First Ever Ajabu African Awards attracts hundreds

A section of guests in "Mugithi" , a procession dance, as popular Kenyan gospel singer Joseph Muruaru entertains them during the first Ajabu African Awards gala that brought together many members from the African communities in USA at the Hilton Hotel in Woburn, Mass.. pic by Pius Teneng/Ajabu

By Rogers Muyanja, Eva Nebawanuka, Moses Mathenge, and Harrison Maina, Ajabu Africa News
Edited by Richard Mutumbar. Pics by Pius Teneng and Moses Mathenge

WOBURN, Mass., AUGUST 4_Thrilled guests’ applause rent the air as the eagerly awaited African faith based fashion show saw ordinary mothers take to the stage for a cat walk along seasoned beauty models.

When the judges’ verdict came, Tronella Nagadya a Ugandan from Woburn, Mass., had beaten the rest, taking home a cash prize. The runners up, Alice Mugechu a Kenyan from Lowell, also won a cash prize.

Rev. Fredha Sebalu, a community organizer from the New Life International church in Medford, hits the runway during an African fashion show contest at the Ajabu African Awards Gala. In the background, other mothers wait for their turn at the catwalk.

That was probably the climax of the ground breaking Ajabu African Awards Gala night held on Sunday, August 1 at the prestigious Hilton hotel in Woburn, Mass.
 
The event whose turn up overwhelmed the organizers, saw a total of 80 tokens of appreciation awarded to a cross section of deserving individuals from across members of the African community in the fields of clergy, business and community leadership and gospel artist.
 
In a rare mix of cultures, the entire African continent was seamlessly bound in unity as guests formed Mugithi (Kikuyu for train) - a popular Kenyan dance where revelers trail while holding shoulders in a symbol of unity, snaking  around a room as they sing  praise and worship tunes.
 
The event was graced by Emily Soroko, an African author and motivational speaker, dozens of African pastors, including Bishop David Karaya, chairman of Kenyan Pastors’ Association in New England, Rev. Samuel Mutyaba of the New Life church, a Ugandan community church in Medford and Pastor Malcolm Eboholom, a Nigerian pastor based  in Lowell.

The guest of honor, Emily Soroko, left, with Harrison Maina of Ajabu Africa, fashion contest winner, Tronella Nagadya who is also the reigning Miss Uganda USA, and Wambui Kamau from Virginia, pose for a picture after the awards ceremony

Others were dozens of African community leaders from various cities in Massachusetts, Miss Uganda USA, Gospel artists, cultural artists, and elegantly dressed men, women and children from a cross section of the African communities in New England.

Several other high level guests attended the event. They included Prof. Solomon Waigwa, a Kenyan who serves as a Lead Professor, Department of Religion, Wiley College, in Marshall, TX, and a Reverend with the African Holy Ghost Church. Prof. Waigwa also serves as an Associate Pastor at Temple Christian Center in Temple, Texas, as well as Newton Kinitty from Hartford, Connecticut

Others were Dr. Prof. John Lukyamuzi, a Ugandan entrepreneur, who also heads the Christian faith ministries of all nations, and who relocated to Massachusetts recently from Seattle, Washington, Dr. Joseph Njoroge, immediate former president of Kenya Christian Fellowship abroad (KCFA) and his wife, Rev. Wambui Njoroge the Director of Department of Women’s Ministry and National an executive member at the  KCFA  from Atlanta Georgia ,  Zeituni Oyango, president Barrack Obama’s aunt, and Dr. Michael Kisembo, a Ugandan entrepreneur  based in Waltham, Massachusetts, Canon John. N. Karanja from the The International Christian Community Church in Baltimore, Maryland.

Among the entertainers during the awards gala were J-Sisters, a gospel group from Tanzania, Rahab Kinitty, a Kenyan gospel artists from North Carolina, the Touch & Soul band from Uganda, the Batabazi band from Uganda, who paid tribute to the victims of the recent Bomb blast in Kampala , Uganda, that killed 74   East Africans, an   upcoming Ugandan hip hop artist, Bigg Mo, Mary Munyiri, a Kenyan gospel artist and Vanessa Awori, a Ugandan gospel artist.

The event was praised by many as a big success at showcasing the elusive African unity, and was hosted by renowned Kenyan master of ceremonies and community organizer, Kibathi Gaturu from Worcester.

Speaking during the Awards Gala, speaker after speaker praised the CEO of Ajabu Media, Harrison Maina, for his courage to take the risk   and hardships of starting the first news website to report on issues of the African community in the USA, bringing their issues to the forefront and keeping the people informed about what is going on around them.

Ajabu fashion contest winner , Tronella Nagadya from Uganda

Ajabu fashion contest Runners up winner Alice Mugechu from Kenya

In a brief key note speech, the guest of honor, Emily Soroko, who works at the State Department in Washington DC, helping women in business, and who is also an author and inspiration speaker, told Africans that it is time to overcome the fears stopping them from succeeding in the land of opportunity.

“You have to have the strength to overcome many adversities that come in life,” said Soroko, an author of a book titled “Rising Above Adversity"

She praised Maina for having the vision to start Ajabu Africa and told him that he should be aware that there are many people who would like to see him fail, but with continued faith in God, he should grow from one level to the next.

“Ajabu Africa has been very fair and balanced in the way they report news in the community. They are no biased and do not take sides with anyone and most of the time, you don’t know what will pop out when you open Ajabu,” said Rev. Samuel Kimohu of Saint Stephen's church in Lowell. Rev. Kimuhu amused guests when he said that not long ago, some people in the government of Kenya used to base the qualifications for job interviwees based on which newspaper they prefered to read.

"When you went for an important job interview, some people used to place all the Kenyan newspapers, the Daily Nation, the Standard and the Kenya Times infront of you. Then they would ask you to pick up one and tell them what was in the news on that day". Rev. Kimohu said that if you picked the one which did not report positively on the government, they you would never get the job.

He asked Ajabu Africa to continue being responsible in providing the right information to it's readers and not mislead them.

Rev. Samuel Kimohu

Speakers also praised Maina for linking the African community with very important people in the USA, which is proving to be crucial in bridging the gap between the hard to get African community and the leadership in their localities, and for helping mobilize Kenyans to raise thousands of dollars in funds during times is trouble.

However, they advised Maina to be more careful when reporting on extremely negative stories coming from some members of the community, saying that such stories reflect negatively on the entire community.

“It is better to find a way to report on such issues in a manner that will inspire people to look for answers to some problems instead of showing the entire community in bad light for the sins of a few,” said Bishop David Karaya, chairman of the Kenya pastors fellowship Association .

Pastor Godfrey Awori, from the Ugandan community, who also owns Life Motion Pictures, an African film making company based in Waltham, praised Maina for his courage to step out of the box and venture into other communities in his news reporting, saying that African need to support one another through such ventures instead of striving to bring each other down.

Pastor Godfrey Awori - "Stop copying and bringing down each other"

Prof. Dr. Rev. Solomon Waigwa- "Do away with African pessimism. It's time for African Optimism ! " .

“Many Africans wait until they see you starting a business that seems to be making money, and then they rush to copy you and try to get ahead of you, hoping that you may stumble and fall,” lamented pastor Awori.

The pastor–cum entrepreneur said that instead of copying outright what others are doing, Africans should strive to be creative and come up with new different types of businesses.

“If you find yourself doing the same thing as your brother, try to find out ways in which you can work together to strengthen each other so that each one of you can shine in unique ways, even when doing the same business,” he added.
 
He asked more Africans to take risk and start new businesses so that “we can all improve the standards of the community.”

Pastor Awori called for more opportunities for Africans. He said that many African communities shared a lot of characteristics, even from home, and need not let tribal differences separate their unity.

As he handed awards to various graduates during the ceremony, Prof. Dr. Solomon Waigwa, the professor from Texas, said that the time for African pessimism has come and gone.

Eunice Waweru, Masters in Nursing

“Someone had written in a book about the African pessimism, which indicated that Africans were pessimistic at their chances of success in the world,” said the renowned scholar and debater.

“But now is the time for African Optimism, and all these graduates are a good example that African can succeed in anything,” he stressed.

Among the graduates recognized at the event included two Kenyan pastors who recently graduated with doctorate degrees in Theology. They were Rev. Dr. Joseph Kimatu, of Tumaini Community church in Springfield and Dr. Rev. David Githetu, a retired Kenya Army major who is also a pastor in the Kenyan community in New England.

CONTINUED BELOW

Rev. Dr. Joseph Kimatu receives his Award	Jane Kimani receives her Award
Pastor Mutegeti Kenneth (left) receives his Award	Father Michael Komu receives his Award
Ben Kamiri of Doubles Xpress	An African beauty poses for a pic at the Ajabu African Awards Gala . pic by Moses Mathenge/Ajabu
Kenyan ladies having fun	Pastor Mutyaba from Uganda introduces his wife

During his own remarks, the founder and CEO of Ajabu Media Communications, Harrison Maina, thanked all those who came to celebrate the success that Africans were achieving in America.

Maina said that the Ajabu African Awards event was not created to praise certain people, but to showcase what different people in the African community in the Diaspora are doing to touch the lives in their communities.

Maina said that he started Ajabu Africa in 2005 after experiencing problems with communication in the community.

“I used to feel left out on important functions when I could hear that people were somewhere last week and I did not even know what was happening,” said Maina.

“So I decided to use my skills and put together a platform for rapid community communications where messages could be posted and people get informed about important issues,” he added.

Maina said Ajabu Africa was primarily based on reporting news taking place in the local African community churches, as the wisdom coming from the pulpits and from ordinary Africans in the USA is hardly ever covered by the mainstream media.

He praised the African pastors for taking a strong position on biblical teachings, which was causing a spiritual revival in New England.

He added that Ajabu Africa was not only aimed at a certain African country, but all accessible African communities in the USA.

Batabazi: Tribute to Bomb blast victims in Uganda

Touch & Soul band plays nolstalgic African hits

“When I was growing up, I had a lot of international exposure. Many of my teachers were Ugandans at every level of education, so I developed a broad outlook to see the bigger picture of the African community as opposed to one country only,” he said."However, i love my country Kenya and i am proud of my heritage", he added in post event interview.

As a result, Ajabu Africa New has writers and contributors from different African countries and is still looking for more.

Maina thanked the members of the organizing committee who worked with him to make the event a success. He said being the first of it’s kind,  the  event was by no means perfect and missed to get many other deserving Africans out  there who are doing outstanding contributions to society.

“We hope that next year, we will be able to reach out to more people and recognize them for their efforts,” said Maina.

J-Sisters from Tanzania

Rahab Kinitty from North Carolina belts out a number

“This was a ground breaking event at uniting Africans in the USA. It felt good for us to sit at the same table with Ugandans, Tanzanians, Americans, Nigerians and other nationalities and have fun,” declared Bishop Joshua Wambua of Rapture Harvest Mission International.

“It is what I have always preached about, being inclusive. We should all strive to be like that,” added the bishop, in a post event interview .

The event was sponsored solely by African owned startups based in New England, led by Ajabu Media Communications, an African owned media and technology firm based in Woburn, Doubles Express, an African owned money transfer company, 3 Dimensions Health services, an African owned health care training company, Rama shipping, an African owned shipping company, and Safari Kiosk 254, an African owned clothing and accessories company specializing in African themes. Cummings properties Inc, an American owned Real Estate Company also chipped in with sponsorship.

The event brought out the true African spirit of solidarity, leaving many in awe at what Africans have missed for many years.

African mothers parade after a hilarious catwalk performance during the first Ajabu African Awards Gala at the Hilton Hotel in Woburn, Mass. last Sunday

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