By Chidiebere Eze
Your Grace,
Reverend Fathers & Sisters,
Your Royal Highness,
Ladies and Gentlemen
On behalf of the wife and daughter, Mrs. Chinenye Eze and Miss Chimamanda Eze, on behalf of the parents, brothers and sisters of Dr. Callistus Ejike Eze, and on behalf of the entire Ezeonyeasi family. I wish to express what we feel to you, to those who mourn with us today and to posterity. We loved him as a husband, father, son, brother, uncle and cousin. His journey on earth though short, we believe was destined and orchestrated by a higher hand, for a higher purpose and for that we are grateful. I am not here to extol my brother in death beyond what he was in life, but to register for posterity the essence of his life. Such that as we lay him to rest, we will honour him the way he lived, as an extraordinary exemplar of how to serve, how to love, how to care, how to excel, how to fall, how to persevere, how to rise.
“In character he was morally upright, in leadership he was just and fair, in comportment he was gentle and unassuming, in all he was the consummate gentleman. He earned the respect of his peers and his friends. He was honoured with various accolades, elected and appointed positions.”
Cal was born on October 12th, 1975, first surviving child and son to the family of Dr. Callistus James Eziokwu Eze and Mrs. Laetitia Nnennaya Ego Eze. Due to the unique circumstances of his birth, he was named Ejikeme -short for Ejighi ike eme ihe uwa. Remarkably apt in hindsight as it essentially described his personality and gentle nature. He took his first breath and began his life in Enugu - in the then East Central State, during reconstruction, while echoes of the war cannons were still a whistling memory. Destiny took the young family to the coastal city of Norfolk, Virginia in the United States where he learned to walk, talk and soon took his first steps in his storied educational journey. Leaving the cold winters of the American south in the summer of 1981, he returned with his parents to his birth city Enugu, in a new and enviable status of big brother to three younger siblings -Chidiebere, Ifeanyi and Ijeamaka.
Ejike, shortly after returning to Enugu resumed his academic journey at the Ekulu Primary
School GRA in Enugu. Drawing inspiration from his parent's dedication to education, he
embraced his studies with focus and determination beyond his age and excelled at all levels. In Ezu River Street in Abakpa, Ejike was a boisterous young man, well regarded and respected as a leader and was excellent in sports. As our older brother, he taught us and was an adept player of various games from Whot, Ludo, Draughts and he was always fair. In our dribble-and-score games, and in our street-to-street football competitions he was exceptional, we called him "Pele" and that says it all. At our local parish the St Theresa Catholic Church, Ejike was a volunteer teaching aide for basic catechism classes and was a guide for us younger ones through to the sacraments of Eucharist and Confirmation. At this young age, Ejike demonstrated remarkable leadership promise in many spheres. I recall Chukwuanugo Organization and Farms which was the brainchild of Ejike. A venture that successfully organized our young teenage friends towards engaging in more productive pass-times, specifically small-scale agriculture. He showed the rest of us how it was done, he walked the uncharted course and set the pace.
Cal left Enugu for his secondary school education at a school in the scenic green hills of Uturu, Okigwe. Following in his father's footsteps, he spent six years at a Catholic School for boys. In his case, he enrolled at the esteemed Marist Brothers Juniorate under the tutelage of the Catholic Religious Institute of Brothers. Rivalling the greatest geniuses of our time, Cal excelled in remarkable form as a student at all levels of his secondary school education. He was ranked the best student in his class from his first day in JS1 to his last day in SS3. He loved the Marist Brothers Juniorate and was honoured to serve as the Senior Prefect in his final year. In character he was morally upright, in leadership he was just and fair, in comportment he was gentle and unassuming, in all he was the consummate gentleman. He earned the respect of his peers and his friends. He was honoured with various accolades, elected and appointed positions. As a true son of Eziokwu bu Ndu, he was the embodiment of service and responsibility, duty and honour, hard work and excellence, and while we struggle to emulate his example his shoes would be difficult to fill.
Cal gained admission to study medicine at the University of Nigeria Nsukka after probably one of the most impressive WAEC and JAMB results in Nigerian history -certainly in our time. He hoped to become a Nephrologist following in his father's footsteps. His enthusiasm, hopes and plans were met by the catastrophe that was the Nigerian educational system in the Nineteen Nineties. Strikes, closures, and corruption conspired to disenchant, discourage and demoralize even the best. After obtaining his MBBS from University of Nigeria College of Medicine Enugu, he went to University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, Borno State for his Housemanship after which he moved to Jigawa Hospital Management Board in Jahun, Jigawa state for his NYSC. Thereafter, he gained employment in 2005 at Kupa Medical Center Ltd. Lagos where he found a mentor and following his instincts, discovered his calling in Aviation medicine. Further studies took him to Kings College (Royal Air Force Center for Aviation Medicine) in London where he obtained his Diploma in Aviation Medicine (DAvMed) in 2008. Upon return to Nigeria, following a certain turn of events, he eventually started work in 2010 at St Emmanuel Hospital (Clinic) and Maternity in Lagos, where adapting to the times, Cal explored occupational medicine as a Senior Medical Officer. In 2015, fortune smiled on him as the dream job he had prepared for, was finally his. Cal loved to work at the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority where his medical studies, his aviation medicine diploma and his love for aviation made him a unique asset to the ministry and to the country. He was indeed a Patriot, a true ‘Wa-Zo-Bia’!
Cal was a medical doctor who tended to the sick, comforted the weak and advised troubled
hearts. Yet his proudest accomplishment was his decision to ask for her hand in marriage. He
always had dreams of flying but it was in her he truly found his wings. Ugom (My Eagle), he
always called her. She said yes, and they took to the skies together over the wild streets of
Lagos. Even the luckiest of men spend a lifetime not knowing love so true and pure, so selfless as it was complete. Nenye, he loved you, he trusted you, he believed in you and he will watch over you till you meet again in a place where you can soar together on the wings of angels. The greatest joy of his life was born in July 2006, and he prayed to be as great a father as he was a husband. Mandy, he lived every day since for you. His hopes, his dreams, his sacrifices were all for you, your future and your happiness. He was your biggest champion and your greatest fan. When the cold nights come and when sadness tries to seize you, remember his smile, remember his voice, his strength. Listen to that voice in your heart. He will never leave you and remember his spirit is always with you.
Our days are often confronted by unexpected events, yet triumph only comes in confronting the unexpected, the wheat separated, the brave defined. So it was in the days of Anyika, in the days of Ezeonyeasi and so it is in our time. In the waning hours of that fateful Sunday, as
sudden as a lightning bolt, you slipped from the surly bonds of this earth into the warm embrace of the Almighty, unexpectedly and leaving us much too soon. While reason seeks to comprehend it, sentiment coldly calls for vengeance. While conscience may question its
morality and our Christian faith may advise forgiveness, truth must insist on justice -and we will have our justice either in this life or in the next. We will stand on the truth as long as we all shall live. Though we hurt we will not break, though we grieve we will not despair. We are unbowed, and we are not hopeless. For the Holy Book calls on us to mourn not as those without hope, but as believers in an eternal realm where truth and justice reign supreme.
Cal, bia nwokem, who will walk the uncharted paths ahead that the rest of us may see paved
roads? Who will brave the tempests that we may sail clear seas? Who will carry the banner and take the hits so the rest of us don't have to? Like a never-ending nightmare we keep trying to wake up. Alas, we must accept as fate would have it, that though you left the East to live in peace, you have now taken your final journey back to the East to rest in peace. You left us alone, but you have not left us with nothing. The fruit of your love dwells amongst us. Your gentle smile still comforts us. Your soft voice still reassures us. Your unjudging love and kindness will forever blossom in our hearts. Now you belong to heaven. In the arms of James and Martina Ezeonyeasi, good night gentle eagle, prince of Ezeonyeasi. In the embrace of Michael and Margaret Ezerioha, good night son of Eziokwu, pride of Ego, heart of Nenye, hero of Mandy. You have gone to join your ancestors. May you find eternal rest, may you find eternal peace. Good night eagle of our hearts. Till we meet again, may your gentle soul watch over us.
May your heartbeat eternally echo long after your footsteps fade in the sands of time.
hhh