Maye Musk: The Single Mother Who Raised a Billionaire and Two Millionaires

Behind the success of billionaire Elon Musk is the portrait of a great single mother.

Mentioning the name Elon Musk, surely everyone knows the eccentric billionaire of Tesla. However, not only him, his cousins in the billionaire’s family are also successful. The younger brother Kimbal Musk is the owner of the restaurant business group The Kitchen Restaurant Group while the youngest sister Tosca Musk is a famous film producer.

Looking at this success, we must mention the mother Maye Musk who raised 3 children in difficult circumstances. Married at the age of 22 and suffering from domestic violence for 10 years, Maye took her children and left home at the age of 31 to become a single mother.

Billionaire Elon Musk’s family

Over the next 40 years, Maye not only raised three children to adulthood, but also earned two master’s degrees and became a renowned nutritionist. Even though she was old and her children were all grown up, Maye did not want to rest or enjoy life, but still wanted to contribute to society.

The unfortunate model

Elon Musk’s mother worked as a model since she was 15 and was a finalist in the Miss South Africa pageant in 1969. But instead of continuing in the limelight, Maye married engineer Errol Musk and took his last name at the age of 22. This marriage produced three children, including Elon Musk.

However, in 1979, Maye left her husband after being unable to bear his abuse. At the age of 31, Maye became a penniless single mother, although her husband Errol’s family was quite wealthy.
This was probably the most difficult and extraordinary period of Maye Musk as a poor single mother who still had to raise 3 children. Because she did not have any financial support from her wealthy husband’s family, Maye had to work 5 jobs at the same time to raise her children, from selling part-time at a grocery store or doing laundry to teaching at a nutrition camp.

“After the divorce, I struggled to make ends meet and raise three children. Poverty makes you work hard,” Maye recalled.

There was a time when Maye cried when her son spilled milk because the family was too poor to buy milk again. In middle age, no one hired Maye to model anymore. Elon Musk’s family had to buy second-hand clothes to wear, and Maye’s mother actively sold cheap nutritious foods like peanut butter sandwiches and baked beans to make extra money.

Maye Musk as a young woman

“I had no choice. My number one priority was taking care of the kids. I worked hard to keep a roof over my head, food in my stomach and simple clothes on my back,” Elon Musk’s mother recounted.

It was only later, when her children were grown, that Maye’s career began to take off. She began receiving modeling offers, enrolled in a master’s degree, and developed an attractive diet system for people who wanted to lose weight.

Still, the income was not enough for the family of three children. Mrs. Maye recalled that at that time, the family did not have enough money to buy meat for dinner. The owner of a slaughterhouse, out of pity for her situation, decided to provide the Maye family with a large piece of meat every month. However, Elon Musk’s family did not dare to eat it all, so they cut the meat into 4 pieces to eat for 4 weeks.

Some people wonder why Mrs. Meye has not remarried after being a model, but this extraordinary mother says she is too busy earning money to support her children: “If we split the bill, I know that my children might not have anything to eat that week.”

The children in the family also help their mother when Tosca works part-time at a grocery store and Elon goes to work at Microsoft.

Despite these difficulties, Maye still earned a bachelor’s degree in nutrition from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, and two master’s degrees from Orange State University, South Africa, and the University of Toronto, Canada. The Mayer family has also been increasingly successful with Elon Musk’s billion-dollar empire, Kimbal’s restaurant group, and talented film producer

Mrs. Maye with her children when she was young

Raising children in a way

Elon Musk once said: “My mother always gave us freedom and confidence. Even though our family was so poor that we couldn’t even afford meat, she always made sure her children got a good education… She never complained and always smiled in the face of adversity. Her attitude towards life was the most precious asset she gave us.”

In an interview, Mrs. Maye also admitted that the only thing she does is let her children develop according to their passions and freely explore their own ideas. However, this way of raising children also needs limits.

“They all understand that if they make a fuss while I’m busy, I’ll lose my job, I’ll lose my house. I’ve always been honest with them about that reality. In some ways, I treat them not like kids, but like adults like anyone else,” Maye said.

At home, Maye asked her children to help earn money. Tosca would type letters to doctors on word processing software, Elon Musk, the eldest son, was in charge of the technology software, and Kimbal, the youngest, often did the cooking.

“My children see the benefits of working: having food in their stomachs, buying clothes and putting a new roof on the house,” she said.

The Maye family’s hard-working spirit continued even as their income increased. The Mayes slept on mattresses on the floor in a shabby room shared with friends. But no one complained. “If your child is not used to luxuries, they will survive just fine. You don’t need to spoil them. Once you are sure they are in a safe condition, let them take care of themselves,” Elon Musk’s mother admitted.

Maye believes that many families today are too nurturing and caring for their children, leaving them struggling to survive in society. The Musk children are all independent, applying to the colleges of their choice and completing their own scholarship and student loan applications. According to Maye, consider each child as an independent, vital individual. Smart parents will motivate their children from the outside, stimulate creativity from within to evoke their autonomy.

“Suppression and control are unwise actions. The prerequisite for children to courageously pursue their dreams is the trust and affirmation of their parents,” she said.

Although she is 73 years old, Maye is still working hard on many projects: “70 years old is my peak, and my career has just begun.”

It’s no coincidence that Maye hasn’t retired since her son became rich. Elon Musk’s mother believes that the most beneficial way to educate children is to let them see their parents working hard to become better versions of themselves.

“It’s the best way to educate your children,” said Maye Musk.