This is big news coming from beautiful Lagos celebrity woman, Sisi Modupe Lawale. The news is that she will be 70 in a few days time, on 3rd February 2022.
But she does not look it at all. She still looks refreshingly young. And she has remained as beautiful as ever. She has also been able to maintain her slim figure.
Her initial plan was to celebrate it abroad. She had planned to hold a weekend destination birthday celebration with her friends in the Holyland.
She and her friends had planned to go to Israel for her celebration. The ceremony had been slated to occur in 2 folds: (a) A pilgrimage to Isreal from January 30 to February 8, 2022, during which they will be part of the entourage to visit the Holy Land, pray together and celebrate with her on February 3rd. (b) Vacation in Zanzibar from February 8 to 13, 2022 at Royal Zanzibar Beach Resort where they were to continue the birthday celebrations.
But in view of the global impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, every preparation with respect to the travelling requirements got delayed, most especially the entry into Isreal is yet to be opened and therefore, issuance of entry visas has been suspended temporarily. City People gathered that to this end, the Organising Committee has advised a shift of the date till such a time that every travel requirement is received, to allow safe and fun-filled travelling. Therefore, she will now be celebrating “Modupe Lawale @ 70+” at a new date to be announced.
Right now, she is in a happy mood. She is glowing and her trademark smile is very much intact. We hear the moment she told her friends about the party, they all responded positively with over 80 of her friends and well-wishers paying up for tickets to travel with her to Isreal to celebrate. That blew her mind. She was touched by the kind gesture.
She is well-loved by all her friends because she is always there for them. She loves good parties. And whichever party she attends, she is usually the life of the party, gingering up all her friends, urging them to get up and dance and be merry. By nature, she is a bubbly woman, full of life and always positively-minded. We almost forgot to tell you that she is a great dancer. She loves to dance. A few days ago she spoke to the publisher of City People, SEYE KEHINDE about her life @ 70. Below is her story.
In the next few days, Lagos society woman, Sisi Dupe Lawale will be 70. But she does not look that far gone in age. She has managed to look refreshingly young. She is beautiful. No wonder the appelation, Sisi. She has enjoyed good health. And by nature, she is a happy woman. She believes in the power of positive thinking. So, in her attitude to life, she is always positively minded. She is blessed with a good physique. She is tall and pencil-slim. And she loves to dance at parties. She is one woman who loves to support all her friends. Her being a good-natured person has attracted to her a lot of younger ladies who see her as a role model.
A few days back, City People asked her how she feels turning 70. Her face brightened. She smiled and she immediately gave God the glory. “The lord has been good to me. The lord has really been good to me.” How has the Lord been good to her, we asked. “I have been through a lot in life. I have gone through all the vicissitudes of life and I have come out of it strong. Both in Sickness and in Joy. At 70, when I look back, I thank God. I am here, hale and healthy. I am alive in good health. I am very healthy. I really thank God for that. I am also lucky that I don’t have an ailment that will take my finances off me. I really thank God. I have a good business. It has grown over the years. My business started as a small travel agency in 1990. We got licensed in 1991. From 1991 to date we are still existing.
I really thank God. From there, there was this offshoot of Marine Services, which is a Texas Ferry Service and I happen to be the only woman in that line, in the Ferry Services line, offering Water transportation services from 2004 till date. We have never been involved in any mishap. We really thank God.” Who has influenced her the most of her 2 parents, we asked? She breaks into laughter. “Somehow, it was my dad. My father has really motivated me. He gave me a foundation to build on. He gave me a solid foundation that allowed Christ to live in my life. In anything I do, I think about the goodness of God. There is also this thing that my father keeps saying and I held on to, which was and is still very relevant. My father called me and said: Modupe, I can see that you have so many friends. I want to tell you something. Do not ever put yourself in a position that you will say you are, sorry. I am sorry, to any friend and I said Haaa! Papa! What does this mean? If I offend them, I will say I am sorry.
You don’t need to offend people. Do what is right always. When you do what is right always, you will not have any cause to say you are sorry. So keep that. And I have kept it. So, I try to do what is right always to people. I try not to be involved in a situation where I will be caught in, to say I am sorry. I really thank God for that. So, my father has really influenced me.”
Where was growing up? “I grew up in Yaba. My father then was a Post-Master. At Sabo. From there, I went to Reagan Memorial Baptist Girls Primary and then Secondary School. It was a Baptist School which also laid an additional foundation.”
“I forgot to tell you that I am of the Apostolic Church. My father was a Pastor of the Apostolic Church. My father translated the Redemption Hymnal from English to Yoruba. And that was what we were using in the church then. And I am sure that is what they are still using. His name is Pastor Samson Folorunsho Odunaike from Ijebu-Ode, a royal family from Ijebu-Ode. My mother was Deaconess Florence Ebunoluwa Odunaike, also from Ijebu Ode.”
Everybody who knows Sisi Dupe Lawale knows she loves dancing. How did she develop her love for dancing? “It started from when my father was on the pulpit, he will be singing and dancing. So, I took after my father. Anybody who knew my father in the Apostolic Church will know that Yes, Baba Odunaike was a songwriter, a dancer, and a school teacher, so, I took after him.” Her name Dupe Lawale has grown to become a brand over the years. How did she build her name into a big brand? “I think it is the foundation that I had, a Christian the foundation, which has instilled the fear of God in me, in anything I do,” she explained. Who is Modupe Lawale, we asked her. “Modupe Lawale is simply Modupe Lawale. She is an easy-going person who loves to have people around her, who loves company, good company,” How come everybody likes Modupe Lawale?! “Haa! I don’t know ooo if everybody likes Modupe Lawale? Definitely, there will be some people who won’t like Dupe Lawale” (laughs) Who are her heroes? My hero was my father. And my late brother, Dr Samson Segun Odunaike, of the Foursquare Gospel Church. They are my heroes”. When she was planning the birthday party, what went through her mind? “A lot of things. Many don’t know the real Dupe Lawale. I like to party. I like to dance. I like good parties. But I don’t like to be celebrated. I like a very quiet life. That is why over the years, I have never been celebrated. You cannot hear that Dupe Lawale organised 30th, 40th, 50th. Even my 60th was done by very few people. And it was a surprise. So, this 70th, I thought about it, and I felt because of God’s faithfulness in my life, that I need to go away to Israel. I have never been to Israel. Although as a travel agent and I have been booking people to travel to Israel, for years. I have never been there and I thought Yes it will be a nice thing to have my family & friends around me, for us to go and celebrate, my platinum year, 70 is a platinum year in Israel and to do the spiritual part in Israel, and after a few days (about 7 days) we would move to Zanzibar to the social part. That was what I had planned. But God knows it all. The pandemic and the recent OMICRON had prevented Israel from welcoming visitors. So, we have had to postpone. We would still go”. What are the things that life has taught her at 70?
“Life has taught me not to trust anybody. I have been through a lot. I am too trusting. That is why I have been caught in the web many times. So, one of the lessons I have been taught in this life is not to be too trusting. You must give an allowance or gap, that things may go wrong, so I thank God that throughout these times that I have been going through the changing scenes of life, especially the bad times I did not fall. Yes. I stumbled but I did not fall. By not falling it is not by my own making, it is through the Grace of God because God actually rewards righteousness and I can say boldly that God has rewarded my righteousness, my being truthful in all I was doing. Now, that I am 70, I want to still remain righteous. I want to still remain as elegant as God has kept me. I pray that my daughter, Oluwafeyikemi, will also become great. And as I have been witnessing the marriages of my friends, I can also witness her own marriage. She will do well and then get married and have children.”
Does she still remember her dad? “I remember my dad, every day and my mum. My tall frame is from my dad and my light complexion is from my mum. People call my mum the Cinderella of her time. Maybe that is where I took the Grace from. I don’t know about Beauty. (She laughs).” How come she has continued to look refreshingly young? “Because my mind is pure. I don’t envy anyone. I am not jealous of anyone’s success. My mind is pure. I am a happy person naturally. I am always happy. I laugh a lot. And that has really helped me. I like to dance. I dance to any music. Once I hear any music, I will begin to dance. “Mo like lati joo” Who is her favourite musician? I love Ayefele. It is a pity that I can’t afford him to play for me in Israel. I would have invited him to come to Israel. I love Yinka Ayefele because he sings spiritual songs. He has not allowed his challenges to prevent him from praising God. And it is the same thing with me. I can never be ashamed to dance in front of the church, in front of God. I dance well. They all know me in my church. I attend Archbishop Vinning Memorial Church. I love dancing. I love to join people to do thanksgiving. I am always participating in most Thanksgiving in our church. So, if they don’t see me on any Thanksgiving, they know maybe I am not in church. I always celebrate with those dedicating their child or children to God, you will always see me with them, even at the time I didn’t have any child. I was always part of it. And I didn’t know God was looking at it, that God will now use that to answer my prayers at 53. I had my daughter at 53.” How did she feel at that time? “I thank God. I was very happy. I can’t even express it. I really thank God. You all know the story. (Laughs) What is her message to hear well-wishers?
“I thank them. I thank my well-wishers for wishing me well. I wish them well also. Their own days of joy will always come. And if they have been 70 and above, or below, I wish them well”. At 70 now, what is likely to change about her? “Nothing will change. God will not allow his goodness in my heart to change. I will continue to do good. I will continue to praise God. Thank you. I will continue to support those in para-sport. I am a board member of the Para-Power Lifting Federation of Nigeria. I came in as a Sponsor and that is one Federation that is doing very, very well. I am also the Treasurer of the Paralyptic Committee Nigeria, which is the equivalent of LOC, Nigerian Olympic Committee. It oversees all the para federations in Nigeria. Because I came in a Sponsor I have been able to contribute my widows nite to the success of the Athletes”.
How does she juggle all these roles? “It is the Grace of God. That is the summary. If you have God’s Grace, you will be energetic and God will be renewing that energy in you because the Grace lives in you.”
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