Prof. Martin Zachary Njeuma

Tribute to a “Hero”, loving and caring brother

 

Bromsi!!!

Not even death, I repeat, not even death, can separate us from the LOVE OF CHRIST. Bromsi, we loved you, but God loves you most. May the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary which you supported by your generous donations grant you eternal rest. May your soul and the souls of all the faithfull departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen

 

                                                                                    Your sister Lucy

 

Uncle Zac – An Inspiration

My earliest memory of Uncle Zac was seeing him walk down a snow covered street in West London alongside my father when I was about 10 years old, as we waited to be picked up from church. Uncle Zac remained an essential connection with a parent that was long gone, recalling often for me cherished memories.

 

How could I forget those almost magical adolescent years in Yaounde that Maloke and I spent with you and Aunty Limunga in Yaounde.  Those were such interesting times, being introduced to your friends and roasting fish for them on occasion. You often inquired about our days in school. We had some long conversations about everything. That was a time I understood that parents could also be accessible, funny, yet inspirational. It was just so easy being around you, watching you work and going about living. There was no pretense on your part. You did not claim to have all the answers, nor were you ever shy of indicating your own limitations. You were just so real, down-to-earth and present. We missed you when you were away and always looked forward to your coming back.

 

Again, your uniqueness was apparent, when I went home on my first holiday from my first international assignment with my first child in tow. I remember how happy you sounded when I called to let you know I was around and you insisted on coming to see the baby and taking Martin and I to lunch. You were always so ready to celebrate our successes and recognize our achievements no matter how small. Having lunch together at a Chinese restaurant in Yaounde, I realized then how complicated navigating food and eating had become. That was difficult to see, knowing how much you enjoyed your meals. Nonetheless, you handled it with your usual aplomb and always could find one of your sound bites to make light of the situation.

 

You were loved by many here, but the good Lord loved you more and saw fit to relieve you at the appointed time. We thank Him for your life and those we have also known and grown to love because of you. Thank you for having been simply you: not affected, just genuine and an inspiration. Now you are gone. We will miss that voice, that articulation and always that laugh. Some of those sound bites of yours continue to resound in my ears.

 

Etona Ekole, Yemen.

Oh give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; his steadfast love endures forever!

 

Let the Njeuma/Effange families say,

 

"His steadfast love endures forever."

 

Uncle, you were my dearest uncle, my dad and most importantly my friend. Someone, whom it felt safe to come and open up to when necessary. You were our ALL in ALL, like your sister Rose Hegngi my mother will always say. I still cannot grasp the thought that you are no more. I can't stop shedding tears every time your name is mentioned or I see your picture, and every time I shed tears for you I feel sad. Hopefully I will come to accept the fact that you are truely no more and the sadness will go away.

 

Uncle, I have also been looking back and having some good laughs thinking of the times we shared together and I can only hope you are laughing on the other side. I go back twenty years ago before I travelled to America.. Oh how times flies. I was in Yaounde a few weeks before getting my visa and remembered all the advice I got from you, what wisdom to pass on to young ones. A few years later during one of your visits to the States, you had some stuff to do around the D.C metropolitan area to complete one of your books and you stayed with me in Virginia. Oh what a good time we had. You took care of yourself and all I had to do was make sure there was food in the house. I treated you like my date to every occasion we went to, I checked your outfit; chose what you wore to correlate with mine, made sure your hair was well kempt. Remember the time we had going to Karl Mondoa's wedding? How I remember it like it was just yesterday.

 

One of my memories with you that I will hold so dear is back in July/August of 2005. You visited my family in Anchorage, Alaska. I was seven months pregnant with my son Stephan and you treated me like a queen. You held my door and helped me out of the car every where we went even though I was the driver. You gave my daughter Kendra the love of a grandfather she needed. Letting her know she had a grandfather was a blessing. Oh you should have seen the look on her face when I told her grandpa Zac is dead. You had man time with Dan. You let me shave your hair that you had not shaved for years. How you thought you looked twenty years younger and you could not wait to see if lawyer Elad would recognize you upon your return to Cameroon. We talked about your diabetes and how you should remember it is a maintanace illness. The better you take care of yourself, the longer you will live a good long life. I assured you it was not going to be easy because you had to make lots of life style changes. We worked on different ways to check your blood sugar; above all I told you I knew you could do it.

 

Uncle, as the Lord does things you visited again in 2007 and attended my sister-in-law's funeral in Maryland and was privileged to see my son, Stephan whom I was pregnant with during your visit in 2005. Thank God for you. There are so many good times and bad times that life has brought forth our way but the memories we shared will live for ever.

 

Uncle, I heard of your last days of sickness and spoke with Embelle upon her return during your hospitalization and was told you were doing better but you had to keep taking your medications. Uncle, I do not want to dwell on those last days but keep the precious good memories alive. Oh my dearest Uncle Zac, I can go on and on, even to the point of writing a book on our times together, which I know you would love to read, but no I will leave you to rest. I know this is your time to rest and the good Lord will want that for you. Uncle you were a true patriarch of this family.

 

God has a purpose for everyone of us in this life and you have completed yours. It was a job well done.

Uncle, rest and remain pain free. May your soul find peace in the sight of the Lord who gave you to us until we meet again to part no more!

 

We love you and will miss you.

 

Your Niece-- Stella Hegngi Essim. 

 (2 Timothy 4:7)

"I HAVE FOUGHT THE GOOD FIGHT, I HAVE FINISHED THE RACE, I HAVE KEPT THE FAITH."

Our beloved Uncle Zac, you came, you saw, you achieved and you conquered. Uncle Zac, you were a unifying factor of the Njeuma family. I remember when you came to bury your late sister, Mrs. Christiana Njeuma Adu in Lagos, Nigeria. I remember how you made out time in Summer 2005 and visited all the Njeuma grand and great-grand children in USA and beyond. In so many ways that are not recorded, you displayed the fact that you are the Patriarch of the Njeumas. The Njeuma family and in-laws have lost a great brother, father, husband, uncle, grandfather, great-grandfather and friend.

As a Professor in History, Cameroon has lost a great man and historian. To all scholars of History in West Africa and abroad, one of the greatest contributors has been lost. His journey has impacted the lives of many and the depth of this scholar will forever be appreciated by many across all walks of life.

Our consolation is that you are resting with God, your Creator. Uncle Zac, rest in peace. It is our prayer that GOD will keep you in His bosom, where you would find eternal rest, joy and peace forever. May your soul and the souls of all the faithful departed rest in Perfect Peace. Amen.

 

Your Niece – Olga Masee Njee Okafor

Dear Uncle Zac, When I lived with you, Aunty Limunga, Embelle, and Christine, as a teenager in Yaounde, I remember how welcome you always made me feel. I was treated as part of your family, too. When I heard you'd passed on, I smiled..because I always remember your warm and catching smile; then I laughed, a hearty laughter to myself...because your observations always seemed to make people laugh with you - happiness came naturally to you; but now I cry and I weep at the loss of a genuinely nice man. A kind and unassuming gentleman, who was never too busy to ask about one's day : "Miss Mamue, how was your day at school today?" I never quite got round to letting you know what an impact you made on me, all those years ago. Uncle Zac, you made even the most nervous youngster relax in your company...it was never difficult to be myself around you. I really liked being in your company, even when you thought that " if Didy and I were not twins, people would have thought that [I] were fulani"!! Bless you Uncle Zac, you were a fun uncle, and I will always cherish your kind acceptance of all people, regardless of their status. Remain forever happy. I will never forget your kindness to me, when I lived in your home as a girl. With much love and respect. Your "Miss Mamue"