Amarch Abaye: A Mother for All
Tragedy struck Yemi’s family in 1990 when her father died in a car accident, leaving her mother, Amarch Abaye, widowed with Yemi and her five siblings.
The youngest, Tamerat, had severe epilepsy and needed around-the-clock care, but Amarch Abaye refused to put him into an institution. She was determined to fulfill her responsibility as his mother, sacrificing her own education to do so.
In fact, Amarch Abaye sacrificed most of her social life for her children, only attending church, visiting people in the hospital, and attending funerals. Despite being a caregiver, she found time to feed lunch to about 20 people every day. Everyone was family to her.
Yemi is convinced that her mother’s strength came from her faith. She would pray for two hours every day and attend church in the early hours of the morning.
After Tamerat died, Amarch Abaye felt alone, since the other children had all left home. Yemi tried to brighten her mother’s life by decorating the house, but still her mother felt lonely. To honor her son, Amarch Abaye would serve coffee and snacks to disabled people on the street. Even at 75, she couldn’t slow down.
Yemi was worried. “Mom,” she said, “you can’t open your house to everyone like that. Someone might rob you.”
Amarch Abaye was angry — serving others was her source of inspiration and energy. So Yemi found another solution: She set up an area outside where her mother could feed others without bringing them into the main house.
Yemi, who was 39 at the time, wanted to do more for her mother, so she adopted five children. This fulfilled Yemi’s dream of having an orphanage and gave Amarch Abaye a renewed sense of purpose. A local leader was so impressed with the situation that he offered Yemi 2,000 square feet of land to start a children’s home. While it wasn’t the right time, this was a testament to Amarch Abaye’ influence.
Sadly, Amarch Abaye died from Covid-19 in 2020. Her daughters moved into her house to care for the children, aged 9 to 21. Despite restrictions on gatherings because of the pandemic, more than 2,000 people attended her funeral. Everyone wanted to pay their respects to a woman who served as mother to all.
Describing her mother, Yemi says, “By never giving up on God, she was able to bring comfort to other people’s lives.”
FFA has been supporting Yemi as she struggles to overcome numerous health issues.