ALVIRA EWURABENA AMOONUA TANOH - A SHORT BIOGRAPHY

(26th June 1934 - 7th February 2021)
Our dearly beloved mother, sister, aunt, cousin and friend, known as “Alvie” or Ewurabena to the many who were close to her, was born on June 26th 1934 to Halim J Massry, a Lebanese business man from Mreijat in the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon, and Sophia Ewuradwoa Acquah- Moses of Cape Coast, Gold Coast Colony, an entrepreneur in her own right.

She is survived by her two sisters, Anita (Mama Anita) and Justina (Auntie Baaba). Fortuitously she was blessed in her last years through the effort of her grandson, Christopher, to discover and reunite with her younger brother Ghassan and her Massry cousins. Her other brothers through her mother Sophia were lost at birth and Yusuf on her fathers side also predeceased her in recent times.

Alvira was blessed with 4 delightful children of her own and several wonderful children of her husband’s, Emmanuel Kwesi Gyekye Tanoh, whom she also considered her own to the very last.

Education & Marriage:

Alvira attended St Monica’s Primary and Middle School during the war years from

1940 to 1949, obtaining her Middle School Certificate and full scholarship to attend St Monica’s Secondary School in Asante – Mampong, from which she graduated in 1953, having passed her Cambridge Senior School Certificate Exams with ease.

By all accounts, she was a very capable and bright student academically, and a very keen participant in extracurricular activity’s. Theater and school drama presentations were her first love. She had occasion to star in many plays including some of the Shakespearean classics. Till the day that she passed on, she could recite from memory all of her lines in these plays (As You Like It, Macbeth, The Merchant of Venice etc ) and every other character’s lines perfectly, and without skipping a line or missing a beat. This was a marvel to behold!

Her love of theater and the arts would inspire her participation in later life to join her sisters, Anita and Justina as actors in the production of some of her elder sister’s (Efua Sutherland)plays at the famed drama studio in Accra.

After graduating from St Monica’s, she obtained work at the Ministry of Education, Kinbu, Accra as a clerical officer.It was at Kinbu that she met her future husband, Kwesi Gyekye Tanoh. Theirs was a whirlwind romance. It was by no means an easy marriage but like all love, it had its moments of joy and laughter and the gift of the 4 children they had together - Kobena Obuadum, Ewuraefua Apeaa, Tanokuma, and Gyekye.

Work :

She served her time well in education but chose after a few years to follow her heart by applying to the National Radio Service, where she obtained employment as a radio announcerin 1958 (coincidentally the plans to set up a national radio service in the Gold Coast Colony were adopted in the year of her birth in 1934 - perhaps she did have the ear of the Lord after all)

Like many young idealists of the time, her husband, Kwesi Gyekye, had been an ardent supporter of Nkrumah’s Independence Movement. Sadly like many of his generation, the advent of PDA and the movement of Nkrumah’s rhetoric and actions to a “ monolithic State control “ position, rather than a Democratic Socialist world view, alienated a broad section of the intelligentsia. The passing of the Preventive Detention Act, in their view, confirmed their worst fears of a coming dictatorship. This led to disillusionment and eventual opposition to their hitherto nationalist hero Kwame Nkrumah and his CPP.

In 1962, barely a few months after Tanokuma was born, she followed her husband into exile, having received an urgent tip off of his imminent arrest. They travelled under cover of darkness, stealing successfully across the Lome Border and thence to Lagos via Cotonou, thereafter crossing the Atlantic to the United Kingdom by passage on the steam boat service of Elder Dempster Lines.

Years of Exile 1962 - 1968

Life in exile was harsh, cruel and unforgiving, both financially and emotionally for her and her young family. She found separation from her children heartbreaking. Her mother and sisterswhom she had left behind in Ghana were never far from her thoughts.

Alvira was not, however, one to be immobilized by misfortune or hardship. She quickly found work as a freelance presenter for BBC Africa Service from 1962 to 1968. Her colleagues and supervisors were among the ablest of BBC’s “ Africa Hands”, Frank Barber and Veronica Manoukian, who in no small measure contributed immensely to her development as a broadcaster.

She was a regular contributor, host and narrator of the popular “London Fanfare”a women’s magazine program, “Ghana Calling” and “For Parents and Teachers”, an educational and family program.

All of these were very popular programs in the BBC African Service in the 60’s, at a time when the BBC was transitioning (with some difficulty) from being an empire radio broadcaster to one that had to contend with the forceful rise of the new independent African nation states and the nationalist and anti-imperialist sentiments that came with these phenomenal events in world history.

She occasionally presented for the BBC’s domestic radio services and participated in BBC Television programs including feature documentary’s such as “Remaking Africa”. Frank Barber wrote in his testimonial for Alvira the following in September of 1968:

“Mrs Tanoh also contributed numerous features to other programs in the Africa Services,
and with her professional approach and unfailing reliability, was a most valued
contributor ..”

During this unsettling period in her life she found time to become a proudmother again, giving birth to Gyekye, her last biological child in 1964.

Not resting on her laurels and with fierce optimism, that she would return to Ghana sooner than later, Alvira undertook a professional broadcasters course covering presentation, news reading, script reading, public speaking and ancillary courses. This was part of her determined preparation for her eventual return to Broadcasting House in her beloved Ghana. She successfully completed these courses at Guignard Vodravision in London in November 1966.

Her final years in England were economically very difficult but with perseverance her boundless optimism was rewarded, when she at last returned to Ghana in 1968 with Gyekye and all of her three other biological children who had joined her from Ghana in the latter part of 1964. Throughout this period she was in constant touch with her father.

GBC Till Retirement

Alvira restarted her life in Ghana with her characteristic gusto and love of life. Armed with her references and the evidence of her very productive work with BBC, and of course her impeccable record with the National Service as an announcer, she was welcomed back into her GBC family in 1969.

During her second stint at broadcasting she moved from radio to television, serving as a station announcer, presenter and editor in the Film Preview Unit, and in many other roles, in which she excelled, finally retiring as a Senior Production Director ( Television).

She was thrilled to be in the midst of broadcasting greats such as Vincent Assisi, John Hammond, David Ghartey Tagoe, Robert Owusu , Edward Faakye, Emelia Elliot, Genevieve Nylander, and of course her dear friend Vida Koranteng Asante and numerous others. Others who were not in front of the cameras but made Broadcasting tick in its hey day, including Patience Thompson, Mrs Lili Nketsia, Mrs J Gyampo, there are simply too many to recount, many of whom she had started out with in radio and who had, by the time of her arrival, migrated to the more glamorous environs of television.

Alvira was privileged to serve under several Director Generals including the late Colonel Assasie and Kwame Karikari who was Director General at the time of her retirement.

Ewurabena came from a family of strong activist women who were undeterred by the obstacles and barriers placed before women by both traditional and western culture. Her innate self confidence and her belief in the equal capacity of women in all aspects of earthly endeavour was best demonstrated by her eleven year stint as President of the GBC Ladies Association.

She and her colleagues worked tirelessly to build a formidable and respected women’s group, whose purview was on matters affecting the welfare of women in and out of the workplace. This association has become a celebrated example to others and would be the precursor to many groups of this nature in both the public and private sector.

For her exemplary leadership, she was honored by her “Ladies” with an honorary plaque andcitation which read in part :

“ you served with enthusiasm and passion . We will forever cherish your good deeds..”

The leadership of the association graciously featured her in a widely televised documentary which extolled her seminal achievements as its head. A gesture that touched her deeply.

The Church:

A biography of Alvira cannot be written without recalling her earnest and life long devotion to the Anglican Church, in particular, and the wider community of the followers of Christ.

Her upbringing at home and in the care of nuns at St Monica’s helped to fashion and mould her considerable faith. It was this abiding faith in the redemptive power of Christ, as an apostle of justice on earth and beyond, which forged her eternal optimism and infectious belief that things can only get better and that Christian love always would triumph over evil.

She never gave up, even in moments of despair, because she believed, quite plainly, that God was by her side and would see her through.

It is with this conviction that she participated in the founding of several churches of the Anglican Faith including St Monica’s (Bubuashie), St Augustine’s (Dansoman), and St 
Matthews (Mandela, New Bortianor).

She was also a devout member of the Guild of Good Shepherd and served a stint as Master Shepherd. Her role as a Chorister, Prayer Group Founder and Convener will be remembered fondly by the supervising clergy and congregations of St Monica’s and St Augustine’s.

For these exemplary efforts and record of devoted service, she was bestowed a Bishop’s Badge of Honor, which she will carry with her on her onward journey to meet the Christ, in lasting testimony to her service here on earth.

Family:

Loving, Vivacious, Caring, Just, Passionate, Fearless, Devoted, Welcoming - these words come to mind in any description of what Alvira Ewurabena gave to and meant to all of us, namely her father, mother, sisters, brother, children, grandchildren, friends, colleagues, and wider family, during her eventful life.



She was more than welcoming to her in-laws and was protective of the women, in particular, in an unspoken pact of mutual solidarity. She was a fan of Karen, Angela, Ernest, Eibhilin, Millie, and her darling Barbara’s spouses. Mr. Goodhead a more recent addition was warmly andequally welcomed. She kept a relationship with each of them, where possible, regardless of the fortunes of any particular marriage.

A special place in her heart was reserved for her grand children - Nii, Tasha, Christopher, Arelo and James and the many offspring of her wider circle of children. Like many grandmothers, she considered their arrival as her seminal achievement.

Though an apostle of discipline, she never failed to convey the deep love and affection for her children and grandchildren.

Alvira was blessed with steadfast friends, who in their own devotion to her, buoyed her spirits in the toughest of times and were a source of countless tales of expressed love, humor and the endless glow of true friendship.

Notable among these were the Budu-Arthur Sisters of Esikado, Sekondi - Aunties, Anna, Bronya, and Akoto. Together with her own beloved blood sisters, these were truly family.

Ewurabena also had a flourishing life with her neighborhood family in Dansoman till the very end. She was a founding member of the local housing association. They were her otherextended family. As one of the original settlers in the area, she became a calling point for new comers and a fount of advice and help. It is here that she reconnected with Auntie Adoley, forming a life long and enduring friendship.

Alvira’s life has truly been a enriching journey. She rose above her difficult circumstances togive a life of genuine service to her children, family, friends, colleagues and country.

Above all she lived the very essence of the Christian creed that had been her beacon, summons and call to faith, She Truly Loved Her Neighbor as Herself.

She departed this life and started her onward journey 65 years and approximately 3 hours from the birth of her first born in the early hours of Sunday 7th February 2021.

She went full circle to her maker.

“Grandma Mountain” , “Alvie” ,Ewurabena , Mama

Nantsew Yie , A Kyere Kwan Pa. Ye Da Wo Ase Da Da.

Mamma Da Yie.