Born March 25, 1939 into a Christian family of Venerable and Mrs. J.O Daramola, he hails from Iye-Ekiti in Ilejemeje Local Government of Ekiti State. Archdeacon Daramola attended many primary schools as a result of his father’s transfer from one station to the other. He finally finished Standard Six at Holy Trinity Primary School, Omofe, Ilesa, in 1953. For his secondary education, he attended Ilesa Grammar School where he obtained his Cambridge West African School Certificate in 1958. He taught at Anglican Secondary School, Ile-Ife, in 1959 and in 1960, he proceeded to Ibadan Grammar School for his Cambridge Higher School Certificate Course, finishing in 1961.

In his quest for more knowledge and sound education, he left for Freetown, Sierra Leone, in September 1963 for the famous citadel of higher learning, Fourah Bay College, the University College of Sierra Leone where he bagged a Bachelor of Arts degree of Durham University (Second Division), in June 1966.

On his return to Nigeria, he took up a teaching job at Origbo Anglican Grammar School, near Ile-Ife. To be professionally qualified as a teacher, he proceeded to the University of Ibadan and got the Postgraduate Diploma in Education in June 1968.

Venerable Daramola became the Vice-Principal of Loyola College, Ibadan and eventually succeeded the Irish Principal, Rev. Fr. M. Kenedy, thus becoming the first Nigerian Principal of the college in 1981. He served meritoriously in the college for two decades before he was transferred to his alma mater, Ibadan Grammar School, in 1991 and was there till December 1995 when he voluntarily retired, having put in 30 years in the teaching service. At Ibadan Grammar School, he got to the apex of his career as Principal, Special Class (Director Grade).

At Ibadan Grammar School, he was awarded a Canonry by the then Anglican Bishop of Ibadan Diocese, The Rt. Rev. G.I.O. Olajide, at the 80th anniversary service of the school in April 1993. After constant divine call, Venerable Daramola started his theological and pastoral studies at Immanuel College of Theology, Ibadan, in 1984 and before he finished his course, he was ordained a Deacon in July 1985 by the Archbishop, The Most Rev. T.O Olufosoye, while he became a priest in December 1986. He obtained a Diploma in Theology in June 1987.

He is a lover of songs and music, especially church organ music. He composed Ilesa Grammar School’s anthem in 1984 and The Aionian Anthem, for Aionian Schools in Nigeria, in 1991. He served in many churches - Deacon at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Iwo Raod, Ibadan (July 1985 - December 1986); Assistant Priest at Bishop Akinyele Memorial Anglican Church in Iwo Road, Ibadan (January 1987- August 1990); Assistance Priest, St Peter’s Anglican Church, Aremo, Ibadan (September 1990 - October 1991), and St Barnabas Church, Felele, Ibadan (November 1991- June 1994).

In 1997, Archdeacon Daramola was in Singapore for a course in Advance Leadership Training for top Christain leaders. In the year 2000, he was in Lome, Togo to attend the jubilee convocation of the Association of African Christian Churches (AACC) and in March 2006, he and his wife went on pilgrimage to Jerusalem for spiritual rejuvenation. He reminisces:

Background
“My father was the Baba Ijo of my home church, St. John’s Church, Iye, Iye Ekiti. The Christian background has been built right from the days of my grand-father who was one of those who brought Christianity to Iye Ekiti. My mother also came from a Christian background. My father ended up being an archdeacon before he died and to the glory of God, that is the post I am in now. I was born in Akure, which at that time, was part of Ekiti province and later annexed to Ondo State during the state creation. So I started my primary school education at St. Thomas Primary School, Akure, while my father was then a Catechist at St. Thomas’ Anglican Church, Akure. My first day in primary school, I was very very happy, eager to see the day break, as my father had earlier announced to me that I would be going to school. Then, there was nothing like pre-nursery or kindergarten class, it was Primary 1A, 1B, 1C, then Class Two, and Standard 1 to 6.”

Motivation
“My parents’, lifestyle, especially that of my father who, as a minister of God, was gentle, ready to serve others; he visited people, prayed for them, settled disputes and all the rest. All that gave me the inspiration to the call, the ministry is not a career, it is a call. You have to be called to do it very well. If you enter the ministry without being called by GOD, you will lose out. I attended many primary schools as a result of my father’s job as a minister being transferred from one station to another, but I finished my Standard 6 at Holy Trinity Primary School, Omofe, Ilesa, now in Osun State, in 1953. In those days there was discipline and moral teaching of high grade.

The teachers were also dedicated and students were very serious with their studies because they knew that to make a bright future, they had to work very hard; not now that students are care-free about their studies and they want a short-cut to success. That is why they now engage in exam malpractices. I was fortunate to have had my secondary education at Ilesa Grammar School where I obtained my Cambridge West African School Certificate in 1958 with flying colours.”

Parental care
“My parents were very strict disciplinarians. My father rarely beat you but by mere looking at your eyes, you must know what he wanted to communicate. Whenever you commited an offence, my father would flog you and your accomplices. And as a son of a man of God, you were expected to behave 100 per cent excellent. The only time I could remember him beating me was when I broke some bottles of kerosine, which I went to hawk. I used to sell kerosine, soda soap and other wares for my mother. So, the day I broke some bottles of kerosine, I got some strokes of the cane for that. I would say I was loved by both parents. I was always around them, never far away from their presence, especially being the only child of my parents. I would say that I was very much attached to my mother who is still living with me in Jericho, Ibadan. She will be 91 years in July. My mother loved me very much. She care very much for me and she still loves me. My father died at the age of 70 when he was about to retire.”

Mates at Ilesa Grammar School
“Because of the vocation of my parents (father) I didn’t have many friends in the primary school as a result of his frequent transfer from one place to another. He was transferred from Akure to Ayede, from Ayede to Ondo, from Ondo to Ilesa. In 1954, I started my secondary school at Ilesa Grammar School, my father spent up to 10 years at Ilesa. I finished in 1958, some of my mates were the late Kanmi Ishola Osobu, an activist, he was a lawyer; late Professor Abiola Ojo; Engineer Olu Awoyinfa, Dr. E.A. Omotosho, Engineer Adepoju, Professor J.K. Olayemi of U.I. He is an agric economist, and many more.”

High school experience
“Actually, I was encouraged and inspired by my teachers, particularly by my Principal, Late Rev. Canon J. A. Akinyemi of Ilesa Grammar School. He was a product of Fourah Bay College, Sierra Leone. And some of my teachers at Ilesa Grammar School attended Fourah Bay College too. I saw the way they behaved, especially the way they dressed, particularly on any prize- giving day when they normally put on their white hood. I used to love that hood. That motivated me and I vowed to go to Fourah Bay College, even though, the University of Ibadan was there then, and I think University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) too. I read General Studies, English Language, History and Religious Studies. Fourah Bay College at that time was affiliated to Durham University in England. So we took the same examination with the Durham students. Sierra Leone University (Fourah Bay College) was the first university in West Africa, it had good traditions and it was famous. Students from the whole of the West African Coast - Ghana, Gambia, Nigeria, and so on, went to that university. In those days we were proud of our native country, Nigeria. There were more Nigerian students in the college than Sierra Leonian students. They loved us very much because of our tradition, culture, the way we dress, and so on. They also looked up to us for encouragement and for many other things because Nigeria was a leading country at that time.”

Challenges in the ministerial job
“Coming into the ministry is a big challenge because you have to rely very much on the Holy Spirit to guide you. You have to be an example to others because they want to copy you, they want to see whether what you preach tallies with what you do. As a clergyman you are in a sensitive position and you have to make a success of it. You have to prove your worth as a role model for others to follow, particularly members of your congregation. Those who are not even members of your church would want to see Christ in you and they want to measure Christianity by what you do.”

Work experience
“When I finished from Ilesa Grammar School in 1958, I taught at an Anglican Secondary Modern School at Ile-Ife for two years before I proceeded for my Higher School Cambridge Certificate (HSC) at Ibadan Grammar School. Then I left Nigeria for Fourah Bay College and I also taught at Origbo Anglican Grammar School with regulation 18, which we called Reputation 18 then. My father paid my fee at Fourah Bay College for the first year and I got scholarship for Reputation 18 for two sessions. Regulation is a sort of sponsorship by the Anglican Church given to students. After your graduation, you served as a teacher in an Anglican school, it was like a bond. That was why I had to serve at Origbo Anglican Grammar School and I got married in 1969 to my wife, Olufunmilayo, Nee Farinde. She attended Liverpool School of Occupational Therapy. I started as a teacher in Loyola College, from there I had a brief spell at Igbo Elerin Grammar School, also an Anglican school and Osogbo Grammar School, before I had a second coming to Loyola.

“I was ordained as a deacon in 1985 by the then Archbishop Olufosoye. It would surprise you that as an Anglican man I became a principal in a Catholic institution.

People at that time never discriminated. When they were looking for a replacement for the Irish man, then Bishop Alaba job, now Archbishop Alaba Job, said I was fit for the job. He recommended me. I conducted the assembly every morning in the Catholic way. I attended the mass. I did everything related to the school in the Catholic way. They loved me so much, up till now, I still go to Loyola College freely.

Unfortunately, since government has taken over the school the standard had gone down. If you go to Loyola College now you would be shocked. They broke the school into many schools, in the same compound; no new facilities and it is the same at Ibadan Grammar School, things have changed drastically.

“As a principal at Loyola College I was attached to churches. I started as assistant priest to so many churches. I started at Yemetu Anglican Church, from there to Bishop Akinyele Anglican Church, Aremo, to Iwo Road, to St. Barnabas Church, Felele before I came to All Saints Church, Jericho, Ibadan. And this All Saints Church is an ecumenical church. It is owned by the Anglican, Methodist and the Presbyterian, three denominations. It means it is ecumenical. I was posted to the church on request when the church council requested for an assistant priest from my bishop.

Bishop G. I. O. Olajide. He then contacted me to go there, in 1994. When the late Reverend Fagbemi died I became acting minister and when I retired as principal in 1995, I was preferred an Archdeacon by Bishop Olajide, then a canon. When I retired in 1995 I became the substantive minister of All Saints Church in January 1996.”

Teacher he loved most
“In my secondary school, my favourite teacher at Ilesa Grammar School was Reverend Canon Oni. He ended up being a clergyman. He taught me English Language and Literature but I was very much impressed by my principal, late Reverend Cannon J. K. Akinyemi, because of the way he spoke English Language. He had a good command of the language and that impressed me very much. At the H.S.C. level at Ibadan Grammar School, my favourite teacher was Mr. G. A. Adeyemo.

He is still alive, he is over 80. The experience I can never forget I think, was the day I first acted in the school. We acted plays like ‘He stooped to conquer’, by Oliver Goldsmith, Macbeth, and others. I can’t forget such experiences and again, as a footballer, I cannot forget our chantings whenever we travelled to play football at other schools outside Ilesa, and we won. I played right full back.”

Travel to Fourah Bay College
“The day I returned to my hometown from Fourah Bay College I felt so elated as the first university graduate in the community. Infact, I was dressed in my academic hood on the arrival and there was a big welcome ceremony at the entrance of the town, with drums. We trekked from there to the church. My father’s house was near the church and we danced to the church for a thanksgiving service. It was a Sunday and I can never forget that day.”

Event Pictures



Science block repainted


New School bus


School Hall remodeling