A BRIEF HISTORY OF MRS. VICTORIA ABIMBOLA ONAFOWOKAN- IN HER OWN WORDS
Mrs. Victoria Abimbolae Onofowokan (nee Ogunlesi), was born on the 28th July 1931 to the family of late Chief Daniel Ogunlesi (Alagbede), Balogun of Makun, Sagamu, and Madam Comfort Efunsola Ogunlesi, in Sagamu, Remo, Ogun State, a blacksmith by profession and a farmer. Her father was one of the early converts to Christianity in Remo area and once he accepted the new Christian religion he threw his entire life and family into church matters. While she was growing up, church history, church politics, getting involved with the missionary workers posted to their area, were part and parcel of her family life. All the children, even though a polygamous setting, were sent to the mission schools. They served in the Choir and Sunday School and evening services were mandatory, as well as morning devotion at 5.00a.m. Her father’s greatest legacy for his children was education and love and unity in the family, “Osusu owo ko se e se”- you cannot easily break a bunch of broomsticks. To the Glory of God, this is still their abiding bond, 34 years after his death. Her later mother, Madam Efunsola was a practising Christian believer of those days, a family coordinator and a woman of peace.
She was very close to her paternal Auntie late Madam Abigail Adebanke (Mama Baro, mama oni beer) of the Anglican Diocese of Ibadan St. James Cathedral Church, Oke Bola, Ibadan whose life greatly influenced my involvement in church activities. Madam Abigail Adebanke’s greatest delight and pleasure was in the welfare of church workers, and especially the priests.
Her brothers, Professor T. O. Ogunlesi (now in his eighties) and late Chief John Ola Ogunlesi and Chief Matthew Ogunlesi, have been active members of the Remo Anglican Diocese and valued members of the Cathedral of St. Paul’s, Sagamu.
She had her primary education at St. Paul’s Primary School, Sagamu, 1937 – 1944, from where she moved to Princess Girls’ School, Lagos. She performed so brilliantly at the then entrance examination to Queens College that she was admitted to Form III instead of Form I, which gave her the advantage of spending only 3 years at Queens’ College because she was also one of the few girls with whom the school experimented with taking Cambridge School Certificate in Form V. She passed the Cambridge School Certificate with distinction and also gained exemption from London Matriculation in 1949.
She passed the entrance examination to University College, Ibadan, in 1950. The girls in the University in my time were less than 10. In fact I was number 7.
She did a degree course in the Arts – 1950-54, sponsored by Remo Secondary School, Sagamu, to teach and she has been a teacher ever since. She had no regrets. Praise the Lord! She retired voluntarily in 1981 to join the family business. Because of the nature of her husband’s career, we moved out of Lagos as his job demanded. Hence she was privileged to teach to teach in many schools, Remo Secondary School, Sagamu, St. Anne’s School, Ibadan, Ahmmadiya Girls High School, Our Lady of Apostles, Yaba, Methodist Girls High School, Yaba. She was the pioneering Principal of Girls’ Secondary Grammar School, now Eva Adelaja Girls Secondary School, Gbagada 1964-1974. She was transferred to Methodist Girls High School, Yaba in 1974 as Principal of the school from where she retired voluntarily in 1981 to join the family business after 17 years as Principal of schools.
When she was a teacher at Methodist Girls High School in 1959, she was awarded a British Council Scholarship to do further teaching courses in teaching English as a second Language in Edinburgh 1959-60 and also University of California Los Angeles, USA by the American University Women Society in 1972.
Even though she left active teaching service 26 years ago, she was still very much involved in education and related matters. She served as Chairman of the Board of Governors of her alma mater – Queens College for 8 years (1991-1999) and until her death was serving as Chairman of the Board of Governors of the school she pioneered – Eva Adelaja Girls Secondary School for many years, and also Dansol High School, Ogba. She has won merit awards at the All Nigeria Conference of Principals and Alumni Association of the University of Ibadan where she was National Vice-President for 2 years.
RELATIONSHIPS
Mrs Onafowokan had good and cordial relationships with former students and fellow workers. 33 years after she left Eva Adelaja, the Old Girl’s Association still gathered together as a group yearly to celebrate her birthday (28th July) with her at home.
FAMILY LIFE
She got married to my childhood friend, Prince Babatunde Adedapo Onafowokan on the 6th August 1956 at St. Paul’s Church Sagamu now the Cathedral of St. Paul and they are blessed with 5 beautiful children, who have been a source of joy and pride to them, in their various fields of profession and careers.
SOCIAL ACTIVITIES & CHURCH ACTIVITIES
She served as President of Charity Organisations like the Lions Club and Matron of many social clubs and many church societies, the Choir, the Sunday school, the Mothers’ Union and Women’s Guild. She also served as a member of the Parish Council of the Anglican Church of the Ascension from 1990 till her death and she was actively involved in all church activities. She was one of the women recognised with the Family of Honour Award by the Anglican Diocese of Lagos West in October, 2006.
HER PRAYER
The grace to share the rest of her life with others, especially the younger generation -her experiences of life, through her prayer life, through Bible Study, through counselling, and through Christian sharing and the grace to serve God and the Christian Community with all her heart, with all her soul and with all her spirit in my present capacity as the Iya Ijo of the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, Sagamu.
She did that right to the very end.
