Immortalizing Natasha Ilo.
Death comes when it will come. That is why British playwright William Shakespeare described it as a necessary end. That It is inevitable should remove its shock, its sting and its pain.
However, some deaths can create a sense of perpetual regret, pain, shock and unpreparedness.
Signature TV correspondent Chibueze Obi tells us of how a Nigerian family has healed but remains in pain from such a death.
It is a contradiction but it is the reality.
The family of Ilo in Enugu State has healed from the death of their daughter, two years old Natasha Ilo, who died in 2016.
The healing however is because they have acknowledged, accepted and transfigured their experience.
The cause of the pain is understandable– the death of a cherished daughter. It becomes deeper because Natasha died in 2016 while the Ilo family was celebrating their parents wedding anniversary and meeting to keep the bond of the family union strong and aglow. While the family met, little Natasha drowned in the family swimming pool. And her uncle, VinMartin, has hardly stopped thinking of that incident and the joy it claimed
Jude Ilo, the father of Natasha has arrested the pain and regret and rather converted them to assets, a source of succour to any family that may be experiencing such a deep loss. He has written a book “ Kasie, loss, love & life”.
The book is the offloading of a chocking experience, a ventilation of the spirit and lightening of a burden. The book of poems and anecdotes speaks to people who may be weighed down by such an experience to reassure them that life can also provide its own balm.
The book, “ Kasie, loss, love & life” was launched in Abuja on Tuesday, February 23, 2021.
For some of the guests including Nnamdi Okeke and Ose Ibhawoh, the Ilo family has displayed exemplary strength of character and a capacity to turn their pain into a resource by writing the book.
As part of immortalizing Natasha, the Ilo family also launched a foundation –Natasha Ilo Foundation, in memory of the girl.
Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, who unveiled the logo of the foundation, said the focus of the foundation which is access to health, education, and prevention of sexual and domestic violence, will play a critical role in making those social services available to Nigerians
He commended the Ilo family for the initiative.
Earlier Vice President Yemi Osinbajo who joined the event virtually via zoom commended the resilience of the couple in turning their pain into a legacy not only immortalizing their daughter but also providing support to underprivileged children and families in grief.
The Natasha Ilo Foundation will also provide scholarship to indigent children as a means of giving them access to education.
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