Early Years to Secondary Education
Patrick Kobla Nutor was born on September 21, 1965 to Mr. Perfect Newlove Nutor of blessed memory and Miss Georgina Ameyibor in Ho. In 1967 his mother moved to Tema but Patrick remained in Ho with his eldest aunt, Madam Adelaide Ami Jandah Ameyibor of blessed memory where he started kindergarten at Ho International School. After the passing of his father, he moved to Accra and stayed with his uncle, Dr. Bonus L. Nutor per request of his paternal grandfather.
In Accra, Patrick continued schooling in Achimota Primary School in 1971 and then proceeded to Achimota Secondary School in 1977 for his O’ Level (class of ‘82) and A’ Level Certificates. He took after his father and excelled in sports during his time at Achimota. He represented Aggrey house in almost all offered sports but was a school sportsman in field hockey, track & field, and cricket. He joined the Ghana national cricket team in sixth form and remained an active member until 1986. His persona and sportsman attributes made him a larger than life figure at Motown hence his nickname Amega (big man).
Patrick’s enterprising and brave survival nature was cultivated in primary boarding school and cemented in secondary school. During his teenage years he spent portions of his holidays in Accra New Town where his entrepreneurial grandfather, the late Mr. C. G. K Nutor operated his transportation business. He inherited grandpa’s astute and keen business sense. Anyone who has had the opportunity to negotiate with Patrick on any level has experienced this.
After his O-Levels he started a side hustle offering Tutoring services as a way to transfer his knowledge to peers and the younger students. During his national service at Accra Girls’ Secondary school, he helped a lot of students bring up their math grades with extra classes he organized. He often said he needed to help others like he had been helped. That is where his heart and advocacy for quality education, for all, was birthed. He wanted everyone to know about education opportunities all around the globe and financially supported so many people not only as a successful businessman but even as a college student.
College / Young Adult Life
From Achimota, with a stellar academic report, Patrick gained admission to attend either Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) to study engineering or Ghana Medical School to study medicine. He ended up at KNUST for the 1985/86 academic year. During this time, he applied and gained admission to Ivy league Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, USA. At Dartmouth, he took on challenging course loads that enabled him to graduate with two degrees in 4 years instead of the stipulated 5 years. Yes, he was perpetually burning the proverbial midnight oil. Most Engineering students in the school stayed away from competitive college sports, preferring intramural games instead. Not this fearless young Anyako boy. Defying expectations of the engineering student, Patrick in his sophomore year trained hard and got into the Big Green college football team as a linebacker. Considering that footballers’ training regimen is more than keeping a 40-hour week job, that year was a crazy one for Patrick, as it challenged literally every cell in his body including his cerebral cells. This is where the great work ethic and quest for excellence ingrained in him were enhanced and became a permanent part of him. Armed with this strength, he ventured to France as part of a study abroad programme in the winter of 1988 for 4 months. While there, he was severely bitten by a travel bug that stayed with him till his passing, a wanderlust that saw him crisscross the globe and come back with souvenirs and stories. There was no country or exotic place he did not want to experience, and he maintained a bucket list of places he wanted to visit. Patrick was also socially engaged at Dartmouth, finding time to play pickup soccer games, provide wise counsel to his peers and various mentees, and participate in a number of campus organizations, such as the International Students’ Association.
In 1990, Patrick graduated with a double degree, a Bachelors in Science and a second Bachelors in Electrical and Electronics Engineering.
Career
After graduation, Patrick accepted a job offer with Schlumberger Oilfield Services Company where he worked offshore as a Senior Field Engineer. He trained in Italy and was posted to Congo and eventually to Angola.
In 1994, he returned to Ghana to start his own business. He started Accu-Works, a company responsible for commercial property restorations, using products from SWEPCO, USA. With increased volume in business, he was given the license to be the sole distributor of the restorative paints for the West Africa region. In the late 1990’s he started a second company, Accu-Computers Limited after seeing the need to deliver computers and electronic parts in a record time of 1-2 weeks.
Patrick also served on the Board of Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and was a Board Member of Ashesi University at the time of his death. However, the best board he served on was the tablet of our fleshly hearts where he inscribed an indelible message of “you are my family, you matter and you belong”
Marriage
After moving back to Ghana, Patrick rekindled his friendship with his Achimota classmate, the lovely Lynda Humphrey-Ackumey. Their friendship and love blossomed, culminating in marriage in 2003. Theirs was the typical, “I married my friend”.
Social Life and Hobbies
Patrick had a vibrant social life. He made time for everyone, which made everyone know and feel that they were important and mattered. He loved dearly every educational institution he attended, which was reflected in his active membership of the pertinent year groups of Achimota Primary school, Achimota Secondary School and Dartmouth College. As much as he could, he made it a point to participate in year group activities and was often a visionary and organizer of events. He was also a member of the Rotary Club of Accra South and its Immediate Past President (IPP). He enjoyed bringing people together around some domedo, khebab (don’t say chichinga he will rebuke you ever so gently), grilled Tilapia and other delicacies – (Aah, the man can chop)! Continuing with his athleticism, he became an advocate for educating everyone on the health benefits of walking, joining many walk-a-thons in town. The International marathon of La Beach Hotel was his challenge to all since finishing his first one in 2015 (go # H251). He also participated in a few mountain climbing trips of which Aburi hills, Mt Afaja (aka Afajato) and the high hills of Wli falls were his favorites. Patrick organized numerous walk-a-thons and the regular ones from his house will be sorely missed.
Patrick loved games of all kinds, especially those that challenged him physically as well as mentally. He played them hard and competitively, but always in a spirit of camaraderie. With time, walking, squash and Scrabble became the mainstays. In his free time, you would find him behind a Scrabble board playing a game at times till day break (TDB). The onset of computer Scrabble Apps meant he could play simultaneously multiple games across the globe and that made him extra happy. He was a really good Scrabble player. He also loved swimming, listening to music and dancing. As for the dancing part he had his own jig (let’s leave it at that).
Transition
Sadly, on Monday January 11, 2021, Patrick Kobla Nutor passed away after a short illness. He is survived by his mother, Georgina Ameyibor, his wife, Lynda Nutor, and his three children, Kafui, Klenam and Sefakor Nutor, his 4 siblings and a big extended family that loves him very much.
“And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain; for the former things are passed away” Revelations 21:4.
Patrick, efo Kobla, Amega, even though we are still in shock we console ourselves with the fact that you have passed on to a better place and we shall see you again someday. We will never forget you and you will be sorely missed.
Rest in Peace.