Ah! Where do I start from!!
Writing a tribute to “father, uncle, dad’s best friend”.
How can I say a few words that will tell it all. Uncle I knew you from when a child could tell a person and you were always part of the Williams family, my immediate ad extended Williams family.
As my dad’s best friend, you were always involved in our lives from when we were born to marrying us all. I remember the chemistry lessons you gave me, the holidays in London and when we all started our careers, your support and loving advice. You saw us though difficult family situations, always there to broker peace with daddy during our teenage years and young adulthood. I’ll never forget your love and support to dad and us when mum passed away and that you continued to visit dad every 2nd Sunday of the month.
I will miss our long chats when I called you from Leicester.
Uncle, I thank God that I knew you and that you were a part of my life. You lived an accomplished life in the service of God. Your friendship with my father and late uncle Taiwo and indeed the entire Williams family is an example of true friendship to the very end. We the children you have left behind will continue to fly the flag of friendship.
May your gentle soul rest in peace.
Adieu Uncle.
A TRIBUTE TO PROFESSOR SAM ADE OLAITAN
Dear Prof, our father, our mentor. We hardly believed this day would come so soon. I in particular foolishly believed it would never come. You had a larger than life image and as such one believed that you were invincible.
We thank God Almighty The Father of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to whose service you dedicated your whole life, for the exemplary life that you lived. We thank him also for giving our family the opportunity to share in that life. Ralu and I will have a hard time getting used to the vacuum this will leave in our lives for you left an indelible mark in our home. Your advice, encou ragement, prayers and above all the love you showered on us, we will hold on to forever.
You brought out the best in everyone; you gave everyone the opportunity to serve in the kingdom of God here on earth. You led by example. Discipline, forthrightness, fairness were the hallmarks of your leadership. The depth of your knowledge was unfathomable. You were a treasure-trove of knowledge and wisdom-Prof you were too much!
We will always remember Funlayo(as you fondly called her) and the children in our prayers.
We pray that by the Grace of God Almighty we will bring to play all that we have learnt from you and contribute our quota to the completion and the growth of the church you left behind to the Glory of God.
Prof, we will miss you dearly, you will live in our hearts forever.
Good night, our Prof, Our friend, our father.
My Father
You were an enigma of sorts. Very simple, yet very cerebral; principled yet liberal; a perfectionist to the core yet accommodating, deep yet cheerful; in a hurry, yet extremely patient; brisk yet purposeful; visionary yet pragmatic; disciplined yet friendly, an articulate speech maker yet a great listener; an accomplished academician yet a down 2 earth citizen; an asute academician yet a down 2 earth citizen; a critical thinker yet a positive contributor, confident yet unassuming, energetic, indeed indefatigable yet a sound Sleeper ... I can go on and on. A teacher, a leader and a preacher. A historian & a scientist, - an orator, and a writer, a scientist and a musician. A passionate and sincere man. Truly one of a kind.
To me, you were a true Father, always there for me, always supportive, always encouraging, always prodding me 2 do great things, always interested, deeply interested in all that concerned me. Always reliable - if you said say you’ll be there, you will, on time, everytime. Never anxious, never afraid of change (you wou would say to me "change is creative when God ordains it@), never discouraged.
I thank you most especially for showing me 1 God (never wavering in your faith in “the God of the impossible who makes all things possible”), for helping me to grow up with a very strong sense of security & sound values. I thank you for a childhood filled with wonderful memories: the holidays abroad, the visits when I was at Ife: you will seldom come for just a few hours, typically, you’ll spend the night: & I'I come and stay with u @ the University Guest House, we'll have dinner & breakfast 2gether & off you go. The birthdays, oh - u loved birthdays - yours & those of your family - you never ever forgot anyone's birthday: you did your best to make it special.
Without doubt, you were a good Father and a fantastic GrandDad. You know all your grandchildren intensly:
My Uncle, My Friend
This is one of the most difficult tasks I have been called upon to carry out in a long time.
Prof. Prof.!! Friend to all. Vibrant, exuberant , larger than life, with a voice to match.
A Field Marshal in Gods army with a voice like a cannon!
He fought battles in the spirit and in the flesh. A mere mortal but one of God’s chosen. A strong man till the very end, you came out victorious, through it all. Oh, how I will miss you.
I was “Adebimpe 2” in your household. You were not my friend’s dad but my own friend.
You were an epitome of love. You showed love and gave love to all unconditionally. Words of wisdom were imparted to all and sundry. Whenever you said, “Gbo na” , you just had to listen.
You were not perfect but very close to it.
A man who could not and would not tolerate mediocrity, we salute you.
A moderate man who lived life and enjoyed life in moderation.
Prof. had time for everyone, everywhere and every time.
Grand-dad Ewaloos, thank you for loving me, my husband and my children.
Thank God you knew how much we loved you. Thank you for every bit of me that you shaped. The kids cannot imagine coming to Adelabu and not hearing you boom at them from the steps, or seeing you play with Farams and Pelums.
Father, friend and grand-dad, thank you for all the memories.
It is Well, Rest in Peace!
