ABOUT PLACE OF LIBERTY
The Special School for Your Children.
Place of Liberty is a free pre-school and primary school for children with Special needs from Indigent families. The school is located in Lagos Nigeria, powered by the Anglican diocese of Lagos Mainland and supported by CM Life and the Oluwole Family.
The school offers the following free services:
The school currently focuses on Down Syndrome and mild to moderate Cerebral Palsy. Admission age is from 5 years old to 12.
For information on enrollment, please call one of the following numbers:
+234 806 063 6704
+234 807 111 7440
+234 818 793 9362
+234 807 453 9636
Our Vision
To provide compassionate care and liberating education to children with special needs in order that they may attain the highest possible levels of their human capacity.
Our Mission
HOW IT ALL STARTED
Our History
The very Rev. Akinola and Mrs. Modupe Oluwole – The Inspiration Behind Place of Liberty
Place of Liberty was inspired by the Very Reverend T.A.J. Oluwole and his wife of 62 years, Mrs. Modupe Olabisi Oluwole, both of blessed memory. Both died two years apart on the same date, September 18 2018 and September 18 2020 respectively.
Papa and Mama Oluwole were very generous people who had a passion for charitable giving. One of their greatest passions was caring for Children with Special Needs. They contributed every year to Special needs programs and even attended and participated in annual events. Until his death, papa was invited every year to give the opening prayer at the Christmas fund raising event of Ile Aanu (House of Mercy) school for the physically disabled.
Mr. Manish Patel – The act of generosity that started it all
On October 25th 2020, about 6 weeks after Mama Oluwole’s death, Mr. Manish Patel, who was a boss, friend and “brother” of Mama’s son, Ladipo Oluwole, donated $5,000 towards mama’s favorite charity. This generous donation led to something much bigger that anyone could have predicted.
Ladipo and his siblings (Funmi, Funke and Soji) agreed that the donation should go towards special needs children from Indigent families. They also decided as a family, to remodel and offer up for free use, their family house at 1 Alhaji Masha, as a free school for special needs children from indigent families.
Since his initial donation, Manish and his partners at CM Life have become an integral part of Place of Liberty and continue to be a huge supporter and a major donor.
Anglican Diocese of Lagos Mainland – Legitimacy and Structure.
Once the decision was made by the Oluwole family to press forward, some very wise and seasoned advisors in the special needs space (Dr. Odiakosa and Chief Femi Somolu) suggested we seek the help of the Anglican Diocese, of which members of the Oluwole family have been members for over 100 years. Naturally, because the building was situated on Lagos mainland, the diocese of Lagos Mainland happened to be the logical choice.
Coincidentally, the Lord Bishop of Lagos Mainland Diocese (Right Rev. Akinpelu Johnson) is a relative of the Oluwole family, who also preached the sermon at Papa Oluwole’s funeral. A bigger coincidence, and certainly spiritual, was the fact that the theme of the most recent diocesan synod , Amos: A cry for Social Justice was consistent with the vision at Place of Liberty. Thankfully, the Bishop and the Lagos Mainland Diocese agreed to take on the challenge of powering the special needs school, and in partnership with the Oluwole family and CM Life, the vision has come to life.
Origin of the Name “Place of Liberty”
On May 11 2021, the Bishop, the Registrar of the Lagos Mainland diocese (Lady Chikwue Ochiagha), and Mr. Ladipo Oluwole, met at the Bishop’s office to align on a name. The Bishop directed them to the Bible book of Isaiah 61:1-3
“The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek, He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim LIBERTY to the captives, and the opening of prison to them that are bound; to proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; to appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified”
After a few minutes of brainstorming, the name Place of Liberty was birthed and the vision and mission statements were formed around this bible passage.
Founder’s day
On the 18th of September 2021 – the anniversary of Papa and Mama Oluwole’s death, the school was dedicated by the Lord Bishop of Lagos Mainland (Anglican diocese), in the presence of diocesan leaders, family and friends. This date has since been declared the founder’s day of Place of Liberty, in memory of the Very Reverend Akinola and Mrs. Modupe Oluwole.