Afia Ohemeng
Nigerian ex-beauty queen Ibidunni Ituah-ighodalo has died aged 39. Ibidunni who is described as a ‘giving person” has sent Nigeria into mourning. Ibidunni died in the early hours of Sunday morning in Port Harcourt. Ighodalo was due to celebrate her 40th birthday next month.
The cause of death of the ex-beauty queen has not been officially released. Local media speculate that she died from a cardiac arrest.
Before her death, she had been traveling across the country to build isolation centers for coronavirus patients.She was the co-pastor of Trinity House church in Lagos, Nigeria, along with her husband Ituah Ighodalo. She also ran upscale, luxury events services Elizabeth R, a leading event management company in the country.
Her husband described receiving the news of her death as “the call that shattered my life.”
“A lot of you know that I really shouldn’t be here,” he said during a funeral service he officiated on Sunday.
Her close friend, the famed Nigerian photographer, TY Bello told CNN she received a message from her friend on the night before she died where she talked about her birthday plans.
“Sweetie, it’s my 40th next month,” she wrote in the WhatsApp message.
“And I want to help 40 couples to have their babies… That’s all I want. No party. No surprise. Nothing. I just want to make 40 homes happy,” she continued in one of the last messages she wrote.
“I have known her since university, but very casually. We both went through infertility, that’s really what brought us together,” Bello said.
Bello told CNN: “She was very giving. This message that she sent me before she died, that’s who she was, there’s nothing more to say beyond that.”
There has been an outpouring of grief on social media as people spoke out about their shock and sadness at her death. Nigeria’s President Buhari was among those who sent messages of condolence to the family.
“The President shares the pain and sorrow of the family at the sudden death, and prays God’s comfort for the entire family, friends and members of Trinity House,” his aide said in a statement.
Another friend Adebola Williams wrote a touching tribute to her on his Instagram page, saying “I’d miss your kindness, if generosity had a name it would be Ibidunni.”
Source: CNN
