This archive report was first published on 16 August 2019.
On August 17, Winnie 'Mickey' Linyerera would have turned 25 if she had not died suddenly two weeks prior. I knew Mickey, a brave and solid young woman who was not afraid to speak her mind.
Her friends and family came together to celebrate her life, and in the days leading up to her funeral, they checked in at her home in Mulwanda, Kakamega County, and assisted with chores and contributed money to offset some bills. They showed her family that the girl who lay in the ground was a loved and treasured person.
When the burial was finally over, her friends and family realized that their girl was gone forever. They wondered what Winnie would have preferred - mourning without hope or celebrating her life. Winnie would have preferred the latter.
And what better way to celebrate than with song and dance, in the typical Mickey fashion? Music was played - all kinds of music: gospel, dirges, and the song of the moment, the one that resonated with Winnie's agemates, Wamlambez.
One of her friends, Mercy, couldn't have put it better in her Facebook post: 'At the end of the day, the fact we have the courage to still be standing is reason enough to celebrate your life, Linyerera Winnie, Which Was Well Lived, With No Regrets!'
Winnie Mickey Linyerera was a remarkable young woman and mother, and that is how we should remember her.
