70-year-Old Widow Narrates How Faith, Selflessness ShapeD Her Life

A 70-year-old retired teacher, Mrs Ngozi-Stella Atinko, has recounted how faith, hard work, discipline and selflessness helped her raise four children following the death of her husband.

Atinko, who spoke in Abuja on Sunday while celebrating her 70th birthday, said her unwavering faith in God gave her strength to remain committed to her children at a time when they were still very young and the family faced financial challenges.

She said she had promised her late husband that she would not abandon their children or allow them to suffer after his death.

“I could not abandon them. I promised my husband that I would not allow them to suffer, whether there was a father or not,” she said.

According to her, she combined teaching with other activities, including farming and singing at church programmes, to provide for her three sons and daughter.

Atinko said her belief in God remained her major motivation despite the difficulties she encountered while raising the children.

“My hope was that he who made the heavens and the earth is able to do all things. That was my first belief and my drive,” she said.

She also identified love and generosity as values that guided her life, saying she made it a practice to share whatever she had with her neighbours and others around her.

“I am not a woman that eats alone. I cook a pot of rice and before you know it, neighbours have dropped their plates. I share with them,” she said.

Atinko said she believed that acts of kindness, no matter how small, were investments that would eventually yield positive results.

She urged Nigerians, particularly young people, to live righteous and selfless lives while remaining committed to their faith.

“It is good for one to live a righteous life. Believe in your maker and serve him faithfully. If you believe, even though some people think it is difficult, it is not difficult,” she said.

Speaking on the influence of his mother, her son, Dr Sunday Atinko, a Consultant Urological Surgeon at the National Hospital, Abuja, said the values she instilled in him had shaped both his professional and personal life.

He said his mother taught him to love God, maintain discipline, pursue excellence, avoid cutting corners and uphold integrity and sincerity.

According to him, those teachings also influenced his approach to medical practice, particularly the need to put patients first.

“She taught me to do unto others what you would have them do to you in every situation,” he said.

Atinko advised parents to combine prayers with discipline, love and good examples in raising their children.

He said mothers should continually pray for their children, guide them according to sound values and correct them when necessary.

“What you say should be what you do. What your children see is what they will practise,” he said.