Youth/children of Immaculate Heart Catholic Church,
Umunede has organized this years harvest of Divine victory which was
held on the 9th of October 2011 at the church premises under the
distinguished chairmanship of Mr. Osy Emordi.
The progamme featured two mass sections presided
over by the very Revd Fr .H. Leodard Onumba.
The second phase of the harvest thanksgiving
(Bazaar) commenced at the close of the church section; where friends
members, and invited guests gathered in large numbers to celebrate
with the youths and children of parish; while church members gave
bountifully in order to appreciate God for what the has done.
Speaking shortly immediately after the bazaar, one of
the special guests of honor Mrs. Felicia Osuhor Egbe expressed
gratitude to God for finding her worthy to be chosen by the people,
saying that it is not her making but God.
She advised youths to live up to expectation by giving
respect to their parents and elders so that they may live long here
on earth and fulfill their days on
`Mrs. Osuhor commended the harvest committee for a job
well done.
She enjoined them to keep it up whenever they are giving
such assignments again.
In a related development, Mr. Peter Iduh, vice chairman
of the Parish Council expressed pleasure in the way and manner the
harvest bazaar was held also commending the good response of members
and invited guests.
He
thanked God for giving them good atmosphere to celebrate this year’s
harvest thanksgiving. He prayed to God to bless all who participated
in the harvest .
NIPOST
DELTA TERRITORY CELEBRATES WORLD’S POST DAY / CUSTOMERS FORUM
The
management and staff of NIPOST Delta Territory have joined the rest
people in the world to celebrate the 2011 Post Day celebration. This
year’s celebration was commemorated with the organizing of
Customers, Forum.
Speaking to
a large crowd of customers at the Petroleum Training Institute, (P T
I) Conference Centre, Effurum, venue of the event, the Area Postal
Manager NIPOST in charge of Delta Territory Mrs. Adedoyin O. Adeniyi
on behalf of the Postmaster General, said the World Post Day is an
annual event which is usually celebrated on the 9th
of October every year. According to her it is a day set aside by the
Universal Postal Union to commemorate the postal service world wide.
The Delta Territory was given an approval by the NIPOST authorities
to hold it on the 10th
of October 2011 because 9th
was a Sunday.
She said
the Universal Postal Union is a special agency of the United Nations
which was established in 1874 in Switzerland “Its main
responsibility is to unify and control the postal communication
sector globally for sustainable development. The union has immensely
contributed to the development of Postal service since its
establishment by being responsible for the worldwide expansions and
modernization of postal service through the application of
technological innovations to bridge the information gap between the
developed and developing countries.
The theme
of this year’s celebration which is “A Post that is innovative
and relevant” was carefully selected with a view to creating
awareness of postal services and highlighting its relevance and
recent innovations. Mrs. Adeniyi stated that the Nigerian Postal
Service since its establishment has served both the rich and the
poor” It is no gain saying that since 1882 when the Nigerian post
was established by the colonial masters, it has come a long way as a
veritable vehicle for economic development. The Nigerian Postal
Service has gone beyond rendering of conventional services of sale of
postage stamps, delivery of mails and sales of postal / money order
and has taken advantage of the surge in the new information and
communication technologies to advance into providing rentage of Post
Office Boxes on internet, on line bill payment, courier services and
involvement in e-commerce. She said plans are also on the way to
establish e-postage services and delivery of items against
e-signature.
The Area
Postal Manager added that NIPOST in conjunction with UNESCO/ UPU
organizes yearly letter writing competition for young people who are
not more than fifteen years, stressing that “this humble
organization has positively affected the lives of many Nigerians in
different ways, I urged the general public to take advantage of the
available products and services in the post offices across the nation
to facilitate their social and business activities and add positive
values to their lives. She concluded by saying that the Nigerian
Postal Service is ready to serve everybody, so all Nigerians should
key in to the innovations. She appreciated all esteemed customers of
NIPOST for their patronage over the years.
High point
of the ceremony was questions and answers section where answers and
suggestions were given on how to project NIPOST for a better service
delivery.
A
representative of Ika Weekly newspaper, Godstime Osakwe, including
Dr. Ehijene from Agbor community were also at the event to grace the
occasion.
STORIES
THAT TOUCH THE HEART
THE
NURSE’S BEST MEDICAL
Nursing
has been called a “rewarding profession,” so much so that it’s
become something of a cliché. But more than that, nursing tests you
asking more of you than you ever thought you could give. Nurses are
generally people who know who they are. We come to that knowledge
through our reflection in the eyes of our patients.
It
is our patients, more than our colleagues, who have made us what we
are, by forcing us to rise to the occasion.
You
stand by the side of a young girl named Maria, lying on a stretcher.
Maria is very depressed. She doesn’t speak, sleeps very little and
has to be spoon-fed. Her doctor has prescribed electroconvulsive
therapy. This is Maria’s first treatment and yours, too. You don’t
want to be here; they say ECT is scary. The doctor pushes a button
and Maria’s body rises from the table as you hold her arm. She
begins to convulse and you want to turn your head away. Do you have
to treat mental illness this way?
What
made me think I wanted to be a nurse?
Six
weeks later, Maria’s treatments end. She’s ready for discharge.
She’s eating and sleeping normally. She talks. She smiles too, and
laughs a little-girls laugh, calculated to touch the heart. She is
beautiful-and well. She approaches, touch and takes your hand.
“Thank you for helping me.” Then you think, Maybe I am in the
right place after all.
The
sixty-year-old’s head is larger than his entire body. You’ve had
a hard time coping with this monster of a disease known as
hydrocephalus. You want to run, hide even. Instead, you put your hand
under his mammoth head and put a spoon to his mouth. Is there any
point in all this? What kind of life does he have? Then, on visiting
day, his mother comes. You see the love between parent and child.
Then you understand. You’re glad you didn’t run.
Manny
is catatonic, a huge man who looks straight ahead, ever motionless.
Every day you pull and tug, trying to get him to move. During his
shower, you get as wet as he does. His flat expression never changes.
He seems completely oblivious. Does he even know you’re here? You
can get so frustrated trying to care for a man who offers no help.
Would it make any difference if you just turned and walked away?
But
then comes that special day with Manny, a day you will remember the
rest of your life. You are face-to-face with another man holding the
leg of a table a man bent on destroying you.
Out
of the corner of your eye you see movement. A huge fist stops the man
holding the table. A massive shoulder crashes into the chest of the
one who might have killed you. Weeks later, when Manny is on his way
out of your ward, you ask him, “Manny, on that day-why?”
A
beefy hand touches your shoulder. Manny smiles. “You helped me-it
was time for me to help you.” You spend the rest of the day
digesting Manny’s words. Then you say to no one in particular-“I
like being a nurse.”
Allan
is schizophrenic and self-destructive. You spend hour after hour
trying to see into his world. You can’t. It seems so hopeless.
Sometimes, it gets so discouraging you think Allan would be better
off dead. But then, wonder of wonders-you connect.
His
conversation becomes lucid-he’s talking sense! One of his favorite
topics: “You know, Donnie, when I get out of here, I’m going to
get me a little puppy.” He nearly drives you crazy with that puppy
talk, he just won’t get off it-but at least he’s out of his
shadow world.
Two
years later, you’re walking on the hospital grounds. A car horn
blows. You look up to see a shiny convertible pulling alongside, a
huge dog in the back seat. “How do you like my little puppy,
Donnie?” Allan laughs, “At least he was a couple of years ago!”
You fellow Allan’s car with your eyes as it pulls away, and you
think, I almost gave up on him.
Harry
is manic-depressive, a physically powerful, violent man, who spends
most of his time a seclusion room. You’re working nights, sitting
at a kitchen table, eating a bowl of Rice Krispies. Harry approaches.
A lump forms in your throat. He stares at your bowl, a spoon and push
the cereal and milk toward him. He scares down the Rice Krispies. It
becomes a nightly ritual. No more seclusion, no violence Harry will
have other admissions. Your Rice Krispies are not a cure. But
everyone asks, “How do you explain the power of a bowl of Rice
Krispies?
So
now you sit, looking back at forty-five years. You’re content,
fulfilled; you’ve been “rewarded.” Did you come to this by your
own effort entirely? No. So, you say a thank-you: to Maria, to a
hydrocephalic child, to Manny who saved your life, to Allan and his
puppy, to Harry and his bowl of Rice Krispies.
They
were your patients, you the nurse.
Who
helped who the most?
Hard
to say.
A
GIFT FROM NANA
On
the morning of March 22, 1995, my sister-in-law went into Los Robles
Medical Centre to be induced into labor. My husband and I arrived at
the hospital in the late afternoon to be there for the exiting event.
When we got to her room, everyone present seemed to be in a state of
shock.
At
the change of shifts, the head nurse, Charoltte, noticed my
sister-in-law’s last name and immediately paused. The last name
brought back a memory of a woman she had once cared foe twenty years
ago at a hospital fifty miles away. Consequently, she decided to
assign herself to my sister-in-law’s that evening. She entered the
room and hesitantly asked my brother if he knew of a JoAnn. Stunned,
he answered, “Yes, she was my mother.
Although
we were excited for the birth of our niece, we could not forget that
the next day would be exactly twenty years since my mother had passed
away after battling cancer. Charlotte’s eyes grew wide as she
realized that she was assisting in the delivery of JoAnn’s first
grandchild.
To
our amazement, Charlotte actually remembered my father, brother and
me, and throughout the evening she shared several endearing stories
of the friendship she had developed with my mom for over a year. The
commonality of having children the same age made their relationship
especially close.
Well
past midnight, my sister-in-law was not making progress, so a
C-section was performed and Kylee Ann entered the world. For the
first time in twenty years, the sadness I so often felt on this day,
the anniversary of my mother’s death, was replaced with the joy of
new life.
Two
days later, as Kylee Ann was being discharged, Charlotte came in
holding a delicate white porcelain figurine of a large bird perched
on a branch looking down at a smaller bird.
“Your
mother gave this to me as a thank-you gift when I took care of her
twenty years ago. I’ve cherished it all these years. Now I pass it
on to Kylee Ann”-a gift from her Nana. Terri Murcia.
Cullied
from the book: Chicken Soup for the Nurse’s Soul By Jack Canfield
Mark Victor Hansen Nancy Mitchell-Autio, R.N. LeAnn Thieman, L.P.N
Compiled
by Steve Ekiri Mekiriuwa Ashien
THE
NIGERIAN TEACHERS
Nigeria
is a country that is blessed with many teachers. These teachers could
be professionals or non professionals.
The
Ox-Ford Advanced Learners Dictionary of Current English, defined a
teacher “as one whose job is teaching.” But on my own
definition.” A teacher is one who bring the learners and the
subject matter together, Or a person who directs the learner to
active learning. The science of teaching is called “Pedagogy.” A
professional teacher is a person who is well trained in any
department in the faculty of Education of the tertiary institutions
to impart knowledge, skills and values to learners in a well
organized, systematic, formalized, and acceptable manner.
To
teach requires a lot of preparation from the teacher. It is far more
easier to learn than to teach. A professional teacher has to take
time to select a subject matter to be taught, select the right
teaching aides (learning materials), select a suitable place to
teach, takes time to prepare the lesson note and plan that is
objective oriented, select a suitable method of teaching, wear the
right dress code, put the previous experience of the learners to
teach into consideration before coming out to present the lesson (to
teach) Frankly speaking, effective teaching is not an easy task.
October
5th
of every year was globally set aside to remember the importance of
teachers and to appreciate them. The importance of the Nigerian
teachers sould never be never be over emphasized. They helped to:
Induce
into a child smooth transition from home to school
Prepare
the child for primary education through crèche and pre-primary
education
Inculcate
permanent literacy and numeracy (ability to read, write and
calculate) into a child.
Develop
scientific consciousness into a child
Develop
the manipulative (Psychomotor skills) skills of a child to enable
the child to use his/her hands to create things in the locality
Expose
the child to various fields of learning.
Develop
a child’s inherent potentials that will be useful to the child and
the society.
Develop
and build a child’s career to the peak (apex)
Build
the morals of a child
Induce
discipline, integrity and hard work into a child
Develop
a child to be truthful and peaceful to himself, neigbours around and
the society at large.
Develop
or metamorphosed into Engineers, Scientists, Agriculturists,
Lawyers, Doctors, Nurses, Pastors, Security Officers, Artisans,
Teachers, Musicians, Businessman/Women, Inventors, etc. Inspite of
all these achievements of the Nigerian teachers, the society place
lesser recognition, priority and appreciation to them especially the
primary school teachers who taught all of us on how to handle pen
and write our names.
On
remuneration or appreciation of the Nigerian teachers, every body
must note that “if you can write your names, we must say thank you
to all out teachers”
The
federal state and local government must pay the Nigerian teachers
what they are paying their counterparts in the health sector.
Nigerian
government should pay more attention to education especially the
resource persons (teachers)
Nigerian
government should ensure prompt and regular payment of her teachers.
Nigerian
government should organized regularly in-service training for her
teachers through seminars, workshops and symposium.
Government
should ensure comprehensive supervision of teachers in schools.
Government
should pay all the arrears and allowances they are owing the
Nigerian Primary School Teachers.
Government
should provide teaching incentives for teachers and make the school
environment (Primary, Secondary and Tertiary) conducive for teaching
and learning process.
Everybody
should begin to show appreciation to any teacher around you in cash
or kind any time of the year.
Government
should use “World Teachers Day” to celebrate our teachers and
emphasized their importance in nation building.
Finally,
Imagine a world without teachers, it will be shapeless and
unproductive, If you can write your names, so appreciate all the
teachers that you have come across.
By
Com. Patrick Ekpenisi CAN I TELL
HIM?
Dear Teresa,
I feel
great pains and shame in me as I am writing this text message. I’m
a girl of 24 at DELSU, Abraka and I’ve been in courtship with my
man for the past 4 years. While I was in school, I committed the
grievous sin of abortion, but now I have turned to God for His mercy
and forgiveness. My problem, now is that I am afraid whether my guy
will still love me the way he has always loved if I tell him of my
sin. Or should I forget about telling him about it? But if I don’t
tell him, can I live with the secret all my life as his wife? Because
as soon as I’m through with my education, I will join him in
marriage. Please Ma, help me because I’m confused right now.
No Name
By text
Message
Dear Young
Lady,
Your
sleepless nights over your misbehaviour is because the abortion was
the result of an unwanted pregnancy occasioned by having sex with a
man who is not your suitor. Or even if the pregnancy belonged to your
suitor, but you aborted it without his knowledge because as far as
you were concerned it was an unwanted pregnancy at that particular
time. If any of these two secenrios was the case, then you will
definitely face a storm if you tell him. And after the storm, his
love will definitely not be like it used to be because he will see
you in a new light and that is as a cheat. But if what happened took
place before both of you got together, then telling him will not
raise any bad blood because it will amount to mere storytelling. My
advice is what the bible tells us in Proverbs 14:16; a fool throws
off restraint and careless.
SHE WANTS
TO COMPLICATE MY LIFE
Dear Teresa,
Please Ma,
there is this girl that I have been dating for about a year and some
months now. The girl is not beautiful but she loves me very well. I
love her too but not as much as she loves me because she is not
beautiful. Yesterday, while we were in my room, I asked her for sex
but she refused and insisted that she would not do it unless I give
her my mum’s GSM number because she wants to talk to her. I told
her no that our relationship has not got to that extent yet and that
we should not complicate it unnecessarily. Please, I need your
advice.
Alvin
By text
message
Dear Alvin,
For a girl
that you claim loves you so much, how long do you need to date her
before you know who she is? You have been sleeping with this girl for
over one year and yet you do not think it is right for her to want to
know your people? What do you take her for, a fool or prostitute? It
is clear you do not have good intentions for this girl, and I advice
you to let her go now before she knows that you are just using her to
satisfy your sexed need. If it gets to that point, you may not be
sure of what an angry girl can do and so let her go now.
MY
RELATIONSHIPS DON’T LAST
Dear Teresa,
Good day
Ma. My name is Lucky P and I am 23 years old. Since I was 18 years
old, I started to notice that I was having sex in my dreams and ever
since, non of my affairs with girls have lasted up to 4 months.
Please Ma, I need your advice
Lucky
BY text
Message
Dear Lucky,
Are you sure that your
poor relationships are not as a result of your carelessness in
handling situations? Now that you seem to have connected your wet
dreams to your unsteady relationships, then your mind is telling you
that your problems are spiritually induced. In that case, my advice
is that you see a man of God to help you sort it out.
I NEED
HELP
Dear Teresa,
I am a girl
of 18 years and I am from Delta State. I have a problem that I don’t
have a solution to this moment. My daddy left me and my three sisters
for 16 years. Not too long ago a female aunty took me to Aba so that
I can go to school there but when I got to Aba, she told me to go to
her shop to help her sell. When I asked her about my schooling, she
told me that she can not train me. Now, I am confused and don’t
know what to do. Should I go back home or should I look for a guy
that will take care of me? The problem is that I have not been going
to school for 2 years now and I will like to further my education.
Please Ma, I need an urgent reply.
Sophia
By text
message
Dear Sophia,
Let me
begin by telling you not to try to look for a man who will take care
of you because if you purposely go out to search for such a person,
you will not find him. Instead, all the men you will meet will be
those who will use and abuse you. Having said that, I want to tell
you that there are two things you can do. One thing that you can do
is that you can humble yourself and continue to stay in the shop to
sell things for your aunty. I know this suggestion is difficult and
painful, because your aunty tricked you into coming to Aba. But one
good thing about doing that is that in the process of doing it, you
will become an apprentice learning how to trade. While you are in the
shop doing a good job, good men will notice you and will pick you up
as a wife. The other thing that you can do is to go back home to your
mother and sisters.
ONE DIES
IN AUTO CRASH
By Patrick
Gbuchanye
At
least one person was confirmed dead in an auto crash that occurred at
about 10:30am on Saturday, October 8, 2011 at, opposite the main gate
that leads to the new site of College of Education, Agbor, as the
driver of a dark red Honda salon car with registration number, DELTA
AG 667 ABH and a cream colour Premiere with registration number,
DELTA AP765 AGB lost control of their vehicles and had a head-on
collision.
According
to an eye witness account, the accident was as result of speeding.
The source said that the dark red Honda vehicle was moving towards
the Warri axis while the Premiere was from the opposite direction.
The
accident attracted sympathizers who came to rescue the passengers
that were trapped inside the car. However persons who sustained
serious injuries were taken to the Central Hospital, Agbor for
treatment.
At the
Central Hospital, one of the accident victims that had a deep cut on
her head was kept in the hospital emergency bus, and was taken to The
University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin-city for treatment. It
was however gathered that the lady died a day after at U.B.T.H
EKUKU-AGBOR
PROGRESSIVE UNION HOLDS MINI CONFERENCE
By Gabriel
Mokobia
A one-day
mini conference of the Ekuku-Agbor Progressive Union (E.A.P.U.) was
held on Saturday, October 1, 2011. The conference was held at the
Ogwa Uboh, and was
well attended by sons and daughters of the community.
In his
address presented at the occasion, the National President of the
Union, Com. Oghi S.P (F H N R) said he was delighted for such a
gathering which was aimed at working out ways of putting Ekuku-Agbor
in the mainstream of historical greatness. He said that for some time
past, no conference has been held to assess the problems and
prospects of the Union. He called on members of the Union to always
think of what they could do for the community, and not what the
community will do for them. Com. Oghi enumerated some achievements of
the union to include, building of a three classroom block to roofing
level, the presence of National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members in
the community, they have helped in staffing the primary schools in
the community, and to ensure that school children went to school
regularly. He said that the union has also started working with the
Government, particularly the Water Board and Power Holdings Company
of Nigeria (PHCN) towards making water available for all in the
community.
On the area
of electricity supply, Com Oghi stated that the union has also been
making efforts to meet with the Business Manager, Agbor District of
PHCN. “With the good relationship we have with the Business
Manager, we pray that our dream comes true” he said. He pointed out
that the union is working towards ensuring that the solar powered
bore hole at Ogbe Agidi community being constructed by the Millennium
Development Goal (MDG) is completed in due course. He maintained that
through the influence of the union, the United Geophysical Nigeria
Limited and Integrated Service Ltd have build a place at the Ogwa
Oboh with the sum of five hundred thousand Naira (N500, 000.00) He
said that through the efforts of the union, more Delta Line buses
have been brought to the community, in order to ease their transport
problem, adding that the rift between the National Union of Road
Transport Workers (N.U.R.T.W) and Delta Line has also been resolved
amicably.
Com. Oghi
told the gathering that the union is proposing to publish a 2012
Alimanac, which they hope to co-launch with the roofing of the town
hall building. He said that as part of their resolutions, the union
is to co-ordinate all the quarters in Ekuku-Agbor to raise funds for
the completion of the three classroom block. They also resolved to
complete the Ogwa Uboh
that was started many years ago by Otu Onye Dozi Ihen Association,
Lagos branch. He called on any one indepted to the union to pay up
before the next general meeting that will be coming up in April, next
year. “Branches are advised to send a comprehensive list of our
sons and daughters who are associating with the branches” he said,
appealing that anyone who is not yet registered will be sanctioned at
home whenever the persons has any social engagement, such as
marriage, burial or other ceremonies involving the community.
Com. Oghi
used the opportunity to call on politicians in the area to endeavour
to carry the people along, and not to exclude them in the scheme of
things. He prayed for the progress of Ekuku Agbor Progressive Union.
Leave a Reply