This Story is indeed long but very interesting and so inspiring! It is a must read!!


Indeed, 42-year-old Mrs Ifeoma Ofornagoro fits in rightly into the Biblical saying that God lifts the poor from the dust.
Fifteen years ago, Mrs Ofornagoro, who is today the CEO of Divine Favour Funeral Services based in the commercial city of Onitsha, Anambra State, was just a helpless pure water vendor at Upper Iweka.
But today, with a dint of hard work and tenacity of purpose, her story and that of her family have changed for good.

The mother of five, and wife of Mr Christopher Ofornagoro, who hails from Ezinifite, Aguata Local Government of Anambra State, today runs a flourishing ambulance service side by side with a casket-making company.
Her story, which is interwoven with hardship, hopelessness, intrigues, intimidation, frustrations, vision and self determination, is one that throws great challenge to both men and women who are giving up hopes in life.

A woman, whose husband could not then pay for her hospital bills after she delivered her first baby and could not afford one meal a day except proceeds from the hawking of the pure water, is today an employer of labour by her sheer determination to succeed.

ANAMBRA ONLINE encounters with Mrs Ofornagoro popularly known around her business area as Nwayi Akpati Ozu (Woman who makes caskets), was touching, revealing and educative.

HOW IT ALL STARTED

"I got married to my husband in 1992 and he was a bus conductor and along the line their vehicle became grounded and things became very difficult for us to the extent that when I was delivered of my baby, paying my hospital bills was a huge challenge.
So, I began to sell pure water at Upper Iweka and from the pure water hawking, I little money and moved on. When I had my last child who is 15 years now, there was no money to feed, so when that my baby was two months old, I carried the baby to Ose market where I bought potatoes which I displayed along Boromeo to sell and that I did for some time until I saved some money which i diverted to Chin-Chin baking.

I asked my Oga (husband) to join me as his transportation business was no longer working so that he could be cutting the chin-chin for me. So, he joined me, while he cuts, I fried the chin-chin and it was this chin-chin business that we were doing and got some money and I suggested to him that we should buy a Volvo wagon car that we could use in transporting flour and other things we needed for the business, he consented and we bought the Volvo car.

We normally park the car behind us at Boromeo where we fry our chin-chin and people would usually come to inquire if the vehicle was an ambulance. With the consistent inquiries, I suggested to my husband that it would be better we use the car for ambulance services, but he refused with his reason being that he was scared that the dead will kill him. I decided to take it upon myself to learn how to drive so as to do the job on my own.

So, having learnt how to drive I made up my mind to go into ambulance business, so when people come and ask if the vehicle was an ambulance I said yes and I started conveying corpses. The first place I conveyed a corpse was Ezeagu in Enugu State. The whole process went smoothly and they paid me, I returned to Onitsha here and that was how the ambulance business started and it was in Boromeo that I started it.
In fact, the ambulance business began to boom for me and people were looking for me always and want me to do their job for them. They always insisted that it is DIVINE AMBULANCE that they want, which happens to be my business name.

But at a point people, both drivers who work for the hospital and others who are in the ambulance business began to conspire against me saying that I was spoiling business for them and that i reduced the price which made their customers come to me. They conspired and held a meeting and after that the owner of the place I usually parked the vehicle asked me to vacate immediately. I remember crying bitterly but there was nothing i could do and determined that no one would discourage me so there was this man called Eddy whom i met (though he is late now) I related my story to him and that was how he asked me to bring my vehicle to his shop and that marked a new beginning in my career."


***MAKING CASKETS***

So, every morning i drove my ambulance and parked it at Eddy’s shop and as God would have it, people still came all the way from Boromeo to look for me and hire my ambulance. That Eddy was an undertaker (a casket maker), so when I park my vehicle, I sit down in his shop and as he made the casket I watched him with keen interest and one day I told him that I think i would be able to start making caskets. He laughed and said it was not going to be possible as it was a man's job but i insisted and told him i would go and buy the wood myself to start which he said i was free to. So i bought wood, came back to his shop and took his tools and smoothen the wood and began to make a casket and when i was done, Mr Eddy could not believe his eyes and he said to me, what are you waiting for? Go and pay for shop and that was how I paid for shop and started making caskets.
I continued doing it till I perfected in it and even purchased a spraying machine which i used for the painting myself so i did the whole thing from start to finish!"


***FLEET OF AMBULANCE***

"By the special grace of God, Divine Ambulance Services is doing well and at the moment I have five Sienna Wagons and three Volvos in my fleet. I have been in this business for 12 years, I drove ambulance for six years and I have been making casket for about five years now."



***THE CASKET BUSINESS***

"This business is very unique on it's own, when you finish making the casket, you stay and wait, unlike other businesses, you don’t invite people to come and patronize you, and it is only when one comes to your shop that you know he or she needs your product and services. But the thing is being a perfectionist which was the principle i applied in the business. If you as an undertaker does a neat and beautiful job, people will advertise your product and that was my huge selling point.
It is not every day that you may sell caskets but it’s a must that you sell because people die every day and are in the morgue.
As for the ambulance business, you have more jobs at the weekends, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, but for the casket, the business booms more on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays when people come to buy the ones they make use of over the weekend.
We have various caskets ranging from N8,000, which is the least and up to N200,000 depending on your choice and purchasing power."


***STAFF***

I have about seven in this workshop, some have finished their apprenticeship and are working with me, and some are still learning. One of my children, the boy working outside there (points at a young boy measuring a wooden plank) is also learning. He is not so brilliant in school, though i have enrolled him in many schools to no avail. Sometimes he leaves school and roams about the street, so I decided to withdraw him and brought him here to learn this casket making so that he doesn't become useless. So far,he is doing very well."


***MY OTHER CHILDREN***

My first daughter is currently studying in the University.
My first Son is an undergraduate of Medicine at University of Ibadan, the third one is a Nursing Student, and the other two are boarders in their various schools at Uli and Juniorate Nkpor.


***TURNOVER***

I use the income from this to solve alot of domestic problems, I use the proceeds to train my children in school to whatever level they aspire. If any of my vehicles becomes problematic or can no longer perform, I just sell it off, add some little cash and buy another.
From the proceeds of this business, i was able to complete the building project which my husband started years back in the village but was unable to continue due to financial strains and I have been able to buy a landed property where I am currently building a house in Nkpor . I have also been able to start businesses for some of my husband’s relatives who were not doing anything and they are now doing well and are on their own.


***INTIMIDATION FROM MEN***

"Earlier, male competitors were not happy with my courage to come into their trade. As a matter of fact, it got to a stage that they took me to court with the allegations that I did not learn the trade but rather jumped into making caskets. But when we got to Force Headquarters in Awka, the police officers were rather praising me saying, "Here is the woman who makes caskets in Onitsha" They said i should keep it up so those who took me there were surprised and they all left disappointed and had no choice than to leave me alone to continue my work.
Sometimes they insinuate that I may be using some sort of charms to pull customers, but it is my effort and how i get the job done that speaks volumes for me."
.

***CHALLENGES***

Some of my challenges now are the machines, especially the one that cuts the wood and shapes it, and most of the time, when there is power outage, you have no choice than to do those things manually. Though i am planning on getting a big generator that can carry those machines to ensure the job is done faster and comes out neater.


***PRODUCTION CAPACITY***

"We roll out about 10-13 caskets a week."



*** STRANGE EXPERIENCES***

I have not encountered anything that is strange in the course of making casket or running my ambulance services.
But like those people who just left my shop now were telling a story of one man who fell from his house in Okpoko.
They said that they tried to carry him but two different ambulances but the vehicles could not start while the corpse was inside. So they called me on phone to solicit for my services which i agreed. I went there prayed they the corpse in my ambulance, I started my vehicle and drove the corpse all the way to Abakiliki and nothing happened.
Starting from day one I commenced the ambulance service, I have not experienced anything strange. Before setting out on any assignment, i ensure a pray and I just take off. I always say to myself that I was not the one that killed the person, I am only rending my services to the corpse and the owners. Secondly, there is this belief that people in this line of business make use of charms but i don’t have any, and I don’t know whether others use charms. I only pray to God and he has been leading and guiding me.


***Advice to Other Women***

"When I was doing nothing, my husband was always suffering High Blood Pressure (HBP) and was always in the hospital, but since I started doing these things and began to make money and solve family problems, he has fewer burdens, he no longer gets sick, he is always healthy. So my advise to women out there is that they should look for something to do and never lose focus. if a woman assists in the family it will elongate the life of her husband and reduce his obligations. Start doing something no matter how little to support your family. There is no work a woman cannot do, it’s just a matter of interest, determination and dedication. People might scorn you or discriminate but just continue and when it becomes a success, those people who laughed at you will turn back to praise you."

***A Word from Mr Ofornagoro***

Talking about his wife Ifeoma, 56-year-old Mr Christopher Ofornagoro who said he married her in 1992 described her as a woman with a Lion’s Heart.
“When you look at her you will recognize that she has is courageous and has a strong heart, she is not afraid of anybody. I don't know or have heard of any other woman who is int casket making. She is very ambitious! When she believes in a thing, she follows it to the letter.
She also has this thing about watching you do something and then comes out to do the same thing even better."
Mr Ofornagoro who said he initially refused when she suggested that she starts the ambulance job earlier, however, advised men not to discourage their wives who are determined to assist the family through genuine trade or business but instead give their wives the support they need in order to make their dreams a reality.


Source: www.facebook.com/AnambraOnline

*draw close to Op, whisper barely audible...if front page dey hungry u as FTC dey hungry me, u beta find source fix! even if na fake..just put .com...lalasticlala is ur friend*

@story
that's nice

Who has live experience of where car no gree start when casket don enter.......

HOW CAN AN UNDERTAKER INSPIRE ME?

NO OFFENCE BUT IT'S A NO...


KUDOS TO HER BUT I REMAIN UNINSPIRED....


THE LADY ABOVE SHOULD JUDGE....

Nice one ma'am..
Remembered my childhood days.. I seldom pass where they sell caskets.. Buh man don grow up now.

Freemanan:
HOW CAN AN UNDERTAKER INSPIRE ME?

NO OFFENCE BUT IT'S A NO...


KUDOS TO HER BUT I REMAIN UNINSPIRED....


THE LADY ABOVE SHOULD JUDGE....

Bro...undertakers are humans like you and they irk a livung just like you and i. Think about it...when someone dies, another person(s) has to get rid of the body nah

prince3009:


Bro...undertakers are humans like you and they irk a livung just like you and i. Think about it...when someone dies, another person(s) has to get rid of the body nah

I know Boss... JUST wasn't inspired by her tale

wow!i don't have to finish reading the epistle but from what i read the woman's bravery is more than ten men combined.d hubby is a lucky man!