Reeva Steenkamp was born in Cape Town on the 19th of August, in 1983. She spent her youth in Port Elizabeth and was making her mark as a model.
It was only when she was spotted on the arm of Paralympian Oscar Pistorius that she became well-known. Steenkamp had been dating Pistorius since late 2012 until her untimely death in 2013.
She attended St Dominics Primary School where she was known as a horse fanatic. She is fondly remembered by staff at the school. Steenkamp’s former teacher, Selma Lourens says even as the years went by, Reeva remained a down to earth girl.
Steenkamp is believed to have inherited her passion for horses from her father Barry who was a horse trainer.
Steenkamp studied law at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University where she graduated with a Bachelor of Law Degree in 2005. But it was modelling that came naturally to the young Reeva – something she pursued from the age of 14.
Her death sent shock waves around the country, especially in her home town of Port Elizabeth.
She won a number of modelling competitions at local level. At the time of her death she was due to appear in the television series Tropika Island of Treasure that had been filmed in Jamaica. The series went to air just two days after her death.
She was a regular A-list guest at red carpet events around the country and a noted socialite on the Johannesburg celebrity scene. Her death sent shock waves around the country, especially in her home town of Port Elizabeth.
Her memorial service was by invitation only and limited to 70 people. Her ashes were scattered during a ceremony on a Port Elizabeth beach.
– By Janine Lee
