2023 Fellow Focus: Araba Maze + Storybook Maze
Radical Street Librarian, literacy champion, innovator…2023 Fellow Araba Maze of Storybook Maze shares more about her journey as a social impact entrepreneur.
What life experiences propelled you into the entrepreneurial space and made you decide to be your own boss?
During COVID, my life as a librarian drastically changed. I went from spending Wednesday mornings in storytime with 60 giggling toddlers, to working alone in a dark community room. I went from working in a bustling community hub, to running no contact curbside pickup. I also had a radical spiritual experience with God which manifested a deep calling in me to return to my purpose, my path, and pursue nothing else.
What do you enjoy most about being a founder?
What I enjoy most about being a founder is being able to get one step closer to shaping the world that I and our communities want to live in every day. Being able to interrogate systems that we often believe are static. I’ve always learned best by doing.
What do you wish someone had told you before you started your entrepreneurial journey?
Nothing. Everything happens the way it's supposed to.
How do you stay motivated?
Purpose and Prayer.
Let's talk about your legacy. How do you hope your venture will make the world a better place generations from now?
Every child needs mirrors in which to see themselves, windows in which to see different worlds, and sliding glass doors with which they can access their own futures. My venture provides books for children that are mirrors of themselves, windows to other worlds, and literacy is the skill that slides open doors for them to walk through.
What's your favorite book or podcast that you draw entrepreneurial inspiration from?
Anything else you want to share about yourself and/or your Camelback Fellowship journey?
"Everyone underestimates me..but then they turn their back and I'm like: BOO!"
Checkout Araba’s Storybook Maze wishlist and learn how you can support her literacy for all mission today!
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