Grace Atinuke Oyelude (born November 16, 1931) is a retired registered nurse, midwife, and hospital administrator who rose to prominence as the first

Miss Nigeria Miss Nigeria is an annual pageant showcasing positive attributes of Nigerian women and awarding university scholarships. The winner portrays exemplary qualities and serves as a role model for young women in the country. The pageant is currentl ...

in 1957.

Early life

Oyelude Atinuke Grace was born on 16, November 1931 in Sabon Gari,

Kano Kano may refer to: Places *Kano State, a state in Northern Nigeria *Kano (city), a city in Nigeria, and the capital of Kano State **Kingdom of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between the 10th and 14th centuries **Sultanate of Kano, a Hausa kingdom between ...

, Nigeria. she was given birth by James Adeleye Oyelude and Martha Jasmine Dantu of Isanlu from

Kogi State Kogi State is a state in the North Central region of Nigeria, bordered to the west by the states of Ekiti and Kwara, to the north by the Federal Capital Territory, to the northeast by Nasarawa State, to the northwest by Niger State, to the s ...

, Grace Atinuke Oyelude raised in Northern Nigeria. She had her primary and secondary education between 1940 and 1952 in Kano, after which she began to work with UAC.

Miss Nigeria

In 1957 Oyelude, whilst still with UAC, represented the Northern region at the Miss Nigeria grand final after her brother submitted her photograph to pageant organisers '' Daily Times'', (In the contest's early years, Miss Nigeria was a photo competition). After she was named Miss Nigeria, Oyelude used her £200 cash prize to travel to England and enrol in Nursing School.

Nursing career

After her reign, Oyelude disappeared from the limelight to move to the UK and attend Nursing School in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

where she qualified as a

nurse Nursing is a profession within the health care sector focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life. Nurses may be differentiated from other health c ...

in 1961, subsequently gaining a midwifery qualification in 1962 after training at

St. Thomas' Hospital St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. It is one of the institutions that compose the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foun ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. She moved on to the Royal College of Nursing, England in 1971 and obtained a diploma in Nursing and Hospital administration (DNHA). At the Ghana Institute of Management and Personnel Administration, she completed studies for another diploma. Oyelude worked with several hospitals including

Paddington General Hospital Paddington General Hospital was a health facility in Harrow Road, Paddington, London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 mil ...

, one of the former local hospitals of

St Mary's Hospital, London St Mary's Hospital is an NHS hospital in Paddington, in the City of Westminster, London, founded in 1845. Since the UK's first academic health science centre was created in 2008, it has been operated by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, wh ...

. After returning to Nigeria, Oyelude worked in Kaduna General Hospital between 1964 and 1965. She worked as a senior nursing sister-in-charge of the former Kaduna Nursing home (now Barau Dike specialist hospital, Kaduna) from 1965 to 1977. When the

Nigerian Civil War The Nigerian Civil War (6 July 1967 – 15 January 1970), also known as the Nigerian–Biafran War or the Biafran War, was a civil war fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a secessionist state which had declared its independence f ...

started in 1967, she moved to Markurdi General Hospital. Oyelude led a team from the Northern region; the group that helped hospitals get ready to treat casualties of war. In the early 1970s she worked as a senior matron and director of nursing services at the

Ahmadu Bello University Ahmadu Bello University Zaria is a federal government research university in Zaria, Kaduna State, Nigeria. ABU was founded on 4 October 1962, as the pioneer university in Northern Nigeria. It was founded and named after the Sardauna of Sokoto, Al ...

’s teaching hospital, after joining the Institute of Health, Ahmadu Bello University. She voluntarily retired from that post in 1985. She was also an external examiner of the Nursing and Midwifery Council of Nigeria. She chaired the Kwara State Health Management Board from 1980 to 1983.

Personal life

Oyelude holds the chieftaincy titles ''Iyaolu of Isaluland'' and ''Iyalode of Okunland'', and has many grandchildren. In 2015, the Miss Nigeria Organisation presented her with a

Peugeot Peugeot (, , ) is a French brand of automobiles owned by Stellantis. The family business that preceded the current Peugeot companies was founded in 1810, with a steel foundry that soon started making hand tools and kitchen equipment, and the ...

car.

References

External links

Miss Nigeria
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oyelude, Grace A. People from Kano Living people 1931 births Nigerian nurses Yoruba beauty pageant contestants Yoruba women nurses Miss Nigeria winners Nigerian healthcare managers Nigerian expatriates in the United Kingdom Ahmadu Bello University people Nigerian midwives People of the Nigerian Civil War Female wartime nurses Alumni of St Thomas's Hospital Medical School History of women in Nigeria 20th-century Nigerian women 21st-century Nigerian women