Kenyan Girl in L.A. Passes Away in her Sleep
by Harrison Maina, AjabuAfrica.com
POMONA, California, JANUARY 12_ Hardly weeks since it took the life of one of the first Kenyan immigrants to the US, Mr. T, the cruel hand of death has again struck the Kenyan community, this time claiming the life of a 23 year old student while in her sleep.
Elizabeth Mutindi Mbithi was found dead in her bed after a night’s sleep in her family’s house at 977 Somerset Ave, Pomona, Los Angeles, California.
This also comes on the heels of back to back deaths towards the end of the just concluded year, with over four deaths on Christmas day across many states, making many people wonder why cases of youthful Kenyans dying in their apartments have escalated.
According to family sources, on the night of Tuesday January 6th, Ms. Mutindi Mbithi, went to bed normally after exchanging good night wishes with her family, in time so she could be up early to attend her school at Mt. San Antonio, College in LA, where she was a Fashion Design and Merchandising student.
As usual, everyone in the house woke up at their own time depending on their schedules. Mutindi’s parents went to their respective places of work while her brother and a sister went to their schools.
But when her mother came back from work at around mid-day, she felt alarmed to see her daughter’s car still parked outside the house, indicating that her daughter did not go to school.
She therefore cautiously entered the house and headed straight for her room.
“The room was locked and despite several minutes of knocking, each knock growing louder and desperate than the previous, the mother knew something was very wrong,” said Wilson Wachira, a father in law to the late Mutindi and a resident of Lowell, Massachusetts. The mother then called her husband, Patrick Mbithi Munyao who was at work, and her son Sammy Munyao Mbithi and told them of the awkward situation.
Luckily, her son was only a few miles away from the house and was able to get to the house almost immediately.
Meanwhile, her husband decided to dial the emergency number, sending help to the house just in case something was wrong.
“As I hang up the phone and got into my car to head for our house, I received another phone call from my wife on my cell phone,” said Munyao.She told him that together with her son, they had managed to open the door to their daughter’s bedroom and were shocked to see her unresponsive in her bed.
In this recent photo, the late Elizabeth
Mutidi shows off a gift card she had just received as a christmas gift. Mutindi passed away in her sleep last week. |
“I was totally shocked and speechless. Nothing can describe the pain I felt in my heart,” added the distraught father on a telephone interview with AjabuAfrica.com.
When Munyao reached his house, he found the police already conducting investigations as to the cause of the mysterious death, which is being treated as homicide until autopsy results come in.
“Everyone was in a panicky mode and it was not a good sight to deal with,” said Munyao.
Family sources indicated that the late Mutindi was a loving, happy young woman who loved to sing and praise the Lord at her church, Kingdom Interdenominational Community Church (K.I.C.C), (website) San Bernadino in California.
She was known for her beautiful smile and uplifting spirit and was bound to graduate in September with a degree in Fashion Design and Merchandising.
Mutindi is survived by her parents Patrick and Florence Munyao, two older siblings Sammmy Munyao Mbithi and Ruth Kabeyu Mbithi. One younger sister Eva Mbithi- Mwaniki, along with two nieces Sarayah Christine Siana Mwaniki, Savarna Wangui Mwaniki and brother in law Simon Mwaniki Ndururi.
The devastated family is appealing to the Kenyan community in the Diaspora for help in raising funds to repatriate the body of the young girl back home.Due to the low number of Kenyans in the LA area of California, two memorial and fundraising services have been scheduled to take place simultaneously, one in Massachusetts and in Los Angeles.
In Massachusetts, the fundraising will take place on Sunday, January 17, 2009 at the Ushindi PCEA church in Lowell, Mass. starting at 3.00 pm.
In California, a similar service will be held at the Kingdom Interdenominational Community Church (K.I.C.C), in San Bernardino.
For those who may not make it to the fundraising at the Ushindi Church on Sunday, prayers will also be held later on Sunday evening at 525 Merrill Lane, Apartment 206, Dracut, Mass.
“It is very painful losing a young daughter especially in such sudden and mysterious circumstances,” said Wachira, the father in law from Boston, who lost his own 22 year old daughter just as she was about to land in Iraq for a tour of duty recently.
“Please come and help this family get the needed funds to send the body back home for burial,” pleaded Wachira.
Bank Details for well wishers
Bank of America, California
Account name: Patrick Munyao
Account # : 015300363
Routing # : 122000661
For more info, contact:
In California : (909) 622 - 2008, (909) 630 - 8188, (626) 922- 4871
In Massachusetts : (508 ) 423-9285
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