Osaze Osifo - Online Memorial Website

Osaze

Words fail me. It’s been very difficult to get myself to put pen to paper….

I remember when you hired me, I was a little apprehensive about working with you. However with each passing day and over the years, I admired and respected you more. You desired excellence and always had a sense of urgency to things. You always expected results but that’s because your mind was so quick! You could spot an error a mile off…

Among your many qualities was a great sense of patriotism - I would dream up ways of “restructuring taxes” but your standard response? “Mrs Taylaur, pay Lagos State their taxes o!” – Nigeria needs more people like you Osaze.

Most importantly though, you were such a compassionate person – you always put family first, and always had a lot of time for sob stories that involved family obligations – one of the reasons you could work with a team of women… you really were Mr. Nice Guy but didn’t want people to catch on! How many times would I say “Osaze, thank you!”, your response? … “Mrs Taylaur, jo jo jo..” On the flip side, you would say “thanks a lot” for the smallest things.

You worked so hard, so very hard. I learnt a whole lot from you!

Rest Osaze, now you can rest… We will always celebrate your life and the privilege of having known you.

May your soul rest in perfect peace and may God comfort your family during this very difficult time.

Ijeoma Taylaur

Osaze,

I can not thank you enough for the impact you unknowingly made on me and my life as I now know it (esp. post 2006).

You were a wonderful role model, a steady boss and taught me my very first lessons on tenacity in Lagos.

I wish I could tell you now how grateful I am that our lives crossed when they did. 

Working with you helped me grow and probably revealed the most important and potent traits in me which continue to serve me in my daily work and personal pursuits today

I thank God that you were.
I will miss you.
Rest well Osaze.
Till when.....


THANK YOU OSAZE. 

Ugoma (the weird one)
 

'Youth that trafficked long with Death,
   And to second life returns,
Squanders little time or breath
   On his fellow--man's concerns.
Earned peace is all he asks
To fulfill his broken tasks.'

Rudyard Kipling - The Expert (Extract)
 
Many who knew you would use the word 'focused' to describe you. For me the above stanza from Kipling's poem best descibes how you featured in my life and those of others. Not a second of your life was squandered, you found and yes earned peace and fullfillment by conceiving, creating and building in ways that pushed others to places they thought unattainable. 

I will miss the many hours spent discussing, debating comparing our chosen paths and how best to acheive our goals, many of them shared. We were probabaly more similar than we realised my brother. As I write this I am reminded of another of Kipling's more famous pieces: 

'If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;...

If you can dream -- and not make dreams your master;
If you can think -- and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;..'

Rudyard kipling - If (Extract) 

You truly were a leader with vision, a risk taker, a believer that you could make a difference. And for all of this, it would be easy to think that all of this energy had no higher purpose but that would be wrong, for the Osaze I know, while driven to succeed had time for family, for friends and for me. You once said to me 'do you notice that as you get older the first thing you ask your contemporaries is how are their families and not how is business?' It gave me pause for thought for what is the point of it all if not for the benefit of others. You were a people man at heart.

Your life made its mark. I will miss you dearly. 

RIP
 

'Youth that trafficked long with Death,
   And to second life returns,
Squanders little time or breath
   On his fellow--man's concerns.
Earned peace is all he asks
To fulfill his broken tasks.'

Rudyard Kipling - The Expert (Extract)
 
Many who knew you would use the word 'focused' to describe you. For me the above stanza from Kipling's poem best descibes how you featured in my life and those of others. Not a second of your life was squandered, you found and yes earned peace and fullfillment by conceiving, creating and building in ways that pushed others to places they thought unattainable. 

I will miss the many hours spent discussing, debating comparing our chosen paths and how best to acheive our goals, many of them shared. We were probabaly more similar than we realised my brother. As I write this I am reminded of another of Kipling's more famous pieces: 

'If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;...

If you can dream -- and not make dreams your master;
If you can think -- and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;..'

Rudyard kipling - If (Extract) 

You truly were a leader with vision, a risk taker, a believer that you could make a difference. And for all of this, it would be easy to think that all of this energy had no higher purpose but that would be wrong, for the Osaze I know, while driven to succeed had time for family, for friends and for me. You once said to me 'do you notice that as you get older the first thing you ask your contemporaries is how are their families and not how is business?' It gave me pause for thought for what is the point of it all if not for the benefit of others. You were a people man at heart.

Your life made its mark. I will miss you dearly. 

RIP
 

Os, I have held on to my bb lingering on to the last text which you sent on Tuesday hours before your demise which says "Thanks a lot" and wondering what you meant and reading different meanings into it. Your sudden exit came as a rude awakening, hard to comprehend and difficult to rationalise.

You personified a true gentleman, polite, courteous and respectful. Most of all I found you to be a man of integrity who was fair with great intellect and charm. My desire to join you in forming Travant Real Estate was borne out of my admiration for you and respect for you business acumen. Truly be told, you were exceptional. Always coming up with ideas, amazing global contacts and reach, most of all tremendously supportive and with strong desire to make a difference.

Os, Travant lives on no doubt! We are more emboldened by your death certain to ensure your memory lives on. The quality of the company you've created speaks volumes, cannot be compared and shall remain so. 

Like a comet, you came with the speed of light and suddenly disappeared, you achieved great heights, you touched multitudes, you were extremely loyal to your friends to a fault and most of all had an admirable and exhaustive database of friends worldwide.

Ibukun and the kids will be fine no doubt, we shall ensure that, both as friends and through the company. No matter how dark the night, we are assured the day will dawn and nothing will separate them from the love of God.

Thank you for your friendship and God's speed my dear friend.

We are all certain the angels are singing alleluia to your home coming and glad to have you in their presence. Adieu Os, adieu, it is well with you.