ANASTANZIA 'STACY' WAKESHO survived an abusive marriage to prosper in business and succeed in raising her two children. Working closely with people living with HIV is her way of giving back to society.
By Phares Mutembei
You will not believe this but my husband turned abusive on the first week of our marriage. Our wedding was glamorous in Diani Beach and I was shocked by the turn of events as our relationship progressed from being physically abusive to being emotionally and psychologically depressive. I got married at 22 and the physical abuse began soon after. My ex-husband beat me even during my pregnancies. I remember when I was three months pregnant, he slapped and even head-butted me on the face. He wanted to destroy my good looks.
Losing my job was a big blow to my children and I. I did not understand it back then but now I appreciate it was God’s plan. I had gotten to the point where I was worshipping my job more than I did Him. When He separated me from the job, it was painful. I had not only lost my powerful job, but my closest friends also disappeared!
That August, I formed my own tour company, Karibu Paradise Safaris East Africa. I used my savings to market my company in Europe as I visited Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, Austria and Germany. I received my first clients in December 2002. After that, business began to boom.
For a long time, I handled domestic tourists, but now I also deal in international tourism.
As I continued with my business as a tour operator, I noticed a gap, a niche market that I felt I could tap into, and this was to arrange special packages for single men and women, so I took up the challenge and started organising short excursions for them. The packages became very popular, especially with young professionals — single, divorced and widowed — who are too busy and never have time to socialise. I formed a separate company for this market and called it Stacy Executives Agency and Tours.
My experiences have taught me the importance of giving back to society. My downfall made me know God. I am now a born again Christian and I can say I have a wonderful relationship with my Creator, as do my children. I learnt that we don’t need material things to be happy and content as material things come and go.
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