Minus a house girl Catherine Kasavuli took her baby Martin, to the studio

 Kasavuli with her son Martin

Catherine became a mother in 1981 and regrets missing some moments of her son Martin Kasavuli’s childhood due to her demanding career.

“There are days I would have loved to have breakfast and dinner with him but I was on the early morning 4am shift or working until midnight. However, I tried my best to take him on holiday - just the two of us,” she says adding that she wishes the moments she missed were recorded on camera so she could watch them over and over again.

“The first time my son saw me on TV, he walked to the screen and started talking to me, but I was not responding. Sadly I was not home to see that. I recounted that story for a while to everyone who came to visit us,” she said.

One time she even went with her son to the studio because she had no house help.

“I warned him not to cough, belch, breath, sigh or break wind! He sat there at a corner in a tiny little chair and watched me read the news. Come to think of it, that was a very big risk. But looking back, I just realise it was all about zeal and commitment. It was quite hilarious though,” she says with a giggle.

Martin who serenaded his mum at her 50th birthday, does not shy from acknowledging the beauty of his mum.

“My mother is 50, but she looks so fiti,” he sang to her before revealing to giggling guests on a light note how she kept him waiting for a whole hour in her office.

“We get along so well, but we also disagree so well,” Martin said at the event adding that he is lucky to have a mother like Catherine.

The veteran broadcaster who takes pride in having trained big names like Jennifer Okungu, Edmond Mudibo, Joseph Warungu, Waweru Njoroge, Zein Verjee, Ahmed Dharwesh and Mwanaisha Chidzuga, believes sharing knowledge and staying humble is what takes one places in the profession.

She credits good rest, feeding well and taking care of her body as the secret to her good looks.

-Cate Mukei