Charles Joel and Family
Donation protected
Anything over our goal will work to cover gofundme's 3% fee and (obviously) go straight to Charles. He's been surveying land and hopefully he'll get to buy an acre by May 1! Thank you, everyone, again.
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I met Charles in 2011 when I flew to Tanzania to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. He worked at the Moivaro Lodge, where the tour company had booked my pre and post-climb stay. After the climb, I booked an extra night in the lodge because I wanted to check out as much of the local area as I could before I realized that it wasn't as simple as hopping on a bus or train, or even walking. Sitting in Moivaro's tea area, I mentioned this to Charles, and shared that I felt hesitant going to the town center by myself. He volunteered to end his shift early and show me around.
In Arusha's city center, Charles talked me through everything, communicating with store owners and coffee shop waiters in Swahili while answering my questions about everything from why so many signs were in English to how much of the local industry was coffee exports. In turn, he shared about how he had finished a degree in tourism and wanted to start his own company. After a few hours, we headed back to the lodge and exchanged emails. We wrote back and forth for a bit, and have mostly kept in touch on social media since.
Since 2011, Charles did leave Moivaro Lodge and start his own tourism company, called Semchaa Big Game, taking tourists on safaris specializing in large animals. He emailed me a few days ago and shared that, due to the coronavirus, his business has taken a huge hit and he hasn't had work in almost a year. He's taken up volunteering with a local bird conservation, but after so much time without a paycheck, the situation for him and his family is dire. By the end of the month, he is in danger of losing his home, where he stays with his family. He asked me, very humbly, for some financial help to keep his house and help start a potato farm to secure steady income until tourism picks back up.
Tanzania doesn't have small business help, or unemployment benefits, or stimulus checks in the way we do and the US dollar goes pretty far. I've given Charles what I can at the moment, but I don't have enough on my own to give him as much as he needs. But I do have a lot of caring, generous friends and family who might be able to help.
This person went out of his way to show kindness to a stranger and a foreigner 10 years ago and gave her one of the most influential experiences of her life. If you're reading this, I'd like to ask for your help in repaying him for it.
-Tori
For his awesome wildlife photography, check out:
https://www.instagram.com/semchaa_big_game/
For more info about his background:
https://offthebeatenpathsafaris.com/our-guides/
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I met Charles in 2011 when I flew to Tanzania to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro. He worked at the Moivaro Lodge, where the tour company had booked my pre and post-climb stay. After the climb, I booked an extra night in the lodge because I wanted to check out as much of the local area as I could before I realized that it wasn't as simple as hopping on a bus or train, or even walking. Sitting in Moivaro's tea area, I mentioned this to Charles, and shared that I felt hesitant going to the town center by myself. He volunteered to end his shift early and show me around.
In Arusha's city center, Charles talked me through everything, communicating with store owners and coffee shop waiters in Swahili while answering my questions about everything from why so many signs were in English to how much of the local industry was coffee exports. In turn, he shared about how he had finished a degree in tourism and wanted to start his own company. After a few hours, we headed back to the lodge and exchanged emails. We wrote back and forth for a bit, and have mostly kept in touch on social media since.
Since 2011, Charles did leave Moivaro Lodge and start his own tourism company, called Semchaa Big Game, taking tourists on safaris specializing in large animals. He emailed me a few days ago and shared that, due to the coronavirus, his business has taken a huge hit and he hasn't had work in almost a year. He's taken up volunteering with a local bird conservation, but after so much time without a paycheck, the situation for him and his family is dire. By the end of the month, he is in danger of losing his home, where he stays with his family. He asked me, very humbly, for some financial help to keep his house and help start a potato farm to secure steady income until tourism picks back up.
Tanzania doesn't have small business help, or unemployment benefits, or stimulus checks in the way we do and the US dollar goes pretty far. I've given Charles what I can at the moment, but I don't have enough on my own to give him as much as he needs. But I do have a lot of caring, generous friends and family who might be able to help.
This person went out of his way to show kindness to a stranger and a foreigner 10 years ago and gave her one of the most influential experiences of her life. If you're reading this, I'd like to ask for your help in repaying him for it.
-Tori
For his awesome wildlife photography, check out:
https://www.instagram.com/semchaa_big_game/
For more info about his background:
https://offthebeatenpathsafaris.com/our-guides/
Organizer
Tori Weddell
Organizer
Atlanta, GA