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It was at her death that the secret name her husband Ignatius Chukwu of BusinessDay gave her surfaced; The Shoe That Never Pinches. The name seemed to overshadow the obsequies in the funerals.
Celine Nwachukwu who died and woke up in 1994 during eclampsia and oedoma crisis in childbirth finally gave up the ghost on November 12, 2023, after almost 30 years. Her husband, the Regional Editor of BusinessDay, grieved to high heavens in what he called ‘smile on my face, tears in my heart.’
On February 2, 2024, a ‘service of songs’ was held in her honour in her local church (Redemption Hall Model Parish of the Redeem Christian Church of God) in Elelenwo, Port Harcourt, where the low and mighty gathered to sing praises to God Almighty and to testify to a life of example amongst women.
The sermon of the evening delivered by the zonal pastor, Omolara Joseph, tried to remind mourners it is one’s works that would speak when each person goes home. She reeled out deeds of the exemplary life of the late worshipper and noted that she brought up her direct children and others in the true sense of Christianity.
The burial ceremonies moved to Aboh Mbaise (Umu Obee Ubahi in Mbutu-Nweorie) in Imo State on February 10, 2024, where a church service and interment took place. It was like who is who in journalism in the Niger Delta. It could be mistaken for a religious ceremony where saints and genuine people of God gathered to praise and give thanks to the Almighty God for what He is and what He has done, except for the presence of a white coffin and glossy and scintillating obituary pictures which dotted every nook and cranny of JC Nwachukwu compound.
The Nigerian Union of Journalists, publishing houses including BusinessDay, Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP), oil company executives, business executives, and many more graced the solemn occasion.
The setting of seats, chairs, and canopies as well as vehicle parks including security arrangements were like a place where beauty is merged with quality and class; where every person experienced a scenic view of JC Nwachukwu compound and its cool surroundings and ambiance.
Being a gathering of saints to give their fellow departed child of God, a daughter of Zion, Celine, the wife of Ignatius Chukwu, the required respect.
It was a kind of the galaxy of sons and daughters of the most high God who sang songs and choruses with angelic tunes to praise, adore, and bless the name of one and only holy God.
The songs and choruses with people taking turns to sing added glamour to the Praise Night and the Spirit of God seemed to touch many people.
Reflections and testimonies:
The chief mourner, Chukwu, in his speech, x-rayed the journey of their marriage from his college days in Okpala, Ngor/Okpala local government area when then Celine Onyewuchi was in Primary 5 when they merely had a glimpse of each other; from there later to Makurdi in Benue State, where they married after 10 years. He also stated why and how he came to nick name or add another name to his late wife, “The Shoe That Never Pinches.”
Chukwu never failed to say why Celine won his heart permanently, and how she was loved by her children and parents. He said she did not seek evil for any person.
He said locally made shoes were known to pinch the wearer, but one shoe did not pinch. So, it is that whereas many people say their wives troubled them, there was one wife that never troubled the husband. He urged husbands to manage their marriages in such a way that their wives would become shoes that never pinch.
He commended the times and life of Celine, but his regret was when he asked the public an unanswered question; “Where again can I get The Shoe That Never Pinches?”
But at that moment, grave silence gripped everybody till the graveside.
A high chief in the community and an in-law, George Ohaegbule, whose son is married to the second daughter of Chukwu described his late mother in-law as lovable. He called her a woman with good heart who he said would give you whatever she had.
According to Ohaegbule, “Whoever follows the footsteps of Mummy Celine will never go astray.”
She was better known as Mummy Nwachukwu because she possessed all the attributes of love as can be read in 1 Corrinthians 13:1-8 of the Holy Bible.
The General Overseer of True Believers Assembly in Nnorie Ngor-Okpala, Imo State, the reverend, Eric Onunji, who also testified about the goodness of the late Celine, said, “People say Ignatius is good, IG is good, but I say that what made IG good is Big Mummy (Big Mummy).”
Eric stated that Big Mummy, kept the whole family as one. “She made Ignatius touch lives of many people”. He prayed God to touch women in various families to live the life the late Celine lived.
He also stated that just like in the family, the late Celine played good role in the Church when she was alive. “She lived a righteous life.”
Ann Obinna-Nwachukwu, the daughter-in-law, (wife to Chukwu’s first son, Obinna) in her testimony said, “She never took me as daughter-in-law but as her direct daughter. She filled me with love; she loved God and loved me. She clothed me with love and showed me what love is.”
The pastor and Chief Worker (General Overseer) of Eleutheria Ministries, Kingsley Nwachukwu, who is Chukwu’s second younger brother, amongst other things, revealed what the late Celine told him to tell Chukwu her husband. According to Kingsley, it was the last word she told him before her death. “My joy is that she is resting in the bosom of the Lord”.
Others who testified of Mummy Celine’s love for God and people were another pastor, Saby Elemba, a female journalist, Mercy Enoch, the last son of the Nwachukwu family, Udo, and Celine’s two sons – Obinna and Jeremy.
During the brief burial church service jointly conducted by three churches; RCCG (her church in PH), Eleutheria Ministries in PH founded by the family, and True Believers Assembly (the matriarch’s church or family church in the village), conducted at JC Nwachukwu Compound, Obinna Nwachukwu the first son read a touching but brief history of her mother, Celine, “The Shoe That Never Pinches”.
In the sermon, a pastor, Alexander Egwu from Port Harcourt read, 1Thessalonians 4:13-18, which was used to comfort the family, and well-wishers not to cry like people who do not know what the Scriptures said concerning the coming of the Lord, Christ Jesus to the earth.
That was followed with another Scriptural portion, “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning”.
The zonal pastor of RCCG from PH, Lara Joseph, (team lead to the burial) gave a short but exciting sermon laced with testimonies of her late parishioner, Celine Nwachukwu.
She explained why the burial had a theme: Repositioning to make heaven. She said she was a witness to the passage to death of Celine Nwachukwu and how she devoted her last days to reposition herself to make heaven. She cautioned those alive to ensure they repositioned their souls to make heaven like Big Mummy did.
She noted that a lot of people were worried about earthly things rather than focusing attention to God’s word and obeying same. “How many of these things and the wealth you are amassing will you go with?”, she queried.
She stated that in life whatever a man sows he will reap. She asked, “What kind of seed are you planting?”. And with many illustrations and Scriptural admonitions, Joseph admonished Christians to examine and re-examine their actions and lifestyles so as to reposition for heaven.
Life of the ‘Shoe That Never Pinches’
The late Celine Chidimma Onyewuchi-Nwachukwu was born almost 63 years ago to the humble family of the late Romanus Emeduobi Onyewuchi of Okwu-Nwegbu in Nguru, Aboh-Mbaise Local Council Area of Imo State, Nigeria. Soon, her dad began to call her ‘Ozugwo’, a rare snake that hardly bites and only bites if something is strangely wrong. This was due to her calm and harmless disposition. This shows that anybody that makes her an enemy must have his/her head examined. Her husband was to confirm this with another name, ‘The Shoe That Never Pinches’.
Celine had her schooling and upbringing in many places starting in her hometown (Mbaise), and then Okpala (where I met her in her Primary 5), and finally in Enugu. She was one of the best graduating students in the old commercial school system and later attended advanced Administrative Studies in Makurdi to qualify for senior positions in public institutions.
She worked in many places including Tony Bros West Africa (Aba) and Dubic (Aba) before marriage took her to Makurdi, Benue State, where she worked in many more places before ending up at the Federal University of Agriculture (Makurdi) as a project-based ICT staff. It was illness in the 5th month of her last pregnancy that terminated that career, but God spared her life, which we considered a bigger bonus.
The ‘Shoe That Never Pinches’ was immediately blessed in marriage with two boys and two girls: Obinna, Akunna, Nwanyinna, and Obioha.
In all her sojourn on earth, Celine was dearly loved by her parents, her marital home, other women, her church community, and all those who came across her. She does not seek evil for anyone. She lived (and still lives) a straight life.
Her most outstanding contribution is in family building and unity. She incubated all her husband’s family like hers, and is the mother to them. That is why she was named ‘Number One’ by the other wives. They obey and cherish her in all ramifications. They have continued to gnash their teeth and grieve over her temporary departure.
Celine melted into her husband’s heart and life even before she was married; 11 years they knew each other before marriage. She is her husband’s number one supporter, fan, prayer-backer, adviser, and friend. Nothing can separate this, not even Mr Death. She implicitly trusts her husband to do what is right at all times, and she has been his source of inspiration, the only one that can make him do what he never wants to do.
Illness:
Celine has conquered death by dying. Death came on July 22, 1994, in Makurdi when she was in coma for two weeks and four days while giving birth under oedema and eclampsia to her last child. The consultant surgeon had declared: ‘Baby gone, mother soon to go’, but both mother and child made it, because God said no and reversed it. She has lived to November 12, 2023 (almost 30 years after) when it pleased the Lord to summon her home. So, she is not dead, but has gone to continue her worship to God and supplication for her family. Already, the signs are everywhere.
Celine loves her family and friends and they love her. Her legacies are clear and intact. They will love her forever! Amen.
