FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
YORUBAS HONOR HEROES AND ROLE MODELS
Iroyin: Howard University’s Blackburn Center will bubble with Yoruba cultural activities on Friday, July 18 from the evening hours to the early hours of Saturday as the Yoruba in the United States and Canada gather to celebrate the 1997 Oodua Excellence Award night.
The Oodua Excellence Award ceremony is an annual celebration of success and achievements among Yoruba descendants and their kith and kin in the diaspora. This year’s ceremony will recognize the achievements of both famous and young role models alike. Some of the people to be honored at this year’s ceremony are Poet Laureate Gwendolyn Brooks, Oba Sikiru Adetona, the King of Ijebu-Ode in Nigeria. Professor Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, Retired Lieutenant-General Alani Akinrinade, and Seyi Fayanju.
The septuagenarian Poet Laureate, Gwendolyn Brooks is to receive the Oduduwa Medal of Honor for her outstanding contribution to the expansion of global consciousness in a world of increasing cultural diversity.
King Sikiru Adetona, the Awujale of Ijebu-Ode is this year’s recipient of the Oduduwa Medal of Honor for outstanding contribution to the modernization and development of Yoruba culture.
Olikoye Ransome-Kuti, a world-famous pediatrician and one-time Minister of Health in Nigeria, is to be awarded an Oduduwa medal for outstanding contribution to public health and social development in Nigeria during his four decades of professional life.
Retired Lieutenant-General Alani Akinrinade, a one-time Chief of Joint Defense Staff and Minister of Agriculture, Industry, and Transportation in Nigeria, is to receive the Oduduwa Medal of Honor for a life-time commitment to modern development and social justice in Nigeria.
Seyi Fayanju, the recipient of this year’s Young Role Model’s award, is being recognized as a young man of excellence for being the winner of the 1996 National Geographic Award. Mr. Fayanju’s citation is expected to point at the road of future success and eminence that await hardworking Yoruba youths in their efforts to be part of the world’s producers of knowledge and civilization in the 21st century.
For More Information Contact:
Egbe Isokan Yoruba
P.O. Box 90832, Washington, DC 20090
Tel: (202) 270-6382
FAX: (301) 499-5386
Internet: isokan@yoruba.org