The mortal remains of Mrs. Gifie Vanderpuije, wife of the Accra Mayor, Okoe Vanderpuije, has been laid to rest at the Osu Cemetery in Accra, after an elaborate burial service at the Burma Camp Seventh Day Adventist Church in Accra.

At a pre-burial service, sympathizers including family and friends paid glowing tributes to her and described her as a loving wife, daughter, sister, friend and a servant of God.

In attendance were dignitaries from business community, Chief of Defense Staff, the Inspector General of Police, chiefs and queen-mothers, ambassadors of China, Turkey and the United States, ministers of states, Members of Parliament and Former Mayors of Accra, including Stanley Adjiri Blankson.

The Church auditorium was filled to capacity and the mourners respectfully paid their condolences to the Accra Mayor and the entire family during the service. The late Mrs. Giftie Naa Adei Vanderpuiji passed away at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital on June 29, 2012, after a short illness.

Paying tribute to his wife, Mayor Vanderpuije recalled how he met and wooed her and thanked her for choosing him out of many eligible young men in the neighborhood of Mamprobi in addition to the love, care and support she rendered him throughout their 30 years of marriage.

He said her ability to extend love and joy among friends and family helped form a stronger bond among the family.

Mr. Vanderpuije said the wife's devotion and the attention with which she nurtured their two daughters was exceptional and prayed that God keeps her in his bosom.

The children, Mildred and Alfreda Vanderpuije, recounted in grief, their late mother’s determination to instill in them moral and traditional values, to help shape their attitudes and way of life.

“They said: “Dear God, thank you so much for sharing your daughter Giftie with us. Thank you for giving us such a wonderful mother. Although we are filled with sadness, please Lord, we acknowledge that your way is always the best. Guide and comfort us for the rest of our days.”

They described their mother as a counselor, who was committed to their well-being and also forthright in disciplining them.

Family, friends and sympathizers described her passing as a great loss and prayed for the fortitude to keep her legacy alive.

Pastor J.J Nortey, in a sermon, said there comes a time when one could do nothing and a time when money could not buy time or save life.

He said tributes in memory of the Late Giftie Vanderpuije gave the idea as to the life she led and the legacy she left for her family, especially the training and the nurturing she gave her children to propel them for the future.

Pastor Nortey charged parents and guardians to always be there for their children and teach them not to lust after money.

He said death was not the end because Christ Jesus would come again on the resurrection day and admonished religious groups to co-exist and live in harmony and not commit atrocities in the name of serving God.

“The body of Christ should come together in the name of the same father. We need to co-exist until Christ comes,” he said and added that there would be one heaven for all and not different heavens for the various religious groups.**