Empowered to Act

My name is Valentine Serati, but to those who know me best, I am Katlego or simply Kat. The name means “success,” and it has come to define the journey that has shaped me.

I grew up in Sloya, a place many know as Tlhakalatlou, where life was a constant battle between fading into the background and trying to be seen. In a crowded, close-knit family, it was easy to feel invisible. Low self-esteem weighed me down, and early exposure to negative influences threatened to swallow me whole. I made mistakes, faced judgement, and carried the heavy burden of stigma.

But something shifted. I started attending personal development sessions that opened my world. They taught me about values, self-worth, and integrity — words that had felt foreign in my life. Slowly, I started finding my voice, and with it, a sense of purpose. I began to see myself, not as someone lost in the crowd, but as someone capable of making a mark.

Learning became my anchor. Books, radio shows, and news stories became windows into worlds I had not known existed. Conversations became my compass. They allowed me to connect, to engage, to speak, and to listen. And when the noise of life became too loud, nature became my sanctuary. Hiking, exploring, and finding quiet in the wild helped me remember who I was outside of the chaos.

Along the way, I was fortunate to cross paths with programmes like LoveLife and Grassroots Soccer, initiatives that taught me how to blend service with impact. Through sport, I learned how to serve, how to listen, and how to lead. When I finished my studies, I came back home to give back, working at the youth centre, the health clinic, and with Nal’ibali, creating spaces for others to feel seen and heard.

But even then, something was missing. I was giving my time, my energy, and my heart, but it was not filling the void. I was still searching, still trying to find that missing piece that would finally define who I was and what I stood for.

That is when I heard about ACTIVATE!, a network of young changemakers working to reshape South Africa, one community at a time. I had heard about it years before but never thought I was the kind of person they were looking for. But curiosity got the better of me. I applied, and when I was accepted, it felt like the start of something real.

ACTIVATE! did not just give me information. It gave me the tools to turn my passion into action. It taught me how to see community development not as some abstract ideal, but as a practice, something you live and breathe every day. I connected with other young people across Kgatelopele and Tsantsabane, each driven and carrying their own story of struggle and triumph. The experience was transformative.

Today, I am working differently. My passion for my community is no longer driven by desperation or the need to be seen. It is driven by a clear sense of purpose, informed by principles, and backed by action. Now, I am not just Katlego, the young man who once felt invisible. I am Katlego, the leader, the change agent, the man who knows what success looks like for him and for his people.

And now, the work continues. Success is not just about finding your voice. It is about using it to uplift others, to amplify stories, and to create spaces where everyone can be seen, heard, and valued. That is what success means to me. That is who I am becoming.