4th October, 2023
Command Secondary School, Ipaja, Lagos State celebrated its 35th anniversary in grand style during a six-day event.
The six-day event which began on September 23 through to October 1st was designed to capture a wide range of events.
The 1988 set dubbed the ‘Class of Eagles’ noted that the reunion was for celebration of each other and to make new memories. “Let’s rekindle friendships, celebrate one another and create beautiful memories,” it said.
On September 23, a health day, fitness walk, wellness check and virtual health seminar were held to kick off what would become a memorable set of events.
This was followed by a visit to the orphanage, team building activity and Founders Day visit which is a joint visit by all sets of the institution every 29th September.
A gala Night of Elegance was held on September 30 and the reunion culminated with a virtual Thanksgiving Service on October 1 as Nigeria marked its 63rd anniversary.
Speaking at the gala night, President of the Class Eagles Mr Kayode Ogunsola, “This is a long journey in the making. Many of us first knew ourselves in Class 1 as it was during our time and we have been friends ever since.
The President said, “This celebration has brought back a flurry of memories and has rekindled emotions of the past. Some classmates of mine have not seen each other since we graduated in 1988, it is so much fun.”
On the need for the health day and fitness walk, “As you can, most of us are in our 50s and we need to be mindful of our bodies and mind especially with the economic reality of today. We did not only use these activities to rekindle relationships but we used it to whip our bodies into shape.”
“We visited the orphanage to give back to society. Those were some of the things we learned as students in Command Ipaja and we have carried this training with us.”
The Founders Day was a day that the 1988 set and all other sets of Command Ipaja paid tribute to past and present leaders, commandants, and other members of the COMLAG family as the school is fondly called.
“It was a flood of emotions. We had an opportunity to reflect on how impactful those who founded the school have helped shape our lives. These were our formative years and our story is not complete with it.
Speaking on the sets project during the gala nite, Ogunsola said, “We are launching a microfinance project today to raise N30m, which we will use to fund enterprises and small businesses within the C88 family to ensure that all our colleagues can grow together.
In his comments, the school’s commandant Lt-Col. Christopher Obida “commended the 88 set leadership and members for the awards presented to various categories of ex-staff and promised that the school during his time would continue to engage with the 1988 set, saying the Class of Eagles had accomplished men and women due to the excellent education they received from the school”.
The Class of Eagles promised to continue their yearly tradition of celebrating Command Secondary School Ipaja as they seek to inspire the younger generations of Commandos.