Kenya Stockholm Blog

Report From Awuonda Requiem Mass

The requiem mass for the late Mr. Moussa Awuonda which took place at the Stockholm Sjukhem Chapel on February 20, 2009 began at 14:00. After welcoming people with a prayer, the presiding Swedish priestess gave Dr. James Wariaro the opportunity to present a eulogy, which he did excellently. He walked the listeners through Moussa’s struggles and successes from Kenya to Europe. He praised his great personality, humor, sarcasm, intelligence, rationality and the constant fight for justice through his writings. He explained how Moussa had begun writing a book about the life of African immigrants in Europe and hoped that somebody would continue and finish it later on.

The chapel which normally accommodates a maximum of forty congregants was jam-packed with fifty, from all walks of life with Awuonda’s casket in the middle. His youngest sister Ruth had arrived from Kenya to represent the family, while Ann-Marie, his girlfriend, was also around together with Taiwo his son, who had traveled from the US.

Although the mood was somber, it was spiced up by a man called Tauna from Namibia, who could intermittently play the kalimba (an African thumb piano) and a long horn that he turned around to produce a calming sound. He later said that he had known Moussa for many years and towards the end of his time, he would visit at the “sjukhem” to play this instrument, which was his favorite.

After the mass formality, the priestess allowed people to lay flowers on the coffin and say goodbye to Moussa. His family began and his sister Ruth asked people to sing “What a friend we have in Jesus” which was Moussa’s favorite and used to be sung by their mother whenever he visited Kenya. Thereafter, his former colleagues and friends paid tribute by sending him off in their own style and languages. Not a single photo was taken inside the chapel.

Meanwhile, Elizabeth (the owner of Elizabeth Salon) trooped in with Mrs. Hellen Opwapo, Ms. Florence Aroka, her sister Lenza and their brother Dan, and the chapel got charged as they paid homage by singing “Amazing Grace”. It was an emotional moment. Mrs. Opwapo got so moved and as she placed flowers on the coffin, tears rolled down her cheeks. She later told KSB that Awuonda was like her son and that his death had affected her deeply. Elizabeth later electrified the place with prayers. Thereafter, Tauna once again gave congregants the kalimba treat and the priestess ended the ceremony at 15:00. She deserves praise for conducting it perfectly. People then mingled briefly and said kind words to Moussa’s relatives and spouse.

Outside the chapel, his son reminded the mourners to move to a nearby “träfflokal” for refreshments. It was laughable to see some Kenyans arriving at 15:00; “Kenyan time”. At the refreshment venue, Taiwo paid a glowing tribute to his father and regretted that his twin brother Odongo could not join because of his busy schedule in the US. He had learnt a lot about Moussa during his one and a half month’s visit in Sweden last year and when he recently visited his ancestral home in Alego, Kenya.

During the mingling at the lokal, there were amazing stories from Moussa’s former colleagues at the school of journalism in Stockholm. One Swedish lady said that although she had not met Awuonda for many years, there was something telepathic during the day he died because his name came to her mind. She later followed the story at KSB. However, during their days at school, she was captivated by Moussa’s continuous fight for justice through writing, just like many others. Tauna the Namibian kalimba man, also said that their contacts were on and off over the years, but Moussa kept his African traditions alive by listening to such music.

Ms. Rose Adero who was quite emotional because of her close friendship with Moussa, narrated humorously how during Moussa’s ailment at the sjukhem, he would ask for traditional Luo dishes like “omena”, “obambla”, “apoth” or “sukuma wiki” which she had brought from Kenya recently. Moussa would often say: “Let’s go and pollute the environment” meaning that warming the dishes in the microwave would emit unpleasant smells that Swedes were not used to. She said that Moussa had put up a spirited fight and had come to terms with death towards the end.

Those who attended included Mr. Ben Ng’ang’a, Mr. Joshua Oyugi, Mrs. Catherine Kiboi from the Kenya Embassy in Stockholm, Brother Githuku wa Muirani, Mr. David Obanda from Uppsala, Mr. Joseph Goga, Mrs. Onyango Sumba, Mr. Ken Aroka, Ms. Susan Mukami, Mr. and Mrs. Oyuga Odada, Mrs. Wariaro and one of her daughters, Mr. John FM from Uganda, some Kenyan children who had accompanied their parents, Swedes, Latin Americans and Asians.

Dr. Jared Odero For KSB

February 22, 2009 Posted by makozewe | News & Analysis | 3 Comments