A prize for an honourable family woman

For many celebrities, balancing family life and their career is difficult. However, for ESTHER WAHOME, her marriage, successful music career and her involvement in charitable campaigns have landed her a nomination for the Mrs Universe beauty pageant. She spoke to KIUNDU WAWERU

Since the early 2000, Esther Wahome has entertained many households and relaxation joints with her gospel music through videos and televised concerts. She even presented a gospel TV show at some point.

In all these, Esther appears as a consummate entertainer. Lean, tall and elegant, she has been blessed with a model’s body, which indeed she is now after training last year.

Looking at her, it comes as a shock to many to learn that Esther is married and has three children. She has been married for 16 years, which she says have been blissful.

Esther hit the limelight in the year 2000 on an international platform with the song Furahia and since then, she travels abroad a lot. Furahia had been picked for the compilation CD of the biggest songs in Africa titled Stars of Afro-Pop. This was alongside African music greats like Papa Wemba and Yassour N’dour.

However, many people know her for the Kuna Dawa hit that came much later.

So how does she balance travelling, taking care of her young children and her gospel music career?

Her firstborn, Michelle Mumbi, is 14 followed by Eldad Mureithi nine, then the lastborn Medad who is two.

“If it were not for my husband’s support,” says Esther, “I wouldn’t be where I am today.”

Esther adds that while she travels abroad, her husband, Godfrey Mureithi, remains with the children “being the mother and father to them”.

Supportive husband

“My husband is a gift from God. It takes a gentleman not to be threatened by what I am,” Esther says of her media-shy husband. She says he is very private and has fully supported her in her music career while remaining the anchor behind the scenes.

“I kind of like that he is not in the public eye because when I’m overwhelmed by the public attention, he helps with things like shopping,” she says.

To keep her family bonded, Esther cooks for them.

“I guess I am the best cook in the world,” she says as she laughs out loud, “at least my husband says so.”

Later when I ask her to tell me what people don’t know about her, she says, “That I am a good cook.”

The couple tied the knot in 1996 when Esther was 21 and Godfrey 30. A year later, the first bundle of joy arrived, putting the young Esther into a spin.

“I did not know a child needed so much attention. When she cried, I would cry too. Sometimes I would take her to her father’s office, asking him to accompany us to the hospital as I thought she was sick.”

Saying this, she seems downheartedly honest. Though she says she ‘matured’ early, she was still young to bring up a large family and they decided to take it easy. The second born, therefore, came nine years later.

She smiles as she says that it comes as a surprise to many that she has a two-year-old baby. “I think the more I give birth, the better I look,” she says tongue in cheek amid laughter.

On the same, Esther says people are created differently and for her, whether she eats junk food or doesn’t work out, which she doesn’t by the way, she “finds it hard” to gain weight.

“You see, after a woman gives birth, her body changes. Some women develop low self-esteem. However, self-esteem comes with empowerment and I take every opportunity to let women know that beauty comes from the inside.”

Esther is happy that her marriage, which she terms a pillar, together with her successful music career and her involvement in several charitable campaigns, has landed her a nomination for the Mrs Universe beauty pageant.

But she is quick to add that, unlike the other beauty pageants, the Europe-based Mrs Universe is not only inclined into physical beauty, but also inner beauty. Entrants must be married women aged 25 to 45.

Ten albums

“Also, the nominees must have excelled in their career and used it to empower their communities,” says Esther.

And she believes she will bring the crown home, regardless of the fact that there has never been a representative from Kenya, or Africa for that matter.

Mrs Universe Ltd, with the winners touted as the “most honourable woman on earth” by its organisers, was founded in 2007 in Bulgaria by Megi Savova. It takes place every year, with the married women from different countries meeting for seven to ten days during which they are involved in different initiatives. They are united in the motto, ‘Against Violence’.

Besides her music career, which spans 20 years and boasts of ten albums, Esther says she has been involved in charity causes that put her in favour of winning the ‘honourable woman title’.

Last year, Esther was the face of ‘Lifebuoy School of Five’ campaign, which was aimed at getting children to adopt the lifestyle of washing their hands with soap. The selection exercise involved having school children pick the persons they look up to.

“Through my music, I was selected for the fact that I resonate well with children, their parents and also teachers, all who are key to making children adopt to a habit of washing hands,” she says.

The campaign led Kenya to winning the Guiness World Record for having the highest number of people washing hands at the same time in different locations.

Esther also says she has used music forum to encourage people to donate blood as she is a Blood Safety Ambassador with Hope Worldwide Kenya.

“I’m celebrating 20 years in the music this year. I have so far staged concerts in stadiums in Nyeri, Maua, Meru and Nanyuki and after every performance, I tell people about the need to donate blood,” she says.

Family values

The marriage institution also concerns Esther. She says the main problem for the rampant family breakups isn’t because of alcoholism or even adultery, as many people believe, but it is as a result of the degeneration of family values.

“Simple courtesies like ‘I love you’, ‘I am sorry’ and ‘excuse me’ go a long way in uniting couples and families,” she says.

Esther is also saddened by recent stories from her rural home.

“I want it known that Nyeri women are not violent. They are just aggressive and strong-willed,” she says.

Esther will be travelling to St Petersburg, Russia, where the pageant will be held on August 4. The crowning night will be on August 11. The nominees will spend the week preparing for the big event.

It is interesting how Esther was considered for the Mrs Universe pageant. When she learnt about the pageant, she wrote them, saying it would be great for them to have a Kenyan franchise.

“I was impressed by the concept and was only congratulating them. I was surprised when they