In a time when public recognition often favours celebrities, executives and public office holders, the Class of 2006 of the Nigerian Navy Secondary School, Ojo, Lagos chose a different focus by honouring the teachers who shaped their lives.
On Friday, February 13, 2026, more than 150 serving and retired educators gathered at the school hall, unaware that they were about to become the centre of a homecoming described by staff as unprecedented in the institution’s history. There were no building unveilings or ribbon-cutting ceremonies.
Instead, the teachers were called forward one after the other to receive personalised commemorative boxes, financial gifts, and handwritten tributes from former students; many recounting lessons, corrections, encouragement and discipline that had altered the course of their lives.
The emotional impact was immediate. Veteran teachers who had once commanded classrooms with firmness found themselves in tears as excerpts from the letters were read aloud. Some wept openly, others sat in stunned silence, visibly overwhelmed.
Mrs. Umejiburu, after seeing all that was done, was overcome with happiness and thanked the alumni “It is only your set that has shown this much passion for the educators who impacted on them, we pray that you will continue to move forward in life.”
Outside the hall, in a moment that observers described as deeply symbolic, groups of teachers formed spontaneous prayer circles, holding hands and offering blessings for the alumni.
It was not staged. It was not scripted. It was gratitude meeting gratitude. Perhaps the most powerful scene unfolded when a retired teacher recovering from prolonged illness and adjusting to life after an amputation arrived quietly. She was met with applause, embraces and reassurance. Later, strengthened by the reception, she declared: “Indeed, God is great.”
For many watching, the day carried a message beyond celebration. It raised an important question: When last did we intentionally honour the people who formed us? The PRO of the alumni, Nneoma Nwamaka, told the current teachers, “Be encouraged, because as we have remembered our past teachers and celebrate you alongside, 20 years from now, your own students will do even better.”
