 |
Otieno's Hill (Got Regea)
Zablon named his son Otieno after Zablon's grandfather, Otieno, who conquered the hills of Regea in the early 19th century.
|
Click on the pictures (below) to enlarge
|
|
|
|
|
|
Quotes #1
|
Quotes #2
|
Quotes #3
|
Quotes #4
|
1969 letter
|
1969 letter
|
1970 Ph.D. dedication
|
Video: Kenya - The Early Years
Video: Coming to America
Video: Augustana College (Sioux Falls)
Video: University of Wyoming
Staring at the Nyanza Sun is more than a family memoir. It is a historical document that preserves 500 years of Luo/Kenyan history.
PERSONS OF HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE IN KENYA (sample):
Ramogi Ajwang’: Luo leader in the 16th century.
Luanda Magere: powerful Luo warrior.
Chief Odera Akang’o: famous Luo chief of Gem in Nyanza Province.
Dr. Wellington Aruwa: One of Kenya’s first African doctors (neighbor of Odenyo family - see information below).
Benaiah Apolo Ohanga: The first African Government Minister in the colonial government (neighbor of Odenyo family - see information below).
Ibrahim Awour Mango & Hilda Anyango Mango: Leaders in the “Roho” spiritual movement (Uncle and Aunt to Dr. Odenyo).
Reverend Festo H. Olang: The first African archbishop of the Anglican Church in Kenya (a frequent guest in the Odenyo home).
Alfayo Kodhe: Subchief (mlango) of Got Regea.
Simeon Nyende: Pastor of St. Peter’s Church in Got Regea (a relative of Dr. Odenyo).
Simeon Odera: Choirmaster in St. Peter’s Church in Got Regea, teacher at Luanda Primary School (husband to maternal Aunt of Dr. Odenyo.
Bishop Daniel Omolo (of Maseno West): Headmaster of Dr. Odenyo (husband to maternal Aunt of Dr. Odenyo).
Washington Omondi: co-composer of the Kenyan national anthem (in-law to Dr. Odenyo).
Nicholas Otieno: teacher to Dr. Odenyo in Kisii High School, PhD in Botany from Cornell University in Ithaca, USA, taught at the University of Nairobi, and became a United Nations official.
Samuel Onyango Ayodo: Minister for Tourism and Wildlife (teacher to Dr. Odenyo in Kisii High School).
Waruhiu Itote (aka “General China”) & Field Marshall Dedan Kimanthi: Leaders in the Mau Mau rebellion.
Nyandika Maiyoro: First Kenyan to win in an Olympic marathon, trained in Kisii.
Stephen Machooka: First Kenyan to compete and shatter athletic records in the U.S. collegiate system.
Michael G. Okeyo & Andronico O. Adede: Kenyan diplomats, high school classmates of Dr. Odenyo.
Winston Ayoki: Principal of Ramogi Institute of Advanced Technology (RIAT), member of parliament, high school classmate of Dr. Odenyo.
Akich Okola: Attorney in Toronto, Canada, Legal Advisor with Kenyan Government, high school classmate of Dr. Odenyo (member of Gem Student Union).
Dennis Akumu: Mombasa Dockworker Leader, associate of Tom Mboya. Akumu was nearly arrested in 1960 by Police Officer Amos Odenyo.
Peter Poole: the only white person in Kenyan history to be executed (1960) for killing an African.
Argwings Kodhek: Kenya’s first lawyer (met with Amos Odenyo on August 26, 1961).
Achieng Oneko: Freedom fighter and politician.
Pio Gama Pinto: Journalist, Trade Unionist, and Freedom Fighter. Murdered.
Tom Mboya: Kenyan minister responsible for “Kennedy Airlifts.” Murdered.
Josiah Mwangi Kariuki: Minister of Parliament, tortured and murdered.
Robert Ouko: Foreign Affairs Minister, tortured and murdered.
Jomo Kenyatta, Daniel Arap Moi, Mwai Kibaki: First three presidents of Kenya.
Oginga Odinga: First Vice President of Kenya.
Raila Odinga: Former political prisoner and second Prime Minister of Kenya.
INSTITUTIONS/EVENTS OF HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE (sample):
· Luo migration into Kenya, history of the Jokagola in Got Regea.
· Christian Missionary Society – Maseno (see photographs below).
· Anglican Church of Kenya/St. Peter’s Church in Got Regea.
· “Roho” and “Johero” churches in Kenya.
· Princess Elizabeth, 1952 visit to Kenya.
· Karadha Cooperative in Got Regea.
· African Native Courts.
· 1954 Swynnerton Plan for agricultural development and land registration.
· Luanda Dudi School.
· Kisii High School.
· Mau Mau Rebellion.
· Colonial Police of Kenya/Kiganjo Police Academy.
· Tom Mboya Airlifts/Kennedy Airlifts.
· Maendeleo ya Wanawake (Women’s Development Groups).
Maseno School Photographs
Alfayo Kodhe ("Sub-Chief" of Got Regea)
Alfayo Kodhe was a distant Uncle to Zablon Sangoro Odenyo (Kodhe’s father, Aruwa, was a brother to Odenyo’s grandfather, Otieno). Alfayo Kodhe was among the first in Nyanza to be selected for administrative positions during the early days of British colonialism in Kenya. Kodhe served as a “tribal policeman” between 1911 and 1916. He then advanced to Got Regea “Headman” (similar to Sub-Chief) from 1916 until 1922, and carried similar positions of authority from 1938 until 1956. Due to age and a bad foot, during the last several years of service Kodhe relied upon his son Okwata to make the rounds in the village and report back to him. Kodhe retired on November 25, 1956. Kodhe is the father to Wellington Aruwa (see below).
Zablon Sangoro Odenyo (1899 - 1969)
Zablon Sangoro Odenyo was born around 1899 in the village of Got Regea, in Kenya. Odenyo became an orphan by his teenage years, and older kinsmen in the village sought to take away much of Odenyo’s land-inheritance. Odenyo’s fortunes were supposedly undermined when he was sent away from Got Regea to Maseno to be educated under the Christian Missionary Society (few village elders valued Western education at the turn of the century).
However, it is written in Matthew 21:42 that “the stone that the builders refuse will always be the cornerstone.” Odenyo’s training at Maseno provided him with valuable literacy skills that enabled him to become a printer (this was an invaluable trade as Kenya shifted into a more modern society). Odenyo became an Anglican evangelist and lay-minister in Saint Peter’s Church in Got Regea. In the early 1930s Odenyo became Headmaster of Luanda Primary School, educating future Kenyan scholars such as Bethwell Ogot. Odenyo retired from education in 1947 to become a judge, then President, of the African Native Courts in Ramula.
Odenyo was a notable and accomplished leader in Western Kenya for over four decades. In many ways, he became the cornerstone of his community, setting an example that is still recognized today.
Zablon Sangoro Odenyo, retiring from position of Headmaster, Luanda Primary School in 1947, and receiving ceremonial gifts (spear, shield, elder's stool).
|
1954, Zablon Sangoro Odenyo calls witness to court in Ramula
|
1956, Zablon Sangoro releases prisoner
|
1958, Zablon Sangoro Odenyo adjudicates land disputes
|
1959 petition to name Zablon Sangoro Odenyo Assistant Chief of North Gem, Nyanza
|
B.A. OHANGA (1913 - 1985) "Kenya’s First African Minister"
Benaiah Apolo (“B.A.”) Ohanga was born in Got Regea in 1913. He studied at Maseno (Central School) from 1928-1931, and Alliance High School from 1931-33. B.A. Ohanga qualified for university studies but was recruited back to Maseno as a tutor and teacher trainer.
From 1946 to 1947, B.A. Ohanga was Secretary in the Language Committee of all Nilotic Languages.
In 1947, he was nominated to the Legislative Council. He became the first African in Kenya to hold a Cabinet post when he rose to the position of Minister for Community Development and Rehabilitation in 1954, a post he held until March 1957.
B.A. Ohanga then joined the Civil Service as an Education Officer, and later moved to the Ministry of Home Affairs where he was in charge of approved schools. During his tenure in the Civil Service, he was very active in the Trade Union Movement and served as President of the Civil Servants Union and first President of Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU). Upon his retirement from the Civil Service in 1972, he became Chief Executive of the Kenya Senior Servants Association until 1975.
In the course of his career he visited many foreign countries, including India, Germany, Great Britain, and the United States of America. After 1975, B.A. Ohanga dedicated his time to family, farming, church, and community matters.
In 1986, B.A. Ohanga was honored by the President of Kenya who conferred on him the distinguished Order of the Grand Warrior of Kenya. B.A. Ohanga passed away in 1992. In honor of his memory and service, the village of Got Regea named its secondary school “B.A. Ohanga Memorial Secondary School.”
Dr. Wellington Alfayo Kodhe Odhiambo Aruwa (1920 – 1985)
Dr. Wellington Aruwa was a historical figure from Got Regea, Nyanza. He is widely accredited for being the first Kenyan African to solely publish an article in a medical journal:
“A case of relapsing fever in a child of nine days old”
East African Medical Journal, April 27, 1950.
Wellington Aruwa was born in Got Regea on November 9th, 1920, the eldest child of Alfayo Kodhe (village chief) and his first wife, Ruth Waha. Wellington’s mother died when he was three years old, and his grandmother (surrogate mother) died when he was twelve. Despite a far from ideal childhood, Wellington went on to become one of Kenya’s very first medical doctors, through sheer hard word and perseverance.
Wellington was educated at Got Regea Primary School, Maseno School (1934-1936) and Alliance High School (1937-1940). These were excellent educational institutions which educated rather than simply schooled, and undoubtedly played an important role in Wellington’s formation. He often mentioned his first Headmaster at Alliance High School, Edward Carey Francis, as having been a positive influence on his life. Also often mentioned for having influenced and changed his life for the better were Japuonj Zablon Sangoro Odenyo, Martin Okeyo, as well as William Major, an assistant of Carey Francis, and to a lesser extent, Gilbert Owuor (brother to Zablon Odenyo). Wellington went on to Makerere College in Uganda for his medical education (1941-1947). Later in his career, he was to undergo further training in London, Cardiff and finally, at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in the United Kingdom, where he obtained his Diploma in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (DTM & H) in 1960. In 1962, he obtained his Diploma in Public Health (DPH) from the same institution.
Wellington married his first wife, Jane Margret Awuor, in Got Regea Anglican Church in 1949. In reminiscence of his wedding, Wellington would often mention two people - his uncle Daniel Dindi and cousin Zablon Sangoro Odenyo, who donated the bull and sheep respectively, for his wedding celebrations. A Luo saying goes that ‘wat iriwo kod osiep,’ which loosely translates into ‘kinship must be strengthened by friendship.’ This has been the case between the families of the two cousins, Wellington Aruwa and Zablon Sangoro Odenyo, over the years. It is therefore no coincidence that Japuonj Zablon Odenyo and Mama Dina Odenyo were Godparents to Wellington and Jane’s eldest child, while Wellington was Godfather to one of the Odenyo boys! In 1955, Wellington married his second wife, Esther Opolo, a public health nurse from Sakwa.
Dr. Wellington Aruwa worked for the Kenya Government from January 20th, 1948 to May 5th, 1969. His first position after graduation was as Assistant Medical Officer in Nakuru District. Similar positions followed in Londiani, Mombasa and Nairobi, before he proceeded to the United Kingdom as a Scholar on Tuberculosis. During a six-month period, he visited several chest hospitals in London and Cardiff. The exposure and knowledge so gleaned was to prove extremely useful for his work in Nyanza Province later on. On his return from the United Kingdom, Wellington was posted to Nyanza Province, where he worked at the Nyanza General Hospital from 1955 to 1960. During this period, he did a great deal of work on pulmonary tuberculosis, in addition to his primary work. Wellington obtained his DTM & H in 1960, and this marked his departure from clinical medicine to administration. There followed a year as Medical Officer of Health (MOH), Tana River District, and two years as Medical Officer of Health, Kilifi District. On his return from the United Kingdom in 1963, Wellington was posted to Kisumu as Provincial Medical Officer, Nyanza Province. After a short stint in this position, he was transferred to Headquarters in Nairobi where he was Assistant Director of Medical Services, in charge of hospitals. He retired from government service in 1969, after a massive stroke. Although this slowed him down considerably, he went on to build a private practice in Siaya Town, which undoubtedly made a significant contribution to the health of the people in Siaya and surrounding areas.
On a more personal note, Dr. Aruwa was not all work. He was a family man who was fanatically committed to the proper nutrition, health and education of his family and the community in general. He loved reading (he had a great collection of classical books) and classical music and jazz (he had an amazing collection of both). He loved to dance and practiced big game hunting as well as deep sea fishing.
(Information/Picture: courtesy of Aruwa family, July 7, 2012).
JANE MARGRET AWUOR ARUWA (1924 - 1998) – An educator who lived her profession
Jane Margaret Awuor Aruwa was born on February 5th, 1924, the fourth child of Rev. George Samuel Okoth and Mrs. Grace Leah Ogony Okoth of Alego Kaluo. Her early childhood was spent at Hono Mission, founded and run by her father, a church leader. Jane and her future husband, Wellington Odhiambo Aruwa, first met at Hono in 1942, and got married at Got Regea Anglican Church in 1948, in a Christian wedding solemnized by the Rev. Simeon Nyende, the groom’s paternal uncle and a good friend and colleague of the bride’s father. A bit of family trivia – the bride dropped and lost her wedding ring on the day, but it was found and returned to her by a little boy (one of her new nephews) – Robert Okwatta Odenyo. In Robert’s own words, this incident marked the beginning of a special bond between the two! Jane and Wellington were blessed with six children.
Jane was educated at Hono Primary, Ng’íya Girls and Ambira Intermediate School (she was the only girl in her class at Ambira). She went on to Teacher Training College at Jeans School Kabete (which later evolved into the Kenya Institute of Administration). After teaching at several primary and intermediate schools in various parts of the country, Jane proceeded to Anne’s College Oxford in the United Kingdom, where she graduated with a Higher National Diploma in Home Science and Education, graduating as the “Best Overseas Student” in her year.
Jane’s prolific and extremely rich professional life was firmly anchored in education, where she started off as a Primary and Intermediate school teacher in various parts of the country, including Luanda Intermediate and Kisumu Union Schools. On her return from Oxford, she became Community Development Officer (Kisumu District), and Principal of the Home-craft Training Centre. This was a demanding but incredibly fulfilling position, as she was able to practice her two loves – educating while interacting with a wide variety of people, not only in Nyanza, but in other parts of the country, as well as international visitors. After the family moved to Nairobi, Jane worked briefly as a dietician at The Nairobi Hospital, before moving to Highridge Teachers Training College. Highridge was special, because it enabled her to impact education at the teacher training level, which meant that she ultimately touched a much greater number of students. On the family front, it allowed her to spend the school holidays with her growing children. After several years at Highridge, Jane decided to exploit yet another aspect of her prolific background, when she joined the East African Railways as a Catering Inspector. There followed a challenging but professionally rewarding phase, with frequent travel throughout East Africa, as well as catering at events and international meetings. Jane ended her prolific professional life in the classroom where she started, with positions at St. Francis Girls Rangála and finally, Ngíya Girls before her retirement in 1987.
Throughout her life, whether in the private or professional arena, Jane Aruwa lived her teaching profession.
(Information/Picture: courtesy of Aruwa family, July 7, 2012).
Jane was educated at Hono Primary, Ng’íya Girls and Ambira Intermediate School (she was the only girl in her class at Ambira). She went on to Teacher Training College at Jeans School Kabete (which later evolved into the Kenya Institute of Administration). After teaching at several primary and intermediate schools in various parts of the country, Jane proceeded to Anne’s College Oxford in the United Kingdom, where she graduated with a Higher National Diploma in Home Science and Education, graduating as the “Best Overseas Student” in her year.
Jane’s prolific and extremely rich professional life was firmly anchored in education, where she started off as a Primary and Intermediate school teacher in various parts of the country, including Luanda Intermediate and Kisumu Union Schools. On her return from Oxford, she became Community Development Officer (Kisumu District), and Principal of the Home-craft Training Centre. This was a demanding but incredibly fulfilling position, as she was able to practice her two loves – educating while interacting with a wide variety of people, not only in Nyanza, but in other parts of the country, as well as international visitors. After the family moved to Nairobi, Jane worked briefly as a dietician at The Nairobi Hospital, before moving to Highridge Teachers Training College. Highridge was special, because it enabled her to impact education at the teacher training level, which meant that she ultimately touched a much greater number of students. On the family front, it allowed her to spend the school holidays with her growing children. After several years at Highridge, Jane decided to exploit yet another aspect of her prolific background, when she joined the East African Railways as a Catering Inspector. There followed a challenging but professionally rewarding phase, with frequent travel throughout East Africa, as well as catering at events and international meetings. Jane ended her prolific professional life in the classroom where she started, with positions at St. Francis Girls Rangála and finally, Ngíya Girls before her retirement in 1987.
Throughout her life, whether in the private or professional arena, Jane Aruwa lived her teaching profession.
(Information/Picture: courtesy of Aruwa family, July 7, 2012).
KISII HIGH SCHOOL MAGAZINE (1960)
Table of Contents
|
School Staff
|
Part 1 of 2
|
Part 2 of 2
|
Part 1 of 2
|
Part 2 of 2
|