Ep99. Don't Listen to Fear, Express Your Joy with Boitumelo Theepe, Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls Series

"Sometimes you're given the challenge to show others it can be moved." - Boitumelo Theepe, Ep99. The Monica Kade Podcast

Here we are. The final episode in the OWLAG series, Ep99. Don't Listen to Fear, Express Your Joy with Boitumelo Theepe.


Boitumelo Theepe has a warmth and gentle nature that was so evident the moment we connected. And yet, what resides beneath those qualities is a fierceness to go after what her heart desires. Boitumelo was the first alumni of OWLAG to graduate with a medical degree, which is a true testament to her innate ferocity.
She grew up in Soweto, and as part of the academy's inaugural class, she excelled in science and was an active member of multiple student societies, including public speaking and debate.  


Before we knew her as Dr Theepe, Boitumelo completed her medical training at Stellenbosch University, graduating in 2018. At Stellenbosch, she sat as a member of the undergraduate research committee and pioneered the development of the campus gospel choir. She was one of the recipients of the prestigious Envisionit Bursary Fund, and a keynote speaker at their fundraising Gala dinner in 2018, an event aimed at empowering young people to pursue a university education. 


Currently, she is practicing medicine at a renowned hospital in Cape Town, known for having carried out the world's first heart transplant. 


LEARN ABOUT What life was like being raised by her grandmother
The principles of Ubuntu and how she lives by these today
How and why she applied to OWLAG
What it felt like to be accepted and what it meant for her
How she feels about being the first OWLAG alumni to become a medical doctor
When was the seed of becoming a doctor planted in her heart
How she hopes to change the world through her profession
Her greatest life lesson or ‘Aha!’ moment from studying at OWLAG
Her advice to those listening who have a dream but are afraid to pursue it
The greatest thing Boitumelo learned about herself through her education experience
What she would most like to ask Ms Winfrey if they sat down together for tea

SIGNATURE QUESTIONS 1. Sunset or sunrise, and why?
2. What Boitumelo is afraid of?
3. What piece of wisdom she’s been passed down that she lives by?