ON SUNDAY, December 17, the family of J.K. Randle held the 61st thanksgiving and memorial service in honour of their late father. The event, which took place at the Cathedral Church of Christ, Marina, Lagos, attracted family members, friends and well-wishers.

At the occasion, his son, J.K. Randle, former chairman, KPMG Nigeria, said his father would always be remembered for his selfless service to the nation and generosity. He described the death of his father when he was only 12 years old as devastating although he is very appreciative the whole of Lagos came to his rescue. This, he said, necessitated the yearly memorial service as an avenue to thank those that came to the family’s assistance when his father left the world in 1956.

“He had only two of us, myself and my junior sister. It was a great shock when he died. The whole of Lagos, which was about 400,000 in population with everyone like one family came to my rescue because his death was least expected. And what we are doing today is one of the ways to show our gratitude to the people of Lagos for their kindness and generosity to the family after his death.

“My father would always be remembered for his philanthropy. He was concerned that education should not be for Christians alone but also for the Moslems, which led to some Moslem schools being named after him. He served the country, corporate bodies and also left a legacy for Nigerian youths to emulate,” he said.

Late J.K. Randle died on December 17, 1956, shortly after his return from Melbourne, Australia, as Chef-de-Mission of the Nigerian Olympic Team. Below are faces at the event.

– Dec. 18, 2017 @ 17:20 GMT |