By JOSEPHINE IGBINOVIA

Mrs.Motunlayo Adefunke Sofowote is a woman of many parts who continually strives towards perfection, and also advocates others to do same. She is a singer, an author of several books, an artiste, among others. The 65-year-old Mrs. Sofowote who hails from Yewa South in Ogun State is the CEO of Glowing Channels Foundation and Glowing Channels Ventures. Lately, she has also gone into the manufacturing of what she calls ‘Titilaiyelaiye Greeting Cards.’ Vista Woman was with her recently.  Hear her:

‘I was born in Jos, but grew up in Lagos because my mother who was a teacher decided at a point to stop moving around with my father who was frequently on transfer because of his job as a railway official.

She decided to settle in Lagos. She, however, had to move later to Ilaro upon being appointed the first Vice-Principal of the Egbado Teacher Training College, Ilaro.

After my secondary school education at the Abeokuta Girls’ Grammar School where my set formed the foundation students of the school, I went to the Ibadan Grammar School for my HSC. I, however, didn’t finish that because I thought I had had enough of  academics, because of my mother’s strict attitude about our studies.

Right from our primary school days, after going through our results, she would flog us mercilessly according to the total sum of the reds on our score-sheets. I’m, however, grateful to her  today for that. I later worked briefly with the Ministry of Finance, and then the Royal Exchange Assurance. After a long while, I joined the West African Book Publishers in Ilupeju, Lagos, where I also later met my husband.

At that time, he was the first person to anchor a photo-play magazine in Nigeria. Lest I forget, I attended the Ibadan Technical College (now the University of Ibadan), where I did Secretarial Studies on a scholarship award programme,after emerging first in a national examination which served the purpose of JAMB at that time. Upon graduation, I worked with Neimeth Pharmaceutical Plc (formerly Pfizer Pharmaceutical). After that, I joined UAC. I later became a consultant in charge of all the company’s magazines. I did that for years.

After I got married and started having children, I decided to devote my time to taking care of my children. My children and I are friends today. I made time for them, and I was there for them at all times. And, for me, that is one thing that the average Nigerian woman should do. The character a child exhibits when he is at age five is what will carry him all through his life. So, mothers must be home to teach their child good values.

I’m advocating strongly that our women should try to make out time for their children, no matter how demanding their jobs may be.

Children are special gifts from the Lord, and we have a responsibility for them. Don’t  leave your child to just anybody to take care of for you. I am very grateful that I was home for my children. I did it without even knowing why I did it!  It was at a time I had my secretarial bureau.

Executives  forming new companies but who couldn’t afford personal assistants and confidential secretaries came to my house where I had a cubicle with a dictating machine, for their letters and I then transcribed.

The enterprise was known as Funmi Technique. That was what I did all through when my children were growing up.  When my kids were mature enough, I went for a Diploma programme in Print Medium at the University of Lagos. That was my 40th anniversary birthday gift for myself.

Glowing Channels was established on March 9, 1998, and, it was basically for charity and for uplifting music to a very high pedestal, because I realised that music has been dragged down the mud. It no longer gives that refreshing effect. Music has become bastardised!

Entertainment has been the platform used by people to drag music down, and I have decided that the same entertainment is what I will use to take music back to its pedestal. I established Glowing Channels for three reasons; one was for bringing music back to its lost pedestal, two was because virtually everybody in my home is an artiste, (we all perform, sing, write, compose, etc),  and I thought it was wise for us to have a platform on which we could come out to entertain people at least once a year.

The third reason was that the last person I worked with as a Secretary, Chief Adeyemi Lawson, was an outstanding human being. Hence I decided to do this in his memory, and put whatever money we make out of the Glowing Channels series of concert into charity in his honour. And, that is what I’ve been doing since 1998.

Every year, our huge concert has become a diary event for so many people. From 1998 to 2008, we were holding this concert at the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos, and since 2009, we’ve been using the University of Lagos auditorium.

Apart from the charity aspect of Glowing Channels which is now the Glowing Channels Foundation, we also have the Glowing Channels Ventures in which I have been training people for over four years now. I actually facilitate classes for the Fate Foundation on business and social etiquette, as well as business communication and business conversation. In December 2009, they gave me an award as one of their outstanding volunteers in recognition of my input.

Recently, I looked round, and from my various experiences and interaction with people, I found out that we are virtually becoming programmed machines. We hardly find time to really sit down and bring out worthwhile vibrations from our real being to touch other lives. The humanity I find around me is gradually collapsing. There is no warmth or value!

What really hit me was that I was now beginning to get invitations to weddings through GSM. And, I said ‘Excuse me, this is getting too far!’ You want me to attend your wedding, and you cannot even send a wedding invitation card? Why?

We have now become deletable because when you have too many text messages in your phone at one point in time, you delete! We are in serious trouble because from where this GSM and technology come, they are still human beings.

You will be amazed at the number of greeting cards the American Greetings and Hallmark turn out every year! Even as they do their e-cards, they still have their hard copy cards. But, for us, we take things at the extreme, and I am alarmed! Hence I decided to ask us to please, stop and reflect, by going into the manufacturing of cards, because we are really damaging relationships! I leave the inside of these cards blank because I want people to bring out something from their own particular essence, and express them.

You must learn to express yourself in verbal English; not GSM or text message English. Because I love photography, with my camera, I went on snapping whatever gives me joy which can be transferred to whoever also looks at it.

With these pictures, I personally design these cards which I call  ‘Titilaiyelaiye Cards, and I do them in such a way that they can outlast any occasion. These cards can also be used as interior decorations because they can be framed. They are printed overseas with high quality materials, and the response from the public has been great.’