Waheed Gbadamosi first came to the United States after completing all the requirements for a degree in economics from Olabisi Onabanjo University at Awo-Iwoye in the Nigerian state of Ogun.
Growing up in Lagos, the fastest-growing city of Nigeria and the most densely populated city in western Africa, Gbadamosi was influenced by his parents to lend a helping hand to those in need.
His father, Lamid, was an accountant and mother, Mutiat, owned and operated a small bodega in Nigeria. His father’s work in finance fascinated Gbadamosi, and his mother helped him understand the value of hard work and entrepreneurship.
The youngest of his father’s children, Gbadamosi states that with the number of people living in his childhood home there was a constant need to draw attention to himself.
“I grew up in a very large family,” said Gbadamosi. “We had not just the 16 kids, but a lot of other relatives. So, you always had to compete because resources were limited.”
After completing secondary school, Gbadamosi attended Olabisi Onabanjo University, a state-run school in Nigeria.
For a multitude of reasons, strikes were commonplace during his time at OOU, Gbadamosi stated. During his freshman year, at the age of 15 or 16, students protested against the townspeople for their unfair treatment. Indigenes (townspeople) controlled the hostels and continuously harassed students, he said.
“It was more like a conf lict between the indigenes who lived around the campus [and the] students,” said Gbadamosi. “There was a curfew in place and there wasn’t a lot of hostels – or any that would allow students.
[Students] had to get [their] own housing.”
When students marched to the palace of the oba (ruler) seeking resolution, they were met by groups of indigenes and gunfire. Protests escalated and became more violent.
In the midst of the attacks, Gbadamosi was part of a group sent by bus to retrieve students from OOU’s remote campus a short distance away. During the trips, the bus ran through a blockade put in place by the indigenes, it was ambushed and was fired upon. Gbadamosi was not injured but decided to stay behind.
“It was believed that if we came together, we could protect ourselves,” he said. “The military didn’t show up until the next day.”
In the wake of the rioting, the school was closed down for about five months, he added. Once the school reopened, Gbadamosi continued his education.
“It took me six years to complete the program due to the strikes and the rioting,” he stated.
It wasn’t until his last semester at OOU that Gbadamosi learned that his student ID was deemed invalid and “someone in school administration had sold my certificate to somebody else.”
When a relative in Dallas, Texas, heard of Gbadamosi’s predicament, she offered to help him get into college in the United States. He applied to three colleges, deciding to enroll into Cameron University’s marketing and finance programs.
“In 2009 I found out that I didn’t exist in the eyes of my school,” he said. “So, all my degree and everything was just- - didn’t matter. So, I started at undergrad again.”
Gbadamosi came to Oklahoma just after Christmas 2011. During his time at Cameron, he felt he had extra time to help give back to the school and the community.
“The time we used [back home] to get our basic amenities – lights, water, et cetera – at Cameron I had all this free time left, so I started volunteering,” he laughed.
He helped SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise) raise funds for a firefighter appreciation banquet; was active in the Nigerian Student Council; was a guest speaker at the Greater Lawton Rotary Club and eventually launched the campus’ Rotaract Club to develop leadership and professional skills. He brought Delta Sigma Pi to Cameron, the national fraternity instills values of service and principled leadership in the business community.
Gbadamosi also joined Oklahoma Intercollegiate Legislature and the Great Plains chapter of the Society of Human Resource Management.
Because he had contributed so much to the community, when he graduated from Cameron, several community leaders surprised him. Gbadamosi remains grateful to the Greater Lawton Rotary Club, LTC (Ret.) Jerry Orr, Janie Billingsley, David Denham, Kathy Suttles, Adventure Travel, Albert Johnson Jr. and Mark Brace for finding a way to bring his mother over from Nigeria to see him graduate. She arrived about a week before graduation.
“I graduated from Cameron on Friday, May 6, 2016, and on Mon- day I was doing pushups at Basic Training in Fort Jackson, South Carolina,” he said.
“With the U.S. interests in Africa, my native language Yoruba is one of the key languages in West Africa, so that gave me the opportunity to join the Army. I had the honor to be sworn into the Army by LTC (Ret.) Jerry Orr. I wanted to serve and be part of something that is greater than myself. I wanted to give back to the country that had given me so much opportunity.”
Gbadamosi has served in the Army Reserves and is currently a Unit Supply Specialist in the Oklahoma Army National Guard.
Now as a private banker with BancFirst, Gbadamosi is part of the Treasury Management and Business Development team. He evaluates clients’ business needs and offers products and services to help their businesses run more efficiently.
He serves on the board for Lawton Young Professionals and is a program coordinator for the Greater Lawton Rotary Club. He is also part of the Lawton-Fort Sill Chamber of Commerce’s Small Business and Membership committees as well as the Awards Task Force.
He passionately supports the United Way of Southwest Oklahoma, Hungry Hearts Feeding Ministry and Starlight Children’s Fund, which benefits Comanche County Memorial Hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit as well as CCMH’s labor and delivery, Women’s Services and pediatric unit.
“It makes me feel amazing to give back,” he said. “I’m using my skills and worth to help those in need. I try my best to make positive things happen.”
While Gbadamosi is usually active in one pursuit or another, he still sets time aside once a week to check in with his mother, a routine they have kept most weeks since he moved here nine years ago.
Looking ahead, Gbadamosi said he believes progress is just around the corner for southwest Oklahoma.
“I want to see progress, different initiatives and ideas put into action” he concluded. “We have opportunity, potential and talent here. There are great, young minds in our community. Smart, successful people who are interested in changing the world for the better.”