I AM RUNNING FOR. Fr. BOB -A tribute
By Lambert Rusoke Adyeeri
I am running for Fr.Bob.Who are you running for?.
The 2018 Rotary Cancer run theme has been in the quest for answers. And as I went on with my jogging preparations for the August 26th 10km run,news filtered through of the demise of Rev. Fr.Bob Robert Isingoma Binta,Amooti. This wasn't the answer I was anticipating to relay to the Cancer Run organizers,and yet now find myself boxed in a reflective corner.
Fr. Bob succumbed to lung cancer, at his home in the United States,August 20th.
The Rotary Fraternity in Uganda, together with partners ,have kept the tide in organizing a yearly run, whose purpose is to raise funds and awareness to set up cancer fighting infrastructure in the country, that is not only affordable, but accessible.
Its with this background, that I find it fitting to dedicate my 10km sweat on Sunday August 26th, to reflect on Fr. Bob's life and beliefs,who like many other loved ones, have left the world prematurely, with lots of craving from the persons whose lives they changed and impacted.
Fr. Bob's life story was an all inclusive one.First,the Rotary Cancer run has persisted this long(7th year now),because of worthy partners ,who pour in all sorts of resources to help out in the cause.Major partners Centenary Bank and the Parliament of Uganda,deserve a big pat on the back for seeing this through.But lets not forget that ,Fr Bob was(is) part and parcel of the history that these two great institutions represent.He was the first Chaplain of the Parliament of Uganda.A place whose importance to the nation cannot go unmentioned.Those who graced the plenary when he was in charge,can testify about the simplicity,and an all inclusive call for both pro-government and anti-government legislators.He was part and parcel of the Catholic Secretariat and Bishop's Conference,who have the biggest stake in Uganda's largest indigenous bank,Centenary Bank.His works there are reflective in the bank's associates and performances over the years.
His interaction with the young,youth,middle aged,retirees,elder statesmen was geared to the understanding that, "God is Good",for which the respondents would quickly absorb and answer in the affirmative, "All the Time".The choice of words, were simply a reminder that, no matter the circumstances in our midst, God was surely in control. This is a message that harbors hope,a message of perseverance,a message of prayer,that of never giving up,and also that of love.
I shall easily mention three important encounters with Fr Bob.
The first was in the early 90's as a young pupil ,and if my memory serves me right,it was during the wedding preparations of my Uncle Steven Basaliza and Aphra Nyakato Binta(twin sister to Fr Bob).His smile was all welcoming and he had this to say,"Do not shame your dad at any one time.Read hard and be a good boy,".
Two decades later and a fully grown man ,I happened to be the wedding emcee at the wedding of his nephew Brian Kasaija. Here I was ,in the hot seat,having to brief Fr Bob on how the event was to be moved.I was well aware of how he loved organised things.And we all know,a wedding emcee can mess up the event,with funny and below the belt jokes,disorganized program and lapse of time keeping.Everything I would suggest to the committee in charge,members would refer me to Fr Bob for approval.But if there is anyone who should never be tensed up at a function,it should be the emcee.Very fast and confident,I walked up to him,with my view of running the day's proggramme .He looked up at me,with his usual wide smile,nodded his head in the affirmative and said,"You are the in-charge.I have all the confidence in you,".And after the event,all he had to say was ,"I knew you wouldn't shame your dad".This reminisced my early encounter with him.
The third time was at his Priestly Silver Jubilee at Karambi, Fort-portal in 2015.Thousands had trekked from all corners of the world to join the celebrations of a man from Tooro,whose deeds had spread to the United States and many parts of the globe.His moving homily/speech was a call to always have faith in God.Be tolerant to each other,give a helping hand to family members and friends and also do a great job once called to serve in our various capacities .Actually,these celebrations were spearheaded by all the in-laws that had enjoyed the fruits of the Binta family.And what a perfect ceremony that this group did.
And his last call that day was to request the people who were at the celebrations to pray for him,such that we could head back to Karambi for the silver jubilee.It hasn't come to fruition unfortunately.
We are now plunged in a situation of living a life that he preached and practiced.It may not be easy,but we surely know that,"God is Good,-All the time".
But myself,through the Rotary Fraternity of Nansana and the whole country,I shall continue to pledge in the battle to throw out Cancer .
Whether its Kololo,Mbarara,Fortportal,Jinja,Gulu,Ntungamo,Mbale,Soroti,Arua,Kyotera,Masaka,Kitgum,and all major towns in the country,"WE ARE RUNNING FOR SOMEONE"
So,"WHO ARE YOU RUNNING FOR?????...............................See you at the gunstart.
The author is a Rotarian , Banker and Financial Communications Specialist.
lambertrusoke@gmail.com
I am running for Fr.Bob.Who are you running for?.
The 2018 Rotary Cancer run theme has been in the quest for answers. And as I went on with my jogging preparations for the August 26th 10km run,news filtered through of the demise of Rev. Fr.Bob Robert Isingoma Binta,Amooti. This wasn't the answer I was anticipating to relay to the Cancer Run organizers,and yet now find myself boxed in a reflective corner.
Fr. Bob succumbed to lung cancer, at his home in the United States,August 20th.
The Rotary Fraternity in Uganda, together with partners ,have kept the tide in organizing a yearly run, whose purpose is to raise funds and awareness to set up cancer fighting infrastructure in the country, that is not only affordable, but accessible.
Its with this background, that I find it fitting to dedicate my 10km sweat on Sunday August 26th, to reflect on Fr. Bob's life and beliefs,who like many other loved ones, have left the world prematurely, with lots of craving from the persons whose lives they changed and impacted.
Fr. Bob's life story was an all inclusive one.First,the Rotary Cancer run has persisted this long(7th year now),because of worthy partners ,who pour in all sorts of resources to help out in the cause.Major partners Centenary Bank and the Parliament of Uganda,deserve a big pat on the back for seeing this through.But lets not forget that ,Fr Bob was(is) part and parcel of the history that these two great institutions represent.He was the first Chaplain of the Parliament of Uganda.A place whose importance to the nation cannot go unmentioned.Those who graced the plenary when he was in charge,can testify about the simplicity,and an all inclusive call for both pro-government and anti-government legislators.He was part and parcel of the Catholic Secretariat and Bishop's Conference,who have the biggest stake in Uganda's largest indigenous bank,Centenary Bank.His works there are reflective in the bank's associates and performances over the years.
His interaction with the young,youth,middle aged,retirees,elder statesmen was geared to the understanding that, "God is Good",for which the respondents would quickly absorb and answer in the affirmative, "All the Time".The choice of words, were simply a reminder that, no matter the circumstances in our midst, God was surely in control. This is a message that harbors hope,a message of perseverance,a message of prayer,that of never giving up,and also that of love.
I shall easily mention three important encounters with Fr Bob.
The first was in the early 90's as a young pupil ,and if my memory serves me right,it was during the wedding preparations of my Uncle Steven Basaliza and Aphra Nyakato Binta(twin sister to Fr Bob).His smile was all welcoming and he had this to say,"Do not shame your dad at any one time.Read hard and be a good boy,".
Two decades later and a fully grown man ,I happened to be the wedding emcee at the wedding of his nephew Brian Kasaija. Here I was ,in the hot seat,having to brief Fr Bob on how the event was to be moved.I was well aware of how he loved organised things.And we all know,a wedding emcee can mess up the event,with funny and below the belt jokes,disorganized program and lapse of time keeping.Everything I would suggest to the committee in charge,members would refer me to Fr Bob for approval.But if there is anyone who should never be tensed up at a function,it should be the emcee.Very fast and confident,I walked up to him,with my view of running the day's proggramme .He looked up at me,with his usual wide smile,nodded his head in the affirmative and said,"You are the in-charge.I have all the confidence in you,".And after the event,all he had to say was ,"I knew you wouldn't shame your dad".This reminisced my early encounter with him.
The third time was at his Priestly Silver Jubilee at Karambi, Fort-portal in 2015.Thousands had trekked from all corners of the world to join the celebrations of a man from Tooro,whose deeds had spread to the United States and many parts of the globe.His moving homily/speech was a call to always have faith in God.Be tolerant to each other,give a helping hand to family members and friends and also do a great job once called to serve in our various capacities .Actually,these celebrations were spearheaded by all the in-laws that had enjoyed the fruits of the Binta family.And what a perfect ceremony that this group did.
And his last call that day was to request the people who were at the celebrations to pray for him,such that we could head back to Karambi for the silver jubilee.It hasn't come to fruition unfortunately.
We are now plunged in a situation of living a life that he preached and practiced.It may not be easy,but we surely know that,"God is Good,-All the time".
But myself,through the Rotary Fraternity of Nansana and the whole country,I shall continue to pledge in the battle to throw out Cancer .
Whether its Kololo,Mbarara,Fortportal,Jinja,Gulu,Ntungamo,Mbale,Soroti,Arua,Kyotera,Masaka,Kitgum,and all major towns in the country,"WE ARE RUNNING FOR SOMEONE"
So,"WHO ARE YOU RUNNING FOR?????...............................See you at the gunstart.
The author is a Rotarian , Banker and Financial Communications Specialist.
lambertrusoke@gmail.com
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