LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KARK) – A girl once bullied for the way she looked is now making a splash in the fashion modeling world.
“I understood I had to let go of that pain and love myself in order to see my beauty,” says Mahogany Wade, 23, a model. “And after that, others saw me for who I really was.
Life wasn’t always easy for the Arkansas girl. She says it got so bad she barely could focus on school.
“There’s been times when I felt hopeless,” she explains. “But what’s important is to find your worth, find your self-love, find your purpose – because there is one.”
Wade recently signed with IMG Models, an international modeling agency with offices all around the globe, including New York, Los Angles, Paris, and Milan, just to a few.
“When you love yourself, it’s almost like you get a shield of armor,” she explains. “No matter what people say, no matter what people do. You really know who you are. You know what you look like. You’ve already appreciated it – the good things about you.”
She says despite being bullied for her thick, reddish hair and freckles – she wasn’t going to stay hurt, but instead chose to forgive and spread love.
“People say things sometimes because you’re different or you look different or they don’t understand,” she says. “I use to dislike the very thing that I am celebrated for now and I hope to share that story with others.”
Wade says she was contacted by her agent, who scouted her via social media.
“At first I didn’t know what to think or do,” she says. “But after talking and hearing what she had to say and that I could make a difference. I mean it’s a movement in the industry – a movement of acceptance.”
Wade learned to embrace every curve and curl on her body – a lesson she hopes to pass on to every young girl.
“I hope to be an inspiration by sharing my story,” she says.
Wade was recently featured in Modern Salon Magazine and Ulta Beauty.
“So know I am so happy that I am part of the movent that shows that people are really beautiful in every shape, size, and color,” she explains.
Now, Wade is working with the lifestyle and apparel brand Hollister Co., which is owned by Abercrombie & Fitch Co. She has no plans on stopping and says she is extremely humbled and grateful.
