………I will surely miss my son who brought me to America -Aged Mother
Olusola Joshua Sowole recently passed on in an auto crash in Atlanta Georgia, United States of America. The 48-year-old man was a deacon in the Redeemed Christian Church of God in Atlanta. He was also a staff at United Parcel Service (UPS ) in Atlanta Georgia, United States. His sudden transition has left his immediate family devastated. Taiwo Abiodun, a freelance journalist who visited the mother of the deceased in Colorado, Denver, America gives a gripping account of the sudden transition of Olusola Sowole
The sad news of Deacon Olusola Joshua Sowole who died in an auto crash recently in Atlanta Georgia was shocking not only to the immediate family members, church members, and co-workers but also to his aged mother who is presently in America, preparing for her birthday when the tragedy struck.
One could read the agony of a mother on her face. The old woman whose hair is as white as snow was reading some marked Bible passages from her Apple iPad when this reporter visited.
She sighed intermittently, shook her head, and soliloquized. At a point, she stopped reading the Bible verses aloud, removed her reading glasses, and gazed at the wall.
‘ Do you mean I would not see my son again? Is this how life is supposed to treat me? It’s unfair. In my old age to have this type of bitter experience? I am in pain. I am in total sorrow. Why did death not take me away instead of my son? ”, she sobbed.
Her questions were more rhetorical. This reporter could only console her to take heart and that God knows the best. Once in a while her daughter, Abosede and her husband, Dayo whom she stayed with would come in to check on her and console the distraught septuagenarian in her room.
Joshua’s wife
The deceased’s wife, Rachel Bolade’s voice was laden with emotion as her voice was cracking while talking to this reporter. She was devastated. She said everything was still like a dream to her.
Narrating what happened, Rachael said ”I still cannot believe this tragedy. I was shocked beyond words. I cried and cried but my tears could not wake him up”.
She continued ” He worked as a Safety and Compliance Specialist at UPS and went to work around 2:30 am. On that fateful morning, I could recall that I received a call at 5 am from Grady Memorial Hospital that my husband was involved in a car accident. On getting to the hospital they broke the bad news to me. I saw his lifeless body lying as if he was asleep. His identity card was on him. Even when the accident happened his watch called 911, his watch also sent me a text message which he saved as Emergency Contact. His phone texted me that he was involved in an accident. I didn’t see the text until morning because I was sleeping when he left for work.”
Rachael said she had no premonition about his husband’s death adding however that she was told that he was hit by a driver who veered off his lane and collided with him ”it was reported that the other driver was said to have wrongly driven one way on the highway, facing my late husband who was rightly in his lane and this led to head -on- collision. It happened between 3; 00 am and 3:30 am. The remains of my late husband were interred in Resthaven of Memory, Decatur, Georgia ”.
She said there was no point bringing his remains back to Nigeria.
Police investigation
The police according to Rachael are still investigating the crash. She could not confirm if the driver was under the influence of drugs or alcohol while insisting that the case was with the Police.
She repudiated the idea that her husband could have been the one at fault. “My husband never smoked or taken alcohol since I knew him. He was a Deacon in the Redeemed Christian Church of God, FamilyPraise Chapel Decatur, Atlanta Georgia here. He was a mentor to many especially the Young Excited Soldiers(Y.E.S youth) ‘ and the young adults(Hydration team John 7;37)
Shocking news
Abosede, the older sister to the late deceased said ” the news was shocking. I called my Pastor to break the news to my mother who is living with me here in Colorado. I didn’t want an outsider to break the news to her so I called my pastor and some elders to come and talk to her.I even called those who know our movement”.
The mother of the late Deacon said” I called my late son on the 15th of August, We exchanged greetings and I asked after his welfare. We spoke till 10 o’clock in the evening until my daughter came to me. There were some of the congregation in his church who always sent me gifts. I asked after all his church members.
” I reminded him that they should not do anything elaborate for my birthday but to give me money to send to the needy in Nigeria. I even called his wife and told her not to send anything to me in December, the Christmas period but to send money to me to give to some Nigerians who are in need. I don’t know why the death did not take me away in place of my son while the ugly incident happened the following day, the 16th.
“On the 16th of August, my daughter did not call me. But my son-in-law, Dayo came to me, he asked what I would eat. When it was 9 pm my son-in-law asked me to go in, and later they systematically seized my phone. Suddenly I saw our church pastor who came unannounced, then many people were coming in, one after the other I asked what was the matter, and they then broke the ugly news to me, I am very very sad”
Profile of Joshua Sowole
Born on December 11, 1974, into the family of Johnson Adeoye Sowole and Cecelia Sowole in Ijebu-Isara. , Ogun State. The late Deacon was a graduate of LASU with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre Arts. He later relocated to Atlanta Georgia where he bagged his Masters in Business and Health care administration in South University, in June 2018. At the time of his passing away, he was a Safety and Compliance Specialist at UPS in Atlanta Georgia.. He was married to his heartthrob, Rachael who had two boys for him.
Tributes
A church member, Temiloluwa (who does not want her surname in print ) wrote” Pastor Joshua’s smile reached his eyes. There was something about him that quickly put people at ease. He got along so well with all age groups at church: the children, the teenagers, and the young adults especially. Most people would tell you about his warm hugs that gave comfort and encouragement.
God planted him at RCCG Family Praise Chapel. He was a father, mentor, and role model that God used to inspire us all to good works”.
Another Church member wrote in the tribute that ”Pastor Joshua was many things – he was our youth pastor, which is why many of us call him” Pastor Joshua, was a dedicated worker, an organizer, and a servant leader who impacted every area of this church.
“But we in the Drama Ministry had the honor and privilege of knowing him as a creative. person. Pastor Joshua was anointed by God with many talents: he was an Actor, Director, Writer, Host/Emcee. Comedian, Dancer, Singer, Producer, and Cinematographer” ,
Omenka Nwachukwu a member of the Hydration Department wrote. One of his co-workers at UPS, Michelle ( surname withheld ) wrote ”I am honoured to have met and worked with you at UPS and I am saddened to hear of your passing. I will never forget how rewarding our conversations about Africa, God, work, and society were and I thank you for being both my brother and friend. I will most definitely say your name when I journey to Africa. Rest on my brother”,
Joshua Sowole’s elder sister, Abosede described him as a special human being who was caring. She said ” I will miss him, my family will miss him, the church will miss him . He was our family pillar. Our mother cries every day here in Colorado and we always console her. But what can we do? We cannot query God. He knows the best”.
Roland Ifedayo Kayode (JOKS) who is an inlaw to the deceased described the late Deacon as a man of impeccable character, in his words, he said ” My late brother-in-law was a Deacon in RCCG, he used to come here to see her mother in Colorado. He called his mother on the phone almost every day while my wife, his sister called him every day too.I am completely down and confused as I ask myself why do good people die early?”
Rachael’s tribute
In her tribute , Rachael his wife wrote ”Hmmmmmmm.Olusola mi I do not know how to write this but I will do my best .My dear husband you left us unexpectedly on August 16th after a ghastly car accident by a wrong-way driver . You were the only man I have ever known because when I met you in 1999.. I knew I need not to look any further. Thank you for the brief time we spent together as a family. You showed me what true love meant. You will never say no, whenever I asked you for anything . Thank you for embedding some such Godly principles into our boys….I remembered my 40th birthday, how you celebrated my birthday for five days with different activities and unforgettable surprises. Last week you asked me what I wanted for our wedding anniversary on September 1…Sweetheart if tears could bring you back you would have been back. I love you more than words could express. You were the true definition of a complete man. You made marrying you a bliss. Life can never be the same without my loving The sad news of Deacon Olusola Joshua Sowole who died in an auto crash recently in Atlanta Georgia was shocking not only to the immediate family members, church members,, I take solace in knowing that you are in the bosom of the Lord ”