October 01, (THEWILL) – Although the boss of Tastee Fried Chicken, Mrs Olayinka Adedayo, set aside September 24 to honour the memory of late Olubunmi, her only child, this year’s remembrance event was different.
It marked the 10th anniversary of Olubunmi’s death and the Adedayos resolved to do something different from the norm in his honour. They held a massive thanksgiving service at the All-Soul Anglican church, Lekki, Lagos. Quite a number of socialites took time out of their busy schedule to honour the Adedayos.
They also organised The TASTEE SPELLING BEE Competition 2023 edition at the TFC Place, Festac Town, Lagos, where gift items and scholarships were awarded deserving winners of the competition.
Olubunmi, until his death in 2013 at the age of 36, was an executive director in his parent’s fast business. He is credited with re-directing the firm’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programmes towards helping less privileged children.
During Christmas sesons, he organised surprise Santa Claus visits to public schools in areas that had TFC branches. He also arranged for TFC Santa Claus to visit the Massey Children Hospital on Lagos Island to distribute gifts. On Children’s Day, he organised musical concerts, spelling bee competitions and talent hunts to encourage children with musical flair to exploit their talents.
Little wonder, his parents honoured his memory by ensuring that the TASTEE SPELLING BEE Competition continued to hold every year. Because he left a huge vacuum in the hearts of friends and so many people whose lives he had touched, his family decided to start the Bunmi Adedayo Foundation (BAF) to immortalise him every year.
The foundation addresses issues that militate against low-income children ages three to 11 getting quality education, something he was most passionate about. To achieve this, a programme of action was outlined, to cover the rehabilitation of schools, pastoral care, provision of education supplies and equipment, scholarship award, advocacy to government to fulfill its responsibility in education, professional development for teachers, talent hunt, leadership training and planning in schools, provision of first aid equipment and training, and career guidance talks, among others. Olubunmi died in the US where he was flown for treatment. He left behind his parents, a wife and two kids.
Ivory Ukonu is a versatile journalist with many years of experience, with entertainment and society reporting as her area of core competence.
