From One Student To A Lifeline: How Compassion Gave Birth To Uyo Joy Foundation.
What began as a lecturer’s personal acts of compassion for vulnerable students has grown into a humanitarian movement with a 20-year vision to support sickle cell warriors and other people facing difficult circumstances.
That is the inspiring story behind the Uyo Joy Lifeline Foundation, founded by Uyo Joy At-Agboni, which was officially launched in Lokoja with the theme, “Building Hope, Saving Lives and Empowering Communities Through Health Education and Humanitarian Service.”
At-Agboni, the Founder and Executive Director, said the foundation was not born from a business plan or formal proposal, but from years of encountering young people whose challenges went beyond academics and required encouragement, medical attention, financial assistance and someone willing to stand by them.
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She recalled the experience of a student who became pregnant outside marriage and whose mother was overwhelmed by fear and uncertainty. Encouraged by a doctor’s advice and her own experience of overcoming difficult circumstances, At-Agboni stood by the young woman and repeatedly encouraged her not to give up.
“Sometimes, a person’s life can change simply because someone chooses to stand beside them,” she said, recalling how the experience deepened her conviction that compassion could become a powerful force for changing lives.
Another experience involved a student living with a serious health challenge whose parents travelled to Anyigba and entrusted her to At-Agboni’s care. She said she would visit the student at her hostel or sickbay, take her home when necessary, monitor her medication and fluid intake, and remain with her until she regained enough strength to return to school.
Although the student eventually graduated, her subsequent death left a painful impression on At-Agboni and reinforced her belief that vulnerable young people need more than medical intervention. “I saw her as someone’s daughter who had been entrusted to my care,” she said.
The idea of establishing a foundation eventually crystallised after At-Agboni supported another young woman through university and National Youth Service. When the woman returned and faced the challenge of becoming economically independent, a friend and colleague in Gombe suggested that she establish an NGO to support people in similar circumstances.
That advice, she said, made her realise that the individual assistance she had provided over the years could be transformed into a structured platform capable of reaching many more vulnerable people. Thus, Uyo Joy Lifeline Foundation began to take shape.
The foundation took its first practical step on June 23, 2026, with a sensitisation programme at UECSS Hall, Old Poly Quarters, Lokoja, where about 350 students and staff participated. Educational flyers on genotype and blood group were also produced and distributed freely.
Before the long school vacation, the foundation had extended its sensitisation campaign to five schools — UECSS, Martini International Group of Schools, Majesty International College, GYB Model Science Secondary School and Holy Trinity Secondary School, with the message: “Know your genotype. Know your blood group. Understand the implications. Make informed decisions about your health and your future.”
At-Agboni said the foundation’s ambition extends beyond health sensitisation to medical support, education, accommodation, skills acquisition, rehabilitation, empowerment and sustainable livelihood opportunities, particularly for sickle cell warriors and other vulnerable persons.
She said the foundation’s 20-year vision is to build a sustainable humanitarian institution capable of supporting vulnerable people while developing a community or humanitarian complex with facilities that can generate income to sustain its programmes.
At the launch, the Chairman of the occasion was the Vice Chancellor of Salem University, Lokoja, Prof. Johnson Alewo Akubo, while the book presenter is the Vice Chancellor of Prince Abubakar Audu University, Anyigba, Prof. Usman Salisu Ogbo, while the book reviewers are Prof. Moses Atakpa and Agaba Joseph David.
DemocracyNewslineNewspaper September 27, 2026
