TRIBUTE TO THE LATE MRS. CATHERINE T LUBEMBE-NJOKA FROM THE EXAMINATION ADMINISTRATION SECTION
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30th March 2021 was a dark, dark day for the team in Exams Admin as it must have been for all those who knew and loved Mrs Njoka, or as we fondly called her ‘Madam.”
With every day since then, God has eased the pain, confusion and emptiness that came with her passing.
Today, we join hands with all who mourn her - to celebrate a life truly well lived. We were privileged to know her, work under her and alongside her, 5 days a week for many years.
She forged deep and rich relationships with us, even as she touched each life differently. When we met to remember her, this is part of all what the team members had to say:
‘We will forever cherish the beautiful moments we shared. Mrs. Njoka appreciated hard work and ensured that we celebrated our success as a team. Who can forget the sweet cakes she brought to celebrate at the end of every exam period, and- sometimes for no reason at all – if only just to get us together for fellowship and prayer and not to forget – laughter?
We remember her firmness and her desire for excellence – how she made us repeat a task until it was well done. She demanded the best of us as individuals and as a team. She saw potential and pushed each of us to grow in our areas of gifting. We did not always measure up to her expectations of us…and when we failed to, she was quick to correct, never shying away from controversy, but steering us back in the right direction with so much love.
We will miss her easy way with us, and how she made a bad day better by listening to our venting and our varied problems. She noticed if some one was sad and out of sorts and would gently call them out for some time alone with her. After listening, she would say ‘God will make a way.’ And then she made sure that she followed up after some time, just to know we were doing better. No problem was too big or small, no person more important than others. Everyone mattered to her. When alone with her, she made you feel like you were the most important person in the world.
She had little nick names for most of us – There was some one she called ‘Director’, another ‘Governor…yet another ’Operations Manager. She knew what each one was about and what made us unique. It is this uniqueness that she gave a name, and in many ways, that name defined the path down which she steered each one….
In our Section, sometimes work overwhelms, stress sets in and relationships are strained. Tempers flare and people are short with each other. In moments like this in the years gone by, Madam would walk into a room and within seconds, everyone was laughing. Oh how she knew how to ease tension and encourage the team to focus on results!
Oh how she knew how to make us laugh at ourselves when we made silly mistakes, forgive ourselves and then move on!
Oh how she made each one of us feel special and loved – weaknesses, warts and all not withstanding!
Oh how she emptied herself and passed on everything she knew to us – she has left us well equipped as a team and individually to carry on and build on the firm foundation she laid!
Oh how she delegated with ease, trusting us to make decisions and backing us up when we did – and how confident she has left us to make firm decisions without fear!
Oh how she fought for her team whenever she needed to, without apology – and how we celebrate the doors she opened for us that will forever stay open!
This we will miss most of all…..
At the end of the day, she would gather her bags and stand at the office entrance and ask, “My people….permission to fall out?”
And we would say ‘Permission Granted!”
Had she asked to fall out as she did on 30th March 2021, our answer would have been a resounding ‘Permission Not Granted.’
But we acknowledge that God is Sovereign and His will always comes to pass. He willed to call her home and so we accept her passing with pain and hope, because we know we will see her again.
To her family and friends, we grieve with you. Thank you for lending her to us 9 hours every working day for that last few decades. Our prayer is that when we sent her back to you every evening, that she was encouraged, built up and filled with expectation for the next day!
We share the words of a Poem by Linda Ellis
“I read of a man who stood to speak at the funeral of a friend
He referred to the dates on the tombstone, from the beginning...to the end
He noted that first came the date of birth and spoke the following date with tears,
But he said what mattered most of all Was the dash between those years
For that dash represents all the time that they spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved them know what that little line is worth
For it matters not, how much we own, the cars...the house...the cash.
What matters is how we live and love and how we spend our dash.
So, think about this long and hard: are there things you'd like to change?
For you never know how much time is left, that can still be rearranged.
If we could just slow down enough to consider what's true and real
And always try to understand the way other people feel.
And be less quick to anger, and show appreciation more
And love the people in our lives like we've never loved before.
If we treat each other with respect and more often wear a smile,
Remembering this special dash might only last a little while,
So, when your eulogy is being read with your life's actions to rehash...
Would you be proud of the things they say about how you spent YOUR dash?”
For our beloved Madam, we know without a doubt that she would be proud of what all those who knew and loved her have been sharing about how she spent her dash – those 58 years between her birth and death.
May God grant her soul eternal peace and may she shine, sing and dance with the angels.
She has fought the good fight and finished her race! Glory be to God!