or skin condition, they must not feel insecure but should instead celebrate and embrace their scars because only warriors have scars. We have worked with people of all ages and genders and have offered motivational talks on our social media platforms to people from all over the world.

Comparative analysis

Rock scars prides itself for being the first of its kind in the whole of South Africa and perhaps beyond. We are the only Non-profit organization in the country that encourages people to embrace their scars and rock them with confidence and that educates and raise awareness about different skin conditions. One could sometimes compare us to organizations that cater for burn survivors but we are very different from such organizations because we celebrate scars of all forms, scars from surgeries, abuse, car accidents, burn, skin conditions and even emotional scars. We encourage people to share their stories and by doing that they heal. We are more diverse because we tackle social issues too through this initiative especially since we aim at helping people deal with emotional scars of which we believe are the hardest to heal. Nobody is born with a scar hence it’s important to educate people that a scar Is not something to be ashamed of, no matter how you got it, it shows that you defeated that which wanted to hurt you, therefore, rock it with pride.

Solves social issues by encouraging people to love and embrace their SCARS and also educates the society about different skin conditions.

Awards

Redbull Amaphiko Top social entrepreneur January 2017

Frequently Asked Questions

….Shape, size and scars. These are some of the common insecurities that massacre every shred of confidence one can possess. Women feel the pressure to weigh certain kilos, have a particular melanin shade and definitely a clear skin tone.

But trying to be something else is honestly a waste of who you truly are. You need to accept the areas that make you feel fragile and capitalize on your strengths. A beautiful soul called Valentine Mabaso embraced her own scars and now gives hope to all those who feel trapped by their skin conditions. This #MotherlandMogul is a General Manager of one of the biggest Restaurant/Shisanyama in South Africa by day and a Rock Scars warrior every day. Her aspirations are to help others see that their strength is written on their skin and to help them see the beauty in their scars.

She lives with a chronic skin condition called Atopic Dermatitis and has been living with it for 10 years to date. The 25-year-old was born and bred in the rural villages of Limpopo and currently resides in Johannesburg, South Africa. Valentine has two awesome younger brothers and they were raised by a single mother who is Valentine’s number 1 cheerleader in her mission to change the world.

How do you tackle discrimination against the people you assist?

I believe that no one is born with a discriminatory mind, such things are learned from people and events around us. If we can teach people especially those not directly affected by us and our scars, then we can change their minds thus tackle being discriminated. We teach people to learn to appreciate diversity and respect people who are different in any way. People may be disabled, transgender, dark-skin or have a different hair color, scars, stretch marks or a skin condition but the truth is, no one chose to be that way so why should we discriminate them. Rock Scars promotes dialogue on social media and during the events where we engage those living with skin conditions and scars and those who don’t. In as much as I wish to protect the people I assist against discrimination and negative remarks, I unfortunately, cannot be there for them all the time. This is why during the sessions or our 1 on 1 conversations I remind them that they are warriors. That way they will be strengthened and will stand their ground under any circumstance. I call them warriors not because I want them to feel better but because it is true. If you can survive a burning house, car accidents, cancer, and its many surgeries, live with a chronic condition for so long, why should words from someone you don’t know break you? I remind them that it matters NOT what others say. They should know that they fought bigger battles and won them and now they have the scars as medals to prove it.

How do you respond when Rock Scars is held up as an object of ridicule?

The best tool I believe in is education. Most people make such remarks because of misinformation, so the best way to correct such behavior is through educating them about our conditions. For example, I was told a lot of times that I must be HIV positive because of my skin and its scars. This example goes to prove that people can just look at you and make their own assumptions and conclusions. Through Rock Scars, I show people it is not ok to make your own conclusion just by looking at me. Often when we get ridiculed for what we do, I always remind people that no one ever voluntarily goes out there to get a scar for the fun of it. We try to make those ridiculing us understand that even if they are not infected they are probably affected in some way. They have someone in their lives who has a scar or is living with a skin condition. We are patient with those who do not agree with what Rock Scars does and let them know that in any case the same happens to them they are welcome to our family of warriors.

Besides the struggle to get proper venues for events what other challenges are you facing as an NGO?

My biggest challenge is running this organization and having to do my 9-5 cooperate job. Rock Scars is a social enterprise and as much as I would love to devote 100% of my time to it, I unfortunately, can’t. I depend solely on my income to run the Rock Scars campaign and help others. I am not complaining, I love my job but I would love to travel across the country especially schools to encourage and educate learners that scars are beautiful.

Our Events

Every Now and then, Rock Scars hosts events for all to rock their scars and be who they really are, share their stories and receive motivation throughout the day