REMEMBERING A SWEET, BELOVED BROTHER.

Your memory is a blessing.Though you are no more your memory still lives on.I am always grateful to God for having such a good and lovely brother like you in the journey of life.

You were a rare gem, with a heart of gold.

Yes, we shall sleep but not ever.

There will be a glorious morn.

We shall meet to part no, never on the resurrection day.

IT IS WELL.

Ivan was my high-school classmate at St Augustine's Grammar School, Nkwerre.  I remember him as a talented fine artist. But most importantly, he was a very passionate Christian brother.  During our time at SAGS, a group of Christian brothers in Scripture Union took possession of a small building at the edge of the school campus.  In this building we lived and huddled together as a family and prayed without ceasing as we tried to evangelize the school.  Ivan was a gentle, quiet but powerful soul.  It's been nearly 50 years since then but I still remember him by a powerful gospel song that he really loved to sing (Chukwu biko nye m Ike Gi or God Please Give me Your Strength). In this song, Ivan asks God to give him the type of strength and faith He gave to Ezekiel, which enabled Ezekiel  ( see Ezekiel 37) to prophesy over dry  bones, giving  them breath to live again.  By  this Faith and Strength, Ivan will resurrect again in the last day.  Meanwhile his beautiful soul finally rests in the Lord, awaiting resurrection.  Please accept my sympathy and be assured that our brother only transitioned.  Ivan still lives, and we that trust in Christ's redemption will see our brother again! Praise God!

I Lost a beloved brother and friend in Ivan. Ivan Nworie was sharp, witty, cynical, and wickedly funny. A committed Christian, he never missed an opportunity to be irreverent when necessary, ...directing his wittiest quips at pretentious clergy.

A visiting Evangelist from Overseas was the key speaker/teacher at a retreat that Ivan had been attending (circa 1973). Outraged at some of this Minister’s teachings, Ivan left the retreat, traveled miles by bus to my house to persuade me to come hear and question the man. “He must not go unchallenged” Ivan insisted. We arrived at the venue as the Evangelist was fervently urging the attendees to call upon the name of the Lord to open their nostrils to smell the presence of the Holy Ghost. Well, that was enough for me. He got challenged and could not produce a single scriptural reference to support his rubbish. He was done.

Rather pugnacious when affronted, Ivan always had an ear for this friend when called to carpet. Of all the friends I had the privilege of making in Boarding School, Ivan was the most complex. For that, he was beloved and shall be dreadfully missed.

Salute, my friend.

From Dr. Augustine Akalonu via Facebook

The first time I met Bro Ivan Nworie was in 1997, in Maryland, when I immigrated to the USA with my family. He already knew my late husband from their high school days, as they had attended the same high school (St Augustine’s Grammar School, Nkwere, Orlu), in Imo State, Nigeria. By 2004, we were living in Minnesota, and my husband and I came back to Maryland for our son’s graduation. We arrived at night, and the place where we were going to stay fell through. My husband called Ivan and asked whether we could stay with them. He graciously accepted, so we drove to their place, where he lived with his then wife, Linda and their little daughter Chinasa. We stayed with them for about 3 days, and they made us feel very welcome, despite the fact that there was no prior notice. I was impressed with their hospitality and generosity, and Ivan took the time to reminisce with my husband over their school days and current lives, despite being busy with his Nursing training. That was the last time I saw him, but he communicated with my husband -Professor Leonard C. Onyiah- by phone, from time to time, until my husband passed away last year. He will really be missed. Bro Ivan, rest in peace.  

From Constance Onyiah (Aunty)

 Beloved, Rest in peace. We shall one day meet to part no more. I love you dearly. It's your beloved sister in-law.

Your death was so shocking to me uncle. May your soul rest in peace. We will all miss u😢

I have many many MANY stories to share about my dad and I'm not sure why this is the one that comes to mind to share first. These memories swirl around in my head constantly these days.... Maybe because I am 24, entering a time in my life where I am feeling a need to be connected to someone- emotionally. Entering a phase where I am excited/eager to find a husband to spend my life with. The past few years as I have started dating and such, I have been very displeased with the people I am meeting. For some reason.... I find it extremely hard to meet someone I can connect with on ANY level. I asked my dad a few months ago why he never discussed men with me... relationships/marriage, boyfriends etc. He never brought it up. He said that this is one of those areas of life where he had no doubts that I was wise enough to figure it out on my own. He would ask every other year if I had a boyfriend and the answer has always been (and is still) no. I guess I am realizing the reason why I'm having trouble is because my father set the highest standard for how I should be treated- for how I should be loved. How I deserve to be loved. He quite literally set the bar in heaven for me. Unsurprisingly, I have yet to find someone who can measure up to my dad in that way- I hope one day I will but I don't know if it is possible. This is a story of one of the days where I realized just how far his love for me could and would go. He always said "I love you" after phone calls and when I left him, etc. But these days I am remembering the times that he SHOWED me he loved me in addition to just saying it.

This was the end of my sophomore year in college- beginning of my junior year. Two years prior he had gotten me a Macbook Pro through a discount program from his job, and had it sent directly to my freshman dorm- a computer I had longed and begged for for years. I never expected him to buy me one. If you knew my dad well after he came to the US- he was technology obsessed. He learned how to build computers from scratch, and he dabbled in computer programming as well. I inherited that from him. He taught me how to use computers, how to download/upload, how to use firmware, how to identify malware, how to upgrade the computer OS, etc etc, at a very young age. As an only child the only games I had fun playing were computer games.... from Pinball to Pajama Sam, Spy Fox, Carmen Sandiego & other CD-ROMs that I still have to this day. My computer savvy is all thanks to his efforts with me as a kid. He joked in the past few years that I had taken over for him- he often called me over to help him set up or fix something on his iPhone or desktop. He always complained that Apple products were too expensive and I agreed and understood that we couldn't afford it. Like I said, NEVER expected him to buy me any of that. Out of respect, I never asked. But he got me what I wanted anyway. I carried it with me everywhere (quite literally- as a college student). Then, at the end of my sophomore year in a stupid and preventable accident- I spilled an entire cup of water on my computer and destroyed it with water damage. It was still functional but had severe damage and would not work unless it was constantly attached to the power cord. As a child, if I ever destroyed any of my toys or broke them my parents would never replace them. It never really upset me as a child too much, and now I understand why..The philosophy behind this was- they were trying to teach me the importance of taking care of my belongings and the things that matter to me. Being careful. Obviously since I broke the toy- it wasn't important to me. So why do I need another? I thought that when I broke my computer I would get the same response. I was devastated..... but I accepted the responsibility for my foolish mistake. I planned to save up my money from school jobs to eventually be able to afford to fix or replace it. To this DAY I don't drink uncovered liquids near my computer- in fact it is because of this tragic event that I exclusively drink from water bottles & hydroflasks even at home. When I told him what happened he asked if I needed to replace the Mac and I lied and said no. I didn't want him to worry and I didn't want him to spend all that money we didn't have. At that time, his job had been cutting his hours and offering much less overtime....I would never ask my parents for expensive things as I got older because I finally understood that we just didn't have the money and that's mainly why I didn't always get what I wanted as a kid. Tbh, I was fine with that. I wasn't an ungrateful child & he taught me from a young age that material gifts can still be devoid of value. I was always happy with my 2-3 Christmas gifts... in fact I was always ELATED to have received anything at all. I was still able to do my schoolwork on the broken Mac and at the end of the day that's what mattered. One day this summer 2016... he called me up and told me to come see him. I headed to his place and we went straight to the Apple store. He bought me a brand new MacBook Pro that day, despite my insistence that he save his money. I told him it's fine, dad... It's my fault so I'll just work until I can fix it. When I saw the bill at checkout I tried to stop him. I asked him what about you? How will you pay rent? What happens if you need emergency money? He just shook his head & told me it's okay, Princess. You deserve it, it's not your fault. Accidents happen. I walked out of the store that day with a brand spanking new computer- In fact, i'm typing this story on it right now. I know he sees now that it was a good investment- none of the PCs he bought me ever lasted this long. I thanked him so many times that day and over the years and I still feel I didn’t thank him enough. He did not have to buy me this computer. I told him I didn’t need it. I urged him not to buy it. But he knew how much I wanted it and he knew how upset I was about breaking my computer… so he just bought it for me. Just like that- snap of the fingers- no questions asked, no stipulations. I really don’t know where or how he found the money to pay for it… but I assume he took it out of his savings for me. It meant the world to me and still means the world. Not because it’s a Mac or because of the price tag or any of that. It’s because he showed me this day as he always ALWAYS did that he could and would do ANYthing just to make me happy. No matter how big or how small the thing is. THAT’S the love I need and the love I deserve. I hope with God’s guidance and with my dad… my second heavenly father… watching over me and guiding my heart as well- I will find someone who could love me at least half as much as he did. 

Hearing this news came as a shock to me. I just couldn't place my hands to the fact that I wouldn't get to see my Uncle ever for the last time you came to Nigeria;  I was a baby. I don't really know what to say but I loved the fact that you tried your best to keep in touch with your family and you fought very hard. You're a Great Man Sir.  Rest in God's Bosom.

Through his Fine Arts class, Mr. Ngoka taught his Saint Augustine’s Grammar School students deep appreciation for shape, dimension, proportion, and complexity as common characteristics of both natural objects and those that owe their existence to human design. Above all, our esteemed instructor worked tirelessly to instill in us the twin habit of self-discipline and mental concentration both necessary to achieve accurate representation of objects through painting and drawing.

To the best of my recollection, Ivan Nworie was among the best, if not the very best of our 1970-74 cohort, in terms of his ability to meet Mr. Ngoka’s rigorous standards. You could see the budding artist in him — soft-spoken, very clean, quiet without being a push-over, and doggedly focused. It was almost impossible to distract Ivan when he was painting or drawing. The final products of his drawings were exceptionally tidy and almost picture-perfect. He was so good at what we called “shading” in Fine Arts class to the extent that he literally used pencil to make the objects of his drawings to come alive. Notably, Ivan was a well-rounded student as evidenced by his excellent performance in other subjects.

As an active member if the Scriptural Union (SU), Ivan further distinguished himself as both a role model and a leader in the context of SAGS student Christian groups. Along with Charles Agbasimelo, Ben Nwaneri and others, Ivan helped to organize evening prayers at the school Chapel. Thanks to his active involvement in the religious aspect of SAGS student life, he had a critical impact on the social climate that shaped our development as young people in those memorable post-civil war years at Saint Augustine.

Despite the fact that we never ran into each other after our graduation in 1974, l retain vivid memory of lvan as a consummate SAGS student - tidy from head to toe, self-confident, smart, disciplined, and forward-looking. May his gentle spirit rest in peace. Amen.

Professor Osita G. Afoaku - SAGS Class of 1974

Dear Sir.

Words are not enough to really express your person indeed. One thing I knew for sure was that you were a rare gift from heaven. 

You were much more than a father, friend and a comfort to all. I won't forget in a haste how I longed to see you and how it felt seeing you finally. These are indelible memories.

I still recall how despite the distance barrier, you'd still call, send texts and schedule videos just so you can encourage me and make sure that I really stood strong and that I made sure I did all I can to be in a capacity where I'll be a blessing to my family, generation and society at large.

It's truly not easy compiling these words as it's quite a big deal trying to gather them all together (which ones would be written and which ones would be left aside?). It's also somehow difficult comprehending this phase without you again. However, I'm just consoled by the knowledge that you lived a good and honest life. And as Dr. Myles Munroe would say, "you truly died empty", and for this, I'm deeply grateful to God. Yours was a life well spent and poured out. 

I'd like to see this as a celebration indeed. Honestly, I know this rest is just for a while till our Father comes again where we'll meet to part no more. 

Rest on gallant soldier. 

EVER LOVED, CHERISHED AND FONDLY REMEMBERED: Ivan, it's painful for me to be scripting this epithaph for you. I was hoping that there would be an opportunity for all the pilgrims to meet again on this side of eternity before the Great Day. Our days at SAGS were full of excitement because of your humour, candour, transparency and grit. For me ,who looked, fragile and vulnerable, you were my Man Friday; and with your ramrod features, I felt secure and safe from the assaults of the hostile environment that was bent on crushing the SU boys. Ivan, you were very strong as an ox, why couldn't you win this battle for us who loved you much? Your nickname for me was " Abankiliwanso" a Swahili catchphrase for " tiger". We spoke last in Feb ,2020 . It was Dr Akalonu that arranged the chat. You were in your elements and I asked you if there were some "nkwu" in US. You screamed wondering how I was able to remember the proverbial word. Comrade in arms, we miss you but commend you to our eternal God who will eventually gather us at the Bema. Good night great knight of the shining amour. Comrade in arms, Professor( Pastor) Uzoma Nwolokoro Ogbonna.

I was so sorry to hear about Ivan's passing. He was such a great Uncle and a Great helper person.

Ivan was always made aware of those  who were hurting as he felt it in his spirit. There were many strangers he met who were in need, and we discussed how best to help. If we could not help financially we helped with our time or talent.   He always encouraged young people to succeed and he kept them “in line” on his job as a Psychiatric Nurse ,as he reminded them that they were there to serve and help others. The lessons which he instilled in others especially our daughter will never be forgotten. 

Rest my love, you will be greatly missed but your legacy lives on. 

I was [sad ] when I heard the news of Ivan's passing.

I do not know where and how to begin to tell of my OWN LOVELY BIG BROTHER."Dee Ihe'acho as we, the younger siblings call him is "ONE BROTHER IN A MILLION". His love for all knows no bounds.He was very friendly, caring and empathetic.Bro Ivan hates to hear or see people suffer.He abhors injustice and hypocrisy, and distances himself from all forms of evil.. Above all,bro Ivan was a true and sincere born-again Christian, always heavenly conscious.He never relented in admonishing and encouraging us to be strong in our faith in God.His faith in God was so strong that even all through his trying period,he never forget to tell me to keep faith in God, and to continue to pray without ceasing.And to advise all my siblings NEVER to forget God but to totally give our lives to Christ.                                       To God I say, thank you for giving us a lovely brother like Brother Ivan Iheanacho Onyemauchechukwu Nworie.                                            .                          IT IS WELL..TO GOD BE ALL THE GLORY...                                                                     "Sleep on beloveth brother, sleep and take thy rest.Lay down thy head upon thy Saviour's breast;we love thee well, but Jesus loves thee best.       GOODNIGHT!GOODNIGHT!! GOODNIGHT!!!

I thank the Almighty and Everlasting God for thy servant IVAN IHEANACHO NWORIE for the hallowed recollection about his life.

Bro Ivan is humane, selfless and filled with kindness and love for all.

He always encouraged us to be focused as success through God lies ahead and is sure. His itinerary is a proof of his doggedness and hard work which I see as a handout to us.

He was not afraid to die as he told us because he lived a successful life in the Lord.

Rest on bro Ivan till we meet again.

I was so sorry to hear about uncle Ivan's passing. He was such a kind, loving, and giving person.  I am so proud to have had him as an uncle.  He would visit us from time to time when I was a kid.  His visits were always much anticipated because he would play with us and shower us with love and attention.  When I grew up, he continued showing me that love through many acts of kindness.  He is unique and irreplaceable.  We miss him.  Our prayers are with his family especially Chinasa and my auntie Linda, his brothers and extended family trying to figure out how to handle this loss.  May God comfort everyone.

Ivan is one of such rare and gifted persons whose disposition to life both in good and bad times, challenge and encourage us.

Ivan lived a uniquely kind and compassionate life. He sought out ways to help people. He was gentle and friendly to all. He was strong and hardworking. 

Ivan fought hard to overcome vicissitudes of life. He was never daunted by whatever fiery darts that life threw at him. He overcame.

He faithfully served God till his last breath.

We miss you and will ever miss you.

Adieu brother. Rest in peace till we meet again.

Ivan was the most wonderful dad anyone could ask for. He instilled so many things into his Princess Nasa. The main thing is love for God, kindness to others no matter if they are poor or rich. One thing also he instilled in her is not to believe everything you hear until it is proven true.
He like myself, was a giver and had compassion and love for God’s people. He would give anyone who needed it the shirt off his back.
Acts of kindness: making sure that the poorest children in my daughter’s classes had food to eat by giving it anonymously to the families. He had an ear for hurting hearts.

Thank you Ivan for your kindness and the strength you have instilled in our daughter.
This and you will live on in her forever .