SPECIAL FEATURE: A unique Orphanage - Ijamido Children's Home

Sometimes in 2009 fresh from the University, I wanted an adventure to burn some youthful energy. Getting closer to Priscilla Awe Olajumoke availed me that opportunity. 

She was one of the Media Volunteers of Ijamido Children Home as at that time and through her, I got to know about this uniquely different Orphanage, Ijamido Children’s Home situated at 147, Ilo-Awela Road, Toll Gate Bus Stop, Ota, Ogun State.

The warm embrace of smiling kids greeted me the first day I sauntered into the entrance.
 Some called me “aunty”, others simply said “mummy”. This was despite the fact that we were meeting for the very first time. My heart melted at that and even though I never really volunteered owing to some unforeseen circumstances, I have always sought to know more.  

Ijamido Orphanage fondly referred to by her lovers as ‘The Home’, is about the only Orphanage that I know that gives no room for the adoption of their kids for whatever reason.

            I spoke with one of the care givers recently at Ota, Mrs Eromosele. A product of the home but married and lives quite independently. She furnished me with additional information to what I have always known about the Orphanage, and maybe some more. 

Especially the fact that a National ban has been placed on taking snapshots of Orphanage Children.

“Having pictures of orphanage children could be used to stigmatize them when they eventually become prominent members of the society later in life, hence the reason for the ban”.  She had informed, and I ended up tucking my camera away.

Excerpts; 

           A brief history of 'The Home'. 

Mrs Eromosele;                  "Ijamido Children Home was founded in December 17, 1958, by Late Chief (Mrs.) Irene Virginia Willoughby, who happened to be a daughter to one of the early missionaries to Nigeria, Mr. and Mrs Liverpool. 

She was brought in at the age of nine, and was even the First Head Girl of Queens College Lagos. Mama was a midwife nurse, who came to Ota, through the invitation of the then Ota District Council in 1956, to come and start a Maternity Centre. As at that time, there was no Medical facility around Ota, unless you go to Ilaro or Abeokuta.  In the process of discharging her duties, the lord gave her the vision to start caring for the underprivileged children, and she started with the present Chief Executive Officer of the Home, Doctor Mrs Victoria Obakoya as a three day old baby in December 17, 1958". 

            (Additional information I gathered revealed that, after the first baby of the house in 1958, another baby girl came along shortly after named Bose. Mama had a little cottage at the Maternity Center where she lived with her adopted kids. Afterwards, another baby girl named Toyin was brought to her care too. In no time, they were joined by twelve male teenagers, and eight female kids, all of whom were less privileged. The population grew such that mama (as she is fondly called) catered for over six hundred abandoned kids in her lifetime. She died at a ripe age of 91, in February 1995, without biological kids of her own. The first baby of the home, Mrs  Abosede Victoria Obakoya who resides in the United States, with her husband, Prince Daniel Oreoluwa Obakoya, now manages the affairs of the home, as the Chief Executive Officer.)

 So far in 'The Home'. 

Mrs. Eromosele;                "Over a thousand children have passed through this home. Presently, we have over a hundred of different ages and levels of education, up till the Tertiary Institution. The home is a non adoptive one with children of varying age brackets. From the abandoned children, motherless babies, orphans, destitute, the less privileged, and then the bad parented children that were withdrawn by the court from relatives, due to maltreatment. There are also the family support children. These are children that have either of both parents, but could not care for them. When they come to solicit for such assistance, we investigate to authenticate their claim, before taking up the responsibility of their kids. The parents also have to augment with the upkeep of their kids, at the end of every month. We do these, not because we have too much, but it is part of our social responsibility, and then as part of holding on to mama’s laid down legacy.

Every child in the home bears the surname Willoughby. We are all siblings and as a matter of fact, we do not marry ourselves. The moment a child comes into this home, we instantly become biologically related of sort.

The children schools outside the home, never to be home schooled. They also mingle and fellowship with outside members of the world. Here is only where we domicile. We mingle like every other person in the world. Ijamido Children’s Home is a also registered Organization".

         An average day in 'The Home'. 

Mrs Eromosele;                          "   The average day here is just like that of every other Nigerian Household. The only thing is that we are more populated. Besides, we most times have a lot of people that visits us on a daily basis.  Like what you just saw now, some group of persons came in to have a music class with the kids, towards the forthcoming Christmas carol. Many come to give seminars, and to further enlighten us on varying life issues. There are also lots of lined up activities like learning of some skills and handworks. Volunteers do all these for us. The kids also perform their domestic chores too, alongside care givers that are on the Orphanage’s payroll. On the other hand, every older Willoughby, is obligated to care for the younger ones. They have a sense of belonging. That’s why you often hear amongst us words flying round like, “that is my child, your child” etc,

           

How those that grew into adulthood, disintegrate into the larger society, owing to the non-adoption policy of the Orphanage.

Mrs Eromosele;               "  They disintegrate easily like every other adult in a Nigerian Home. Like I told you earlier, the kids school outside the home. Some are even boarders, and comes back home only once in four months. Every Sundays, we also fellowship with outsiders, so as to be availed the opportunity to mingle, meet people, and be blessed with opportunities. An average child of this home goes to the University, many of them stay on Campus, becomes a graduate, goes for the compulsory Youth Service. Some gets retained afterwards, others get good jobs and decides to get married once they are of age, and blessed with the means to. Then they live decently and comfortably afterwards.

Here is just like our own parental home. Definitely everybody looks forward to having his or her own home eventually. The only thing is just that, we do not force any of our children to live alone. When the time is ripe, you can only decide that, on your own, when you crave privacy as an adult and can afford to. You can’t imagine a thirty year old still staying behind at the home, to manage bunk beds with the teenagers.

So disintegration into the larger society is not just seamless but normal. The first daughter of the home has been married for long, and is not even resident in the country. So also Pastor Tunde Willoughby who shuttles between living here and Benin Republic, and then Stella etc".

How the Orphanage manages to cope in the face of the harsh economic situation of the Country. About staying afloat and well funded.

Mrs Eromosele;         " The point is, God has been the one sustaining us. I must admit, it has never been easy. But it is not by anyone s power, but by grace. God has never created anyone he cannot afford to feed. Although, we survive solely on donations from people and varying Organizations, God has been making a way at all times. We have periods when we are in real lack, but then we call on God, he comes through. Those that assist us just spring up at the point when we need help more. 

There are also some kind hearted Nigerians that assists with payment of fees, anytime school resumes. We feel the harsh economic situation more, but God always comes through with providing for us through people that helps out with more donations. One with God is majority". 

Health Scheme for the kids

Mrs. Eromosele;                "Let me narrate how we got to the health scheme that we enjoy today. The home actually started from a quarter where mama was. But after she retired, she had to leave the quarters in the early 70s to rent an apartment. As a pensioner, it was difficult to meet up with paying of rents and upkeeps too. Owing to the hardship we faced then, we, her children as at that time were always being taunted and called riff raffs, smelling kids by other kids especially. Thank God the present kids are not feeling the harshness like those of us that are now elderly actually did. Mama had to go and start soliciting for assistance, and in the course of doing that, she met with a Rotarian, who was a palace physician to the Late Oba Titi Dada as at then, Doctor Shobanjo. He was the one that really felt our plight, and moved the motion amongst other Rotarians, at the Ota Rotary Club to build for us an apartment.

 They could have as well, paid for our overdue rent, but they made it a case of teaching us how to fish, instead of giving us fish. Despite the fact that rotary does not build, they went against their doctrines, and gave us their first ever rotary building here at Ota, on this land, that was donated to us by the Local Government. 

Afterwards was when people/organizations helped us out with the other structures on this land that we occupied.

Having said this, there is one of the Rotarians, Doctor Oluwole Kukoyi, who is the Chief Medical Director of Medicare clinics in Ota; he took up the medicals of the home since 1990. Let me just say, the medicals of every member of the home is settled. He has been there for us, and all we can say is that, God should bless him more abundantly". 

How the members of the populace can be of help owing to the non adoption policy

Mrs Eromosele; (Emphasized by interjection) 
                        " Point of correction, adoption is not an act of help. Adoption is done to fulfill a particular need of yours, to fill a void of wanting kids, or more kids. So when it comes to helping out, the word adoption does not come to mind. There are different ways to be of help to an orphanage. You can donate cash, foodstuff, sponsoring a child in school etc. Christmas is coming now, you can buy clothes, cows and other goodies for the kids. Those are ways to be of help to us, and by visiting us to volunteer etc."

           

    Instances of how the kids were found

Mrs Eromosele;               " One of the kids was found by the wheel of a lorry, she’s an undergraduate now anyways. She was abandoned barely few hours after she was delivered. The mother probably placed her by the wheel of the truck, so that she could be unknowingly crushed by the driver, when he comes around. The driver however, oblivious of what was underneath his truck, ignited his engine, which somehow refused to come up. In the process, he came down from the driver seat, and began to go round the vehicle to decipher the fault. Alas, a new born baby with freshly uncut umbilical cord was what he found. Funnily enough, the engine came up as soon as he retrieved the baby. She was destined to live after all.

There’s another case of a baby boy, found in a gutter. He would have been swept away by the water tide, if he wasn’t found on time. There are also several other cases of babies found in unimaginable places, like those dumped inside the thick forest, supposedly rescued by hunters and brought to Ijamido Children’s home, etc". 

(I also once gathered how a woman, wandering past a street, stopped by one house and  pleaded that her two daughters, both of whom were less than fivebe allowed to  stay back, while she comes back to pick them. She never came to get both girls, and they ended up being named Willoughby)

            Conclusively, as the popular saying goes, ‘spare a thought for the motherless’.

            However, here goes the needed details of this uniquely different Orphanage, I often prefer to refer to as ‘the home’, for more information.

Official 

website; www.ijamidochildrenshome.org

Mail:   ijamidochildrenshome@gmail.com

Contact Persons;
        .      Mrs Eromosele (The Coordinator, Education and Welfare) 
               +2348137106070  (calls and whatsapp) 

·         Dr. John Willoughby; 

Contact Phone number;   +2348023552227,

 Whatsapp;                         +2347031175711

·        Stella Willoughby-Amos    (Executive Secretary of the Home)

Contact;                            +2348027741329 ,    +2348030697768

BANK DETAILS;

·        Ijamido Childrens Home (Edu)……………………………GTB BANK 0146098625

·        Ijamido Childrens Home…………………………………….GTB 0036976253

·        Ijamido Childrens Home………………………………….UNION BANK  0010019127

·        Ijamido Childrens Home………………………….......WEMA BANK 0120565694

Picture: Front view of the Home.