My Upbringing
I was raised by my single Mum in Karatu, Tanzania. I loved primary school. My teachers told me I excelled in art.
Karatu sits between Serengeti Park and Ngorongoro Crater. I grew up studying the animals of my country.
Joseph and his mum
To pay for school trips, I sold small paintings on the street. I dreamed of becoming a tour guide one day.
I walked to the secondary school many days, but they turned me away because there was no money for tuition. My primary school teachers lent me some books about wildlife. In return, I helped the young kids with art.
I sold jewelry to tourists to buy corn and rice. I prayed to God for my Mum to have an easier life.
I kept holding onto my dreams...
Joseph’s Education
by Laura Stokes, AKA “Mama Laura”
With no money for secondary school, Joseph was sent to a remote village to take care of his elderly grandmother. He befriended a local pastor, whose congregation provided food for them.
Back in Karatu, Joseph helped his Mum with her business of making and selling charcoal, and he sold trinkets to tourists. Life was sometimes hard on the streets, but he held onto his faith in God, praying that he could have a better life for himself and his Mum.
Joseph’s friendly nature and smiling face brought him into contact with hundreds of tourists, and he began to pick up some English (as well as German and Spanish) by greeting them and offering a tour through Karatu’s markets.
His hope of becoming a safari guide never wavered; experienced guides sometimes included him on their tours.
Joseph (center) with tour guide and tourist
In 2019, our lives changed forever.
Laura and Joseph the day they met
I’m Laura Stokes, from the USA. With a group of friends, I went on safari to Kenya and Tanzania to learn about the wildlife of the Masai Mara, Serengeti, Tarangire, and Ngorongoro parks and reserves.
When our group stopped at a market in Karatu, TZ, I met a young man named Joseph, who offered to guide me through the market. I had learned to fend off boys with things to sell, but Joseph did not want to sell—he wanted to practice his English and he enjoyed showing tourists around his home town.
I didn’t learn Joseph’s story that day. I only learned he was friendly, inquisitive, helpful, wanting to learn—and full of smiles.
At the end of the afternoon, I asked Joseph for his phone number. After I returned home, I wanted him to stay in my life—somehow.
Tour Guide College
Joseph and I spoke on the phone every few days. When I asked why he was not studying to become the tour guide he dreamed of being, he told me it was a matter of money. Over the next several weeks, I thought about how I could help Joseph go to tour guide school.
Joseph never asked for money.
Joseph and I made an agreement:
He would go to school in Arusha, while continuing to take care of his Mum in Karatu.
I would pay his fees, as well as rent and food for him and his mum.
I became “Mama Laura,” an answer to Joseph’s prayers.
Joseph became a son in my heart.
COVID came. Arusha Wisdom College closed and re-opened. Joseph and his Mum survived—no vaccinations available. Joseph completed his tour guide, driving, and language programs.
Joseph applied for jobs, but tourism had nearly died. He continued to study English, and added Spanish to improve his resume.
Joseph continued visiting street children and schools, handing out bananas, bringing smiles.
What next?
Joseph is a gifted, self-taught artist. I encouraged him to create oil paintings through the long days of Covid isolation. He rolled up some canvases and mailed them to me in the US. I showed them to friends, some of whom are artists themselves. The word on Joseph—
He has vision, he has talent. People will want his art.
I offered to help Joseph sell his art.
That was an answer to Joseph’s calling to create TABASAMU Langu.
Through direct donations and art sales, he can now spread smiles to more children of Tanzania.