By Izunna Okafor, Awka
A solemn sad story has emerged from Anambra State following the demise of a physically challenged mother of two, Agaezichi Oliver Joy.
Joy reportedly passed away over the weekend in a health facility in Awka, Anambra State capital after a brief illness.
Sharing the sad news of her death in a post on social media, a netizen, Chigozie Effe, said the late single Joy had recently been supported with a small business set-up and community backing to help her care for her children after the absence of her husband.
Joy, who lived with spinal muscular atrophy (a debilitating genetic condition that left her largely unable to walk) had earlier captured hearts on social media when her resilience and determination were spotlighted. This strong-willed woman, according to Effe, had just days before her death recorded a video escorting her children to school, proud of her role as a mother and provider.
This was also corroborated videos seen on her Facebook wall, showing her in various activities, both alone and together with her children, including videos of where she’s sampling her stocks and business, seeking for support and grant, where she’s playing with and celebrating her children’s birthdays — all done in wheelchair. She was selling kuilikuili, crayfish, egwusi seed, snail, stock fish, smoked fish, rice, garri, among other food items.
Joy’s story first went viral sometime in January 2021, when she celebrated her first baby’s three-month birthday with a touching post on Facebook, which attracted the reactions of users across the platform, who responded with admiration, encouragement, and emotional support, inspired by how she refused to let physical limitations define her purpose.
Although, she was born with her condition, Joy never let the physical impairment to hold her down. Instead, she carved out a life full of dignity and ambition.
She was an alumnus of Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, where she studied History and International Relations. According to the various interviews she gave, she never saw her disability as a barrier to achieving her dreams but rather as a motivation to push harder, not just for herself but for her children.
In conversations shared previously with media outlets, Joy revealed that she met her partner on Facebook. She also described giving birth to her son as one of her greatest achievements, calling it a “divine mystery” given her physical challenges.
Although her journey was marked by physical struggle, long hospital visits, mobility issues, and dependence on others for daily tasks, Joy remained optimistic and never gave in to self-pity. She once noted how she was sometimes ignored by medical staff because of her disability, but she persisted, protected by her faith and her belief in her own worth.
Although, the details of her brief illness and the exact medical cause of death are yet to be ascertained as at the time of filing this report, her death has attracted reactions, mentions, and outpouring of condolences of her friends and well-wishers, including members of the Mercy Project UK, which had supported her.
Joy reportedly died as a single parent.
Following her passing, she leaves behind her two little children — a male (Ikembuchukwu) and a female (Mmasinachukwu).
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