MIDLAND, Texas — Stephanie Spencer from Midland can attest that laughter in fact, is the best medicine.
Following the death of Spencer's mother and the imprisonment of her only son just a few months later, Spencer fell into a void of sadness in 2011.
"Comedy is what brought me out; laughter is healing," said Spencer. She hung to the words she would always hear, "You are so funny, you need to make money off of it!"
Sure enough, Stephanie Spencer became ''Shonuf,' a comedian from Midland with a wide range of humor that's meant for anyone and everyone. As of this year, she's garnered more than 7,000 followers on Facebook, performed in places across the state, and even crossed state lines to entertain a couple crowds in states like Alabama and New Mexico.
But she didn't want to reach center stage on her own, especially in an industry she describes as 'rough and competitive.'
"I started booking other comedians and giving them the stage," said Spencer. "I think it's way more important than me being booked on other people's stages."
Spencer looks for comedians through her own business called 'Sho Room Comedy.' For nearly 7 years, she's used laughter as a force that pushes everyone around her to move forward.
"We have so much talent in West Texas, but we don't have any staged," Spencer said. "Some stages are limited to things like music, but there's other forms of entertainment. Midland has become a melting pot of so many people from different cities, and they're looking for other entertainment. So that's what I want to bring."
Spencer was born and raised in Midland, and she's looking to bring change by creating opportunities for everyone, especially women and the Black community.
"Being black is hard," said Spencer. "I come from South Midland and a lot of people don't like when we bring up racism but it's a live and it's real; and it's affecting a lot of people, I want to see my people thrive and the only way we're going to do that is to become involved in the community."
Spencer voices her experiences, whether it's through laughter or through being involved in local conversations.
"We have to be present at meetings like City Hall, school board meetings, PTA mettings. We have to be present in order to for people to know what we want."
Spencer has one more goal at top of mind, and that is opening the very first black-owned comedy club in Midland.
"Everybody needs to heal, everybody needs to laugh. It's medicine," said Spencer.
On Friday June 21, Shonuf is hosting a comedy show on the Rooftop located at the Double Tree Hotel in downtown Midland. Doors open at 8:30PM. Tickets are $15 and cost $20 at the door.