Francis Kehinde Awosika. SJC 461 (1965-1969) Senior Prefect 1969.
Nurse Practitioner Director and CEO Kenvic Healthcare PLC (Home Visiting Physicians), Eastpointe, Michigan, USA.
Brother Francis Thomas McCrea, yours is a life that excellently reflects a commendable service to humanity in the course of your long stewardship at my Alma mater, St Joseph’s College, Ondo, Ondo State, Nigeria. As a young man, you turned your eyes away from the glamor of the Canadian social life with all the accompanying youthful attractions. You chose instead, to come to the comparatively rural Ondo town (now a city) in dedication to, and in absolute
submission to the will of God. Consequent upon your humble spirit, and in total disregard for your own comfort, you worked tirelessly and selflessly, and you successfully nurtured hundreds of Nigerian adolescents to attain lives of fulfillment in their adult years. I vividly remember how, in your signature short pants, you would parade the school campus day and night to ensure an enduring peaceful learning environment. I can never forget your expertise in catching snakes which to a large extent, helped to get rid of dangerous snakes that would otherwise have constituted hazards to resident students. The opportunity for me to acquire secondary education, despite my humble background, was resultant of your magnanimity. This early benefit paved the way for my life success and eventual relocation to a better life in the USA with my wife and children 22 years ago. A true man of God you will forever remain, Brother Thomas. I salute and celebrate you on your 90th birthday anniversary. I wish you many more years of glorious and healthful existence. May the peace of God almighty continue to abide in you.
These Lines salute you not because thou art a
great ruler of people but it sings your praise
because thou art a Great Leader of People…
As Our Comrades would put it “Whom the Cap Fits”…
Like Da Vinci, Like Hippocrates…
To You do we etch these Salient Lines…
Lines that Honor men that dance to the drumbeat
of the Spirits…
Men that see above the Alps, To Men That See
Through do we Chant these Odes…
We Lift up Voices We Lift up our Waists…
My Good Friends do come and dance to the Health
of this Great Man
Anthony Edmond John