On Monday, September 14, 2020, on the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, the burial mass of the late Very Rev. Fr. Michael Nanabanyin Aggrey took place at the Holy Spirit Cathedral, Adabraka-Accra.
The fully participated requiem mass saw Bishops, Priests, Religious Brothers and Sisters, family and friends of the late Fr. Aggrey, pay their last respect to him.
In his homily, the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Accra and also a classmate of the late Fr. Aggrey, Very Rev. Fr. John K. Louis described his friend and classmate as a man of generosity, who foretold stories mostly filled with humour yet a lesson to reflect on. “Fr. Aggrey never lost hope in his battle with sickle cell disease”, causing numerous crises leading to him frequenting the hospital his entire life.
Fr. Aggrey was the first parishioner of Christ the King Catholic Church, Cantonments-Accra to have been ordained a priest, paving the way for the youth to follow his trail in the service of the Lord.
Living close to an Islamic primary school, the late Fr. Aggrey took advantage of the proximity and learned to speak, read and write Arabic. For his constant quest for more knowledge, he sat as a private candidate for his (O) Level Certificate while at the Sacred Heart Vocational Institute, Derby-Avenue, Accra then proceeded to St. Theresa’s Minor Seminary, Amisano from 1984-1986 where he sat for (A) level certificate and moved to St. Peter’s Regional Seminary in Pedu- Cape Coast between 1999-2001 for his Philosophical and Theological Studies.
For the Avid Scholar that he was, he obtained Master of Arts (MA) in religious studies and Master of Science (MSc) in education from Fordham University, New York.
The late Fr. Michael Aggrey was ordained a priest of the then Accra Diocese on July 18, 1992, During his pastoral days, he worked as Assistant Priest at St. Anthony Parish, Akwatia, from 1993-1995 and was appointed Chaplain to a number of non-Catholic schools.
The late Fr. Aggrey also served as the Assistant Cathedral Administrator of St. Georges’s Cathedral, Koforidua diocese then assigned to Pope John Minor Seminary, Koforidua.
While studying overseas, the deceased served as a chaplain of the Mercy Medical Center in New York between 1999 and 2003. Upon returning to Ghana he worked as a seminary formator and a teacher at Pope Johns junior seminary from 2003-2007; by dint of hard work he rose to the Assistant Headmaster of the same institute and later as a lecturer and formator at St. Paul’s Major Seminary, Sowutuom in Accra
The late Fr. Aggrey’s family were fervently preparing towards his sixtieth (60th) birthday in thanksgiving for his extraordinary life until his demise on 22nd August 2020, on the Memorial of the Queenship of Mary, he was peacefully called to his maker.
Juliette Yevenyo Manomey
DEPSOCOM Accra
