Where He leads...: Remembering Ouma

Remembering Ouma

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Family of Hope Services recently lost a great member of the team. Ouma Cecilia, simply known as "Ouma" (meaning grandmother in Oshiwombo), passed away on Tuesday. She would have celebrated her 65th birthday next week.

Just last week I mentioned Ouma in my blog about possibly returning for a visit to Namibia. Anytime I envision myself returning to that country, Ouma is in that picture. She was always so filled with joy and so happy to see each of us. Out of respect culturally, Ouma (as the oldest) was always the first one to be greeted when you enter the center. I have been looking forward to going back to FHS for a visit, walking through the door, and running up to Ouma to give her a big hug with a "Walelepo, Meme!" lovingly to follow.

I can only imagine how the children, staff, and volunteers at FHS are grieving this loss. Ouma was a faithful member of the team. She was also the grandmother of Petrus, a special boy at FHS who could be considered the FHS greeter. Anyone, new or old, who comes to the center will likely be greeted first by him with a big smile and and even bigger hug. My heart breaks for Petrus and his loss. Ouma has played a huge role in his upbringing.

I know that all who knew Ouma were indeed blessed to have done so. And we will all hold onto the wonderful memories that we have of her. She epitomized the words "love" and "sacrifice". We will all be better people if we will live by her example. Thank you, Ouma, for your friendship, your kindness, love, and support for myself and all at FHS! Words can't describe how much you will be missed!

This is a memorial posted about her on the Facebook page for FHS:

Family of Hope Services pays tribute to a grandmother who earned the respect and love of all who worked alongside her at FHS for the past 6 years, both local and international. She passed on yesterday the 11th of October. With FHS, she will always be remembered for her works of love. She had undying passion and love to serve others, especially the orphans and vulnerable children in her community.

The lines that criss-cross her face read like a road map marking out the journey she has taken since her birth more than 64 years ago. Cecilia Mukefina David, better known as Ouma (Grandmother), will always be remembered as an icon at Family of Hope Services (FHS). She came every day to cook, offer meals to over 250 children in the feeding programme and cleaned the Center. Her impact on young and old alike was much farther reaching.

Born at Ongenga village located in Owamboland, Ouma lived a typical village life. She had seven siblings, three of which died as adults. She recalled her childhood years as lean ones - clothing that only covered the bare essen-tials, going barefoot, and eating traditional foods such as spinach, mahangu, beans and onjove (marula oil). Though she never allowed her personal struggles to limit her efforts to bring a smile, joy to many around her.

I went through my Namibia videos to find some of Ouma. I knew that if nothing else, I definitely had a couple of her dancing. Anytime we had a celebration at FHS, Ouma was always in the circle with the rest of the women, ready to sing and dance. We all loved it! The kids would laugh as she would break it down, dancing the energetic Ovambo dances. I put together a couple of those clips in the video below. I also found a short clip of her helping me and Kaiti out when we were up to our antics at the center. You can see the look on my face, thinking she was probably going to be annoyed with our silly games, but instead, she didn't miss a beat to move the table out of the way for us to continue. Meme Esther, Kaita's grandmother and a dear friend of Ouma's, is laughing in the background. Finally, the video ends with a clip from Linda's farewell video. Before Linda left Namibia last November, I put together some clips of the teachers and staff of FHS telling her goodbye. Ouma doesn't speak much English, so I told her to say her farewell in Oshiwambo. I know that most of us won't know the words Ouma is saying, but I think we can all understand the heart of her message. That was Ouma. Language was never a barrier when it came to love and sincerity. She and I exchanged few words over the near year and a half I knew her. In fact, we exchanged so much more, and I would choose that over words any day!