The Former First Lady of Ondo state  Her Excellency Arabinrin Betty Anyanwu Akeredolu was in high spirits when she received members of FOWOSO and BRECAN who visited her in her home in Ibadan, Oyo state  last Saturday, 20th  July to celebrate her on 71st Birthday.

Some members of the Foundation of Wives of Ondo State Officials and Female Appointees (FOWOSO) and Breast Cancer Association of Nigeria (BRECAN) visited the former First Lady to celebrate her on her birthday.

The members took turns to speak about the sterling qualities of Her Excellency Betty Anyanwu Akeredolu and her selfless service to humanity. They prayed that God will continue to protect her and grant her the fortitude to bear the loss of her husband the former governor of Ondo state, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu SAN,CON who passed on in December 2023.

In her appreciation remarks, Betty Anyanwu Akeredolu thanked the entourage for  taking out time to visit her and for their kind words.

According to her, the goodwill and solidarity expressed by them were heart-warming. Speaking on her time as the First lady of Ondo state, she revealed that she served the state with her heart, from a place of love.

She added that her experiences as an advocate for good governance and her training in Public Health equipped her with the necessary skills to support her husband, the late Governor Rotimi Akeredolu to bring good governance to the people of Ondo state.

The former First Lady said that the idea behind FOWOSO was to empower women in the state both economically and intellectually. According to her, it is not enough to demand for positions for women, but such women must be intellectually capable of serving in leadership capacities and effectively handling positions given to them, they must posses the understanding  and knowledge of the problems confronting their societies, for only then will they be able to proffer workable solutions to such problems.

Speaking on BRECAN and how the organization has been at the fore front of creating breast cancer  awareness in Ondo state and supporting Ondo women with breast cancer, Mrs Akeredolu addressed the issue of encouraging people to give back to a charity organization such as BRECAN stating that it is an honourable thing to do.

She appreciated the Former Commissioner of Women Affairs and Social Development in Ondo state, Mrs Titi Adeyemi whom she described as a wonderful woman who understood the vision of BRECAN and has been giving back to the organization every month despite leaving office since 2021. Mrs Akeredolu emphasized that such rare act of kindness will remain indelible in her mind.

The Septuagenarian also seized the opportunity to thank a young man by name Akila Samuel, who presented her with a beautiful pencil portrait of her picture.

She revealed that the young man had posted the picture on social media and asked people to share it until it got to her which eventually did. She described this as one of the positives of social media which overshadows the negative uses that some people have put it to.  She thanked everyone who has stood solidly behind her in these trying times.”I adore you all. Adorable Betty adores you all” she concluded.