Nolebonok, the second oldest in a family of five children, comes from a traditional Maasai family in Alchaniomelock village. In January of 2016, she became one of Maasai Partner’s newest sponsorship students.

As May came to a close we said our fond farewells to the lovely ladies who made up GWOCO’s (Ganako Women’s Community Organization) very first loan groups in Karatu.

In Tanzania in general and especially in Alailelai, where daily life is spread out on foot across miles, every car ride counts. Forget seat belts, capacity limits or anything even close to personal space—every body that can fit is squeezed in, plus a few extras for good measure.

We hopped out of the Land Rover and followed our guides, running as fast as we could wrapped in shukas across uneven fields sprinkled with stinging nettle. “Come Judy, come Kim, come Jim—have your camera ready!” Mbekure urged us on.

Some people are born to be movers and shakers. Without prompting, they happily devote themselves and their time to bettering themselves and in turn bettering their communities. Somiani Ngaluma is one such person.

The odds of Nashipai doing well academically were not high.

As a young girl born and raised in the remote village of Alailelai, any education at all—let alone a solid one—would normally be hard to achieve. But given the opportunity to attend a private school in Karatu, Nashipai has flourished.