Eko Boys’ High School alumni courses of 1981 and 1982 not too long ago held their first grand reunion after over 44 years of graduating from the establishment. The assembly, which introduced collectively over 50 previous boys of the 113-year-old establishment, served as a possibility for the alumni physique to resume its dedication to preserving the college’s legacy for generations to come back. EstherOluku stories
The standard axiom that 20 mates can’t play for 20 years didn’t apply on October 9, 2026, when the gates of Eko Boys’ High School, Mushin, Lagos, opened to over 50 former college students who confirmed up for a reunion to honour the reminiscence of their alma mater.
Decked in immaculate white pants and shirts, some had the customary wine-coloured waistcoats to match, whereas others had wine vests and jackets. This recreation of the college’s uniform was sealed off with wine-and-white-coloured fez caps in order that when the host known as the assembly to order at a couple of minutes previous 12 pm, all rose in unity to recite the college anthem, which had sure them collectively over forty-four years in the past.
This 2026 reunion is the first public reunion of the Eko Boys’ High School Old Boys Association (EKOBA) set of 1981/1982, taking the members, now of their 60s, again in time.
The Homecoming
The occasion opened with a symposium on October ninth at the Reverend W.B. Euba Memorial Hall, bringing collectively current college students of the college in dialog with the alumni physique. The function of the assembly was to encourage college students in the direction of pursuing their particular person desires and aspirations.
In his opening handle, President, EKOBA 81/82, Mr. (*44*) Folayan, said that the assembly was a celebration of enduring friendship and a second of giving again to the establishment which had moulded them into achieved males.
“We walked by way of the gates of this college as younger, bold boys. Today, we return as achieved males and true custodians of a wealthy legacy. One of the beginning factors of this legacy is Eko Boys’ High School, and we are able to’t inform our story with out the point out of the college.
“This reunion is excess of a social gathering; it stands as a monument to our resilience, our lifelong friendships, and our unwavering dedication to giving again to the college that formed our character.
“Today (Friday, October 9, 2026), we are here to reconnect with ourselves and with our Almamater. This is the core of Reunion 2026, and I would advise us to take the opportunity in both ways,” he stated.
EKOBA National President, Mr. Tito Ganiyu Nurudeen, inspired college students to exert their minds and consciousness in the direction of believing in the chance of attaining their desires.
“If anyone says to you that is impossible,” he stated, “they are lying to you. Your job is to settle down and do the best you can. There is no doubt in my mind that you will do extremely well.”
He additionally urged college students to not yield to the temptation of taking the simple path to success, saying that success requires time, self-discipline and dedication.
On his half, quick Past President, EKOBA 81/82, Mr. Kayode Elliot, urged college students to take benefit of the energy of expertise to achieve success in life.
“It is not everybody that will be successful in academics. That is why we have introduced the basketball court and the lawn tennis court. Also, pick an interest in sports. If academics is not working for you, then let sports work for you,” he stated.
Encouraging Academic Excellence
Folayan, talking throughout the symposium, said that, in furtherance of the dedication of EKOBA 81/82 to encouraging tutorial excellence, the alumni physique was opening a money reward for the finest graduating college students of every class.
The finest graduating college students from Senior Secondary School Three will get a money reward of N100,000; the finest graduating college students from Senior Secondary School One and Two will get N75,000 every, whereas the finest graduating college students from Junior Secondary School One, Two and Three will get N50,000 every.
Also, the EKOBA National President said that, with the college’s latest improve to mannequin college standing, the affiliation was working in collaboration with the state authorities to carry again the boarding arm of the college because it was 4 and a half a long time in the past.
“To be certain that you do properly in class, we’re working with the Lagos State Ministry of Education proper now. We are bringing the full boarding home and employees quarters to Eko Boys’ High School by September subsequent 12 months.
“By September 2027, there will be a full boarding house with new students coming in. They will go into the boarding house and have time to study. They will be fed, clothed and disciplined,” he enthused.
A Journey in Service
Since its institution as a social service membership in 1996, EKOBA 81/82 has supported the college with a multi-million-naira basketball courtroom, 13 computer systems, two desk tennis units, and a one-million-naira donation in the direction of the development of the Rev. Benjamin W. Euba Memorial Hall, amongst others.
The reunion didn’t finish as a celebration of reminiscences alone. EKOBA 81/82 reaffirmed its dedication to impacting the establishment that had nurtured them by donating a nine-room rest room block to the college. Speaking on the donation, Folayan defined that they’d chosen the renovation of a nine-room rest room block to enhance the hygiene degree of the college students.
“When we obtained right here, we realised that there was no rest room. As a matter of truth, the hygiene degree was very, very unhealthy. I couldn’t have entered the rest room to make use of it, and these have been speculated to be our youngsters rising up.
“So, we felt that it was a need and the young boys should grow up knowing that there is a facility called a good toilet for the purpose of hygiene and for them to have that mental awareness that they can actually use good facilities too, like their mates,” he stated.
The facility is fitted with working water and was commissioned to serve the junior secondary college college students of Eko Boys’ High School.
In his comment, EKOBA National President, Tito Nurudeen, defined that whereas the rest room is one in a sequence of tasks the EKOBA 81/82 Service Club has undertaken since its inception, the rest room undertaking alone is valued at over six million naira.
He added that, as half of plans to maintain the facility, the alumni physique had employed devoted employees to make sure that the rest room is all the time stored clear.
The group, throughout the Gala Night on October 10, 2026, additionally launched a fundraiser focused at procuring 20 air con items for the Rev. W.B. Euba Hall, valued at eight hundred and fifty thousand naira (N850,000) every, amounting to a cumulative price of seventeen million naira (N17,000,000).
The presentation of the air con items, Folayan stated, would happen throughout the college’s Founder’s Day occasion subsequent 12 months.
Reliving Past Memories
For many attendees, the nostalgia of their youthful days got here in pockets of reminiscences of how the college had formed their journeys by way of varied profession paths into maturity.
Vice President, EKOBA 81/82, Mr. Dayo Oni, talking on the sidelines of the Gala Night, stated that the occasion introduced a possibility to relive youthful reminiscences, share in the pleasure of seeing previous schoolmates once more, and mirror on life after a few years aside.
“I all the time wish to give credence to God as a result of there are few of us that began from class one; some alongside the method couldn’t make it. It is an excellent factor to have mates that we’ve seen in the final 45 years.
“We had the homecoming, which was memorable, and we did a lot of things together. Those things we did when we were young, and we all had fun,” he stated.
Secretary General, EKOBA 81/82, Mr. Mike Oduniyi, stated: “We thank God after 44, 45 years of leaving the school, God Almighty has kept us alive. The least among us is 60 years old. Therefore, we believe we should celebrate ourselves while we are still alive.”
Eko Boys’ High School was based by Rev. William Benjamin Euba on January 13, 1913, with a imaginative and prescient to offer high-quality schooling to much less privileged youngsters.
