Person of the Year
Oluwamayowa Idowu: Stephen Sutton. Diagnosed with cancer at the age of 15 and informed that his cancer would be terminal, he resolved not to wallow in self pity but do something significant to inspire a generation and fight cancer. He shared his story with the public which was the most uplifting thing he could do. He called attention to his A level results to show people what they could achieve with hard work, even at their lowest points. He had grades that would have earned him a place on some of the best Medicine courses but Fate had other plans. He raised funds for the Teenage Cancer Trust and constantly surpassed the targets he set for himself. What started with a target of £10,000 ended up going past £4,000,000. Everyone wanted to identify with him. Ed Milliband and David Cameron visited him and had nothing but kind words. Celebrities weren’t just after him for good press. They were genuinely touched. The comedian, Jason Manford organized a gig to aid Sutton’s cause that sold out in 4 minutes and was able to use his social media reach to aid the fund raising drive. He said “That boy deserves the world”.
“The idea of raising money, he explained, came when he was told his initial bowel cancer had spread to his pelvis and lymph nodes and was now incurable, with his demise inevitable but impossible to predict in terms of time. He told the paper: “That’s when I stopped measuring life in terms of time and started measuring it in terms of what I could actually do.”
There was no bitterness over the fact that he had initially been misdiagnosed which perhaps robbed him of a better shot at treatment. In a year in which Pharell’s ‘Happy’ was ruling the airwaves, Stephen Sutton was positivity unbridled.. When what we all knew was coming came in May, we cried as a nation but were reminded of what could happen when good people do good things.
On the Nigerian front, my person of the year is Dr Ameyo Adadevoh. Some acts are perfect because the ultimate beauty lies in simplicity. Sacrificing one’s self for the greater good is the type of thing we all preach of but would struggle to do. When Patrick Sawyer, the Ebola index case threatened to leave the hospital where he was being kept, Dr Adadevoh was the one who after correctly diagnosing him stood her ground in the face of pressure from Liberian authorities to release him and kept him in isolation. It was in the cause of this, that she came in contact with the virus that would cause her death. She still emerged as the ultimate heroine because she played the most significant role in ensuring the virus didn’t spread. Dr Adadevoh saved our lives.
Amaka Onyemenam: Vincent Enyeama
The man was incredible at the World Cup this year!!
That is all!
Temitayo Ayorinde: Jesse Williams. I don’t like Grey’s or anything he does but he’s super mainstream and has a voice when it comes to race issues. He’s also beautiful (my girlfriend typed the last sentence).
Demola Fashola: Taylor Swift. I genuinely think she’s blossoming into a genuinely awesome version of herself. Her new album is a solid endeavor in pop music and she’s been killing it everywhere she’s gone. Plus it doesn’t hurt that she can pass for a Victoria’s Secret Model.