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The Oyebodes’ Twin Hearts of Gold

Sun News
Jossy Idam
30th Sept. '06

Pastor Bayo Oyebode and his American wife, Marybeth, have a lot in common. They are simple, affable and compassionate. These are perhaps the main qualities that attracted the couple.

Different backgrounds

Marybeth came to Nigeria as a school teacher. Before getting married to Pastor Bayo in December, 1997, she was an up-beat school teacher in an Ivy league secondary school, Hill Crest, in the Plateau State capital, Jos.

Born one of 11 children in Ife Tedo, Osun State, Pastor Bayo grew up seeing his father giving succour to the needy. Those days, according to him, his father had a farm with cash crops like banana.

Almost every day, his father cut and left a bunch of bananas at the entrace of the farm and nearby pathway. “I asked my father why, he told me it was for hungry people who came passing by”, Bayo recalled. He also remembers seeing his father generously helping out the poor with cash and all types of gifts.

Education

Pastor Bayo read religious study at University of Jos. He followed this up by enrolling in ECWA theological seminary in Plateau State as well. After his ordination as pastor, he floated an NGO-urban Frontier and began ministering to prostitutes in the city of Jos and its environs.

Beginning

Months after beginning, he discovered that most of the whores were HIV-positve. He and his partner, Marybeth reviewed their approach and re-named their NGO as Mashiah Foundation Ministry. Said Bayo "so, in 2000, we began gradually. Next we discovered that they needed medical care, food, shelter and sundry expenses”.

Gift of giving

Seeing these challenges, Pastor Bayo and his wife, Mary-beth began using their lean resources to run the NGO and take care of the sick, hungry and dying destitutes who ran to them. But they soon discovered that the cost was enormous. They went cap in hand to good-spirited Nigerians and churches in and outside the country.

Areas of need

The key areas Mashiah foundation ministry foaused on include Bezer Home for HIV/AIDS widows and orphans.

At metropolitan Avenue, Tudun Wada, Jos, where the home-a storey building is located there are 10 widows and 30 orphans being catered for.

The women form part of an out-reach programme, women of Hope. They and over 50 other widows who reside in their widows who reside in their homes go out regularly to sensitize the public on HIV/AIDS. The widows, in addition. Learn to make quilt bedspreads, pillow cases, necklaces, ear rings, book marks and so on.

Indigent, HIV/AIDS Single mothers and teenagers also live at Bezer Home. The NGO also run an IT and computer Engineering school for teenagers.

Surrogate parents

To the house mates at Beze Home, Bayo and Marybeth are their God-sent father and mother. Whenever any of them comes to the home, widows and orphans rush out to meet them with smiles and embrace. They simply call them “Daddy” and Mummy”. In one of such visits to the home, Saturday Sun saw Bayo wrestling with Lucky, a 10-year-old orphan.

Located on Panshin Street, the school has more than 100 teenagers doing the training. According to the NGO’s Director of Public Affairs and Information, Nathaniel Adeoye, “the IT course is Mashiah Foundation’s own way of capturing the interest of teenagers who belong to the most vulnerable category of the soceity. Everything here is based on christianity. They are given IT lesson and much more to see them through life”.

Support group and vounteers

Backing Bayo and Marybeth is a large support staff comprising Dr. Julius Oyekunle Oyekan, James J. Alewen, laboratory scientist, Mrs Juliana Jokodola, counsellor, Mrs, Margaret Tersoo, youth vocational trainer, Abah Moses, Computer engineer, Caleb Yakubu, co-ordinator, vocational training and counselling, Sarah Abidan, vocational trainer, Faith Muya (Kenyan), teacher and micro biologist, Chidi Elizabeth and others.

Huge budget

Pastor Bayo puts the running of the NGO’s hospital, IT school, Bezer Home, widows of Hope, primary school and caring for HIV/AIDS orphans to millions of naira annually. Mashiah foundation gives its services to the public free of charge and this includes ARV drugs, food, clothing and shelter”. The Lord has been supportive. We’ve never lacked even though the demand is increasing daily”, Pastor Bayo said.

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May we be strengthened with the ability, willingness and capabilities to be good ambassadors of Nigeria contributing to its uplifting, rather than its detriment. - Cxsm