Hilary Allumaga, Black Deaf artist and educator, passes away at 57
On January 1, a Deaf artist and educator, Hilary Allumaga, unexpectedly passed away in Nigeria from respiratory illness. He may have died from the coronavirus, but it is unconfirmed. He was 57.
Hilary was well-known among the Gallaudet community for his artistic talents and had an art exhibition on campus in February and March 2020.
Gallaudet University said in a Hi5 newsletter and video that proceeds from his art exhibition benefited a school he founded called the Evangelical Reformed Church of Christ School for the Deaf in Naswara State, Nigeria. Hilary was also an education inspector with the Naswara state government.
Gallaudet’s tribute said several of his artwork pieces are on display in the Office of the President in College Hall and in other on-campus buildings, and that one of his pieces is in the Deaf Studies Archive at the National Technical Institute of the Deaf.
Here is a video tribute that was created by Gallaudet graduate students Jamal Garner and Delresea Mornes.
[Video clip]
Beautiful video.
I reached out to Lindsay Dunn, who is a professor of Deaf Studies at Gallaudet University, to get more information about Hilary.
Dunn said Hilary wanted to return to his home country earlier, after his exhibition, but Covid-19 related travel restrictions delayed his plans for months.
Dunn said Hilary was a very humble man because he was willing to work in various menial positions at Gallaudet even though he had a BA and MPA degrees from Gallaudet because supporting his family was more important than allowing ego to get in the way.
Dunn said Gallaudet President Bobbi Cordano purchased a large piece of art made by Hilary and donated it to the Deaf Studies Department. Dunn said he believes it will grace the wall of the Center for Black Deaf Studies when it is officially unveiled.
I reached out to Bunmi Aina, Director of Division of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion at Gallaudet, to try and understand what happened to Hilary in his final days. He said he couldn’t say much due to emotional turmoil, but directed me to an article in his hometown newspaper, “Eggon News.”
The newspaper said they talked with Hilary’s family before writing a summary of what happened. The article said Hilary was coughing profusely and his family decided to take him to the hospital, where he received treatment for a night. The next morning, a team of doctors met to decide his treatment and they thought coronavirus infection was one of the possible reasons for his illness. Hilary seemed to have confusion at where he was and tried to get out, but hospital security was called. After a meeting the hospital decided to release him to receive treatment at home. But Hilary became exhausted, had difficulty breathing and passed away. A family member said it was not true that he died from Covid-19 complications because he was tested negative for it before he flew back to Nigeria. He will be tested postmortem for coronavirus. The family are making funeral arrangements.
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There is a GoFundMe set up by a Gallaudet professor, Emilia Chukwuma. The link is in the transcript and proceeds will provide support for Hilary’s family and their travel costs for the funeral arrangements.
Hilary leaves behind his wife, Vivian, and four children.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?utm_source=Gallaudet+University&utm_campaign=0721d83c81-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_12_17_08_53_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_acc2663351-0721d83c81-368282397&v=el7bhYqc92c&feature=youtu.be
https://my.gallaudet.edu/intranet/announcements-archive/black-deaf-solo-art-show-to-be-held-at-washburn-arts-center
https://eggonnews.com/hilary-allumaga-family-explains-circumstances-leading-to-death/?fbclid=IwAR0dmhGVD6jXszAg0_NS2-0KYuvyW-1uiwBLgF023_hkBWc2dIqAtvRCEUE
https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-hilary-allumaga?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=m_pd+share-sheet&fbclid=IwAR2aLoF3jc9b978BI3IZLFefxg4qVGTLDdQrWpjqzKl0mX9UDZJzJ49R7UI