Philipsburg:--- Pastor Wycliffe Smith of the New Testament Baptist Church flew to Africa in August to meet with the Achacha family in Kenya that he had adopted and had been supporting for several years. While in Kenya, he also had the opportunity to visit President Barack Obama’s grandmother. The Achacha family belongs to the Luo tribe, which is the same tribe that President Obama’s father belongs to. By taxi, it took approximately two hours to reach the little village of Kogelo near Lake Victoria where granny Sarah Obama lives. When I got to the high Iron Gate at the entrance of granny Sarah’s homestead, I wondered if the security guard would allow me in to greet her. The guard greeted us with a smile and assured me that I would be allowed to meet granny Sarah. After signing the register, I walked up the path to Granny Sarah’s house. Several chairs were placed under the mango trees just in front of her house where she received visitors. Next to us were the tombs of President Obama’s father and grandfather. As granny Sarah does not speak English my host, Wycliffe Achacha, translated our conversation. I told Granny where I was from and that in Sint Maarten we were all very proud of her grandson. Granny said that she was pleased that I had made such a long trip to visit her. Realizing that she received visitors daily from all over the world, I asked her how she coped with such fame which also brought with it the necessary security measures such as body guards and a recently established police station near her home. “Even though all the publicity may be inconvenient at times I do not consider it a burden,” granny Sarah replied. “I see it as a gift from God. It is not a burden at all.” Granny also shared with us that she was offered a new house. However, she prefers to live out the remaining years of her life in the house that God had given her. My host Wycliffe told granny Sarah that his own grandmother is an avid fan of president Obama and that she would love to meet her. Therefore, granny Sarah invited us to bring granny Achacha the next time we came. “And by the way” she said. “Ask your granny to bring me some potato slips when she comes.” As we bade goodbye to return to Kisumu, the largest city along Lake Victoria, granny Sarah asked us if we could give her daughter-in law a ride to the city. The following day we took 89 year old Granny Achacha to see the president’s grandma. Of course, we also brought her the requested potato slips. It turned out that the families of two grannies originated from the same village so they both exchanged information about families, acquaintances, and landmarks. Granny Sarah also invited us into her humble abode where her daughter, Obama’s auntie, served us juice and cookies and made us feel at home.” I was a wonderful experience… one that I’ll never forget,” says Pastor Smith.
