A young British woman's post-A-levels gap year adventure took an extraordinary turn, leading her to become the legal guardian of nine children in Tanzania and founding a life-changing charity.
A Month That Changed Everything
Letty McMaster, now 31 and from Tunbridge Wells, Kent, was just 18 when she embarked on what was meant to be a one-month volunteering placement at a Tanzanian children's home in 2012. Accompanied by a school friend, the trip was planned as the first stop on a gap year. However, the reality she encountered among the street children halted her travel plans completely.
During her initial weeks, Letty quickly discovered a harrowing situation. Many of the orphans were suffering emotional, physical and sexual abuse. The children began confiding in her, treating her like an older sister. Speaking about those formative weeks, Letty told the Daily Mail: "This is where everything changed. I ended up staying for the most part of the next three years."
Learning the local Swahili language proved crucial, allowing her to fully understand the extent of the mistreatment. "When I heard and witnessed what the children were going through, I was determined to give them a proper place to call home where they could be safe, loved and cared for," she explained.
Building a Family and a Future
In a remarkable legal undertaking, Letty was registered as the legal guardian of nine of the children when she was just 22 years old. The children, aged between 10 and 16 at the time, moved into a home she had prepared after the local government closed the original orphanage. She has raised them as a family unit for the last nine years.
"When I think back, I'm like 'oh my goodness, I was still so young myself', but there was no way I wasn't doing it," she reflected. "I was ready to do whatever it took - and it took a lot." The process involved navigating complex legal procedures with social welfare services and various government officials.
Her motivation was clear: "They needed a place to call home and not be seen as orphans. At the orphanage, they were very much a tourist attraction with a much darker side. I needed them out of that situation and that cycle of abuse."
Expanding the Mission: Street Children Iringa
Letty's commitment grew into a formal charity. In 2017, she founded the UK-registered charity Street Children Iringa, named after the city in Tanzania's southern highlands where it is based. The region has a high number of vulnerable street children due to rural poverty, family breakdown, and inadequate child protection services.
In 2019, she opened a second home, a safe house providing immediate relief for children living on the streets. This facility supports more than 100 children per year, offering football, food, showers, and counselling. It also serves as an assessment centre to find the best long-term solution for each child, from safe reintegration with relatives to vocational training in skills like mechanics and carpentry.
The safe house additionally supports abandoned babies, often providing life-saving essentials for newborns whose mothers have died in childbirth. Letty spends nine months of the year in Tanzania, returning to the UK to work temporary jobs that help fund the charity's work.
The impact is profound. One success story is Mohamed, now 19, who was involved in gangs and drugs from age 12. "Now I am a respected boxer, referred to as a champion and representing my region," he said. "I am so grateful to my sister Letty for believing in me when no one else did."
Letty's efforts have gained significant recognition. In December 2020, she received a 'Point of Light' award from then Prime Minister Boris Johnson. To date, she has raised over £500,000 to support the charity's homes, education programmes, and welfare projects.
With the first children she raised now adults, Letty's focus is expanding. Plans are underway for a new project in 2026 supporting young mothers and their babies living on the streets, many of whom are fleeing forced marriages. For now, she continues her work, driven by a simple belief: "With the right support, love and believing in them, they can do anything."
