Bimbo Odukoya
Encyclopedia
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
and televangelist who was married to the founder of the Fountain of Life Church, Taiwo Odukoya.
Odukoya, often called "Pastor Bims," was a receiver of over 60 national and international awards for her contributions to nation building, the development of her country, Nigeria, and the West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
sub region, and for leadership as a woman of high moral standards and a role model to many. A writer, popular televangelist, highly sought conference speaker, youth mentor and marriage counsellor, she was one of several individuals chosen by Samsung
Samsung
The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...
to represent Nigeria in carrying the Olympic Torch in Athens
Athens
Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
at the 2004 Olympic Games. She died as a result of the Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145
Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145
Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145 was a scheduled flight between the Nigerian cities of Abuja and Port Harcourt .At about 14:08 local time on 10 December 2005, Flight 1145 from Abuja crash-landed on the runway at Port Harcourt International Airport. The plane, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 with 110...
crash.
Life
Odukoya studied HistoryHistory
History is the discovery, collection, organization, and presentation of information about past events. History can also mean the period of time after writing was invented. Scholars who write about history are called historians...
and Archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
at the University of Ibadan
University of Ibadan
The University of Ibadan is the oldest Nigerian university, and is located five miles from the centre of the major city of Ibadan in Western Nigeria...
where she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree.
She then began her career at the National Theatre in Lagos
Lagos
Lagos is a port and the most populous conurbation in Nigeria. With a population of 7,937,932, it is currently the third most populous city in Africa after Cairo and Kinshasa, and currently estimated to be the second fastest growing city in Africa...
. She soon resigned to minister full-time and from 1987 to 1999, she served as the head of the counselling department at the TREM under the direction of Bishop Mike Okonkwo. Pastor Bimbo married the founding pastor of the Fountain of Life Church, Pastor Taiwo Odukoya, and they had three children Tolu Odukoya ,(Pastor) Jimmy Odukoya and Tobi Odukoya.
At the time of her death, she was the associate senior pastor of The Fountain of Life Church and the President of Discovery for Women.
She was the host of Single and Married, a television program broadcast locally and internationally that deals with practical issues people face in marriage
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
s and relationships generally guided with biblical
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
principles. She was a well-known conference speaker within Nigeria and in some instances on the international level.
Death
Bimbo Odukoya boarded Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145
Sosoliso Airlines Flight 1145 was a scheduled flight between the Nigerian cities of Abuja and Port Harcourt .At about 14:08 local time on 10 December 2005, Flight 1145 from Abuja crash-landed on the runway at Port Harcourt International Airport. The plane, a McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32 with 110...
, bound for Port Harcourt from Abuja
Abuja
Abuja is the capital city of Nigeria. It is located in the centre of Nigeria, within the Federal Capital Territory . Abuja is a planned city, and was built mainly in the 1980s. It officially became Nigeria's capital on 12 December 1991, replacing Lagos...
. On 10 December 2005 the airliner crashed during landing at Port Harcourt International Airport
Port Harcourt International Airport
Port Harcourt International Airport is an international airport located in Omagwa, a suburb of Port Harcourt city in Rivers State, Nigeria. The airport consists of a single terminal with separate facilities for international and domestic flights...
; Bimbo survived the initial impact and died from injuries on 11 December 2005. Pastor Bimbo's messages were so powerful that even in death she still speaks.
Books Written
- How to Choose a Life Partner, by Bimbo Odukoya, Xulon Press (15 October 2005)
- Living Free, How to Handle Rejection by Bimbo Odukoya, Grace Springs Publishers, Inc., 2006
- Living Free, Overcoming Masturbation by Bimbo Odukoya, Grace Springs Publishers, Inc., 2006
- The Single Life, Real People, Real Issues, Wise Counsel by Bimbo Odukoya, Grace Springs Publishers, Inc., 2006