About Me
My married name is Else Akinde, but I was born Else Johansen on the 11. of May 1946 in the Danish town Viborg.
My father was, at the time of my birth, suffering badly from sclerosis and could hardly get out of bed. My mother worked as an office assistant at “Det Danske Hedeselskab”, but also took care of my fathers entrepreneur business, him and me.
My father died when I was 4 years old, and I only remember him vaguely.
I went to school in Viborg, but all weekends and holidays, I spent with my grandparents, uncles and cousins in the countryside outside Viborg and they supplied the close family I didn’t have at home.
When I left school after “Realeksamen” I worked as an au pair for a while. After that I went to the International People’s College at Helsingore. After that I started laboratory school, and got employment in the printing inks industry, where I have worked most of my life apart from two years working with Fan Milk in Nigeria.
I met and later married a Nigerian, and have lived my married life alternately in Denmark and Nigeria.
In Nigeria I became greatly involved in the organisation called Nigerwives. It is an organisation for foreign women married to Nigerians – living in Nigeria, but after returning to Denmark we carry it on, as we are quite a number of Danes who have all lived in Nigeria, and our common experiences binds us together. We meet irregularly about once a month, and once a year bring our families together at the yearly family-party. Last year we went for a highly successful holiday in Berlin, and we are currently planning our next trip.
“Parle vous francais” In my young days, when I had just met my husband Charles we lived in Paris for about half a year. I attended French lessons at the Sorbonne, and did learn some French. We had a very good time.
Curriculum Vitae
Work:
Pædagogmedhjælper
Børnehuset Svanen 2006
Laboratory Technician
Sadolin Trykfarver/ANI A/S 1966-1975, 1977-1982 and 2000-2004.
Controller
Nordisk Trykfarve Industri A/S 1996-2000
Laboratory Technician
Danisco Packaging A/S, Lynge 1995-1996
Chief Chemist
Scanink (Nigeria) Ltd. 1982-1995
Chemist
Fan Milk (Nigeria) Ltd. 1975-1977
Education:
Laboratory technician with specialisation on Chemistry
Teknologisk Institut, København 1967
Laboratory technicians course specialising in Biology
Frederikshavn Teknisk Skole 1965
Realeksamen
Østre Borger og Realskole, Viborg 1963
Other Courses:
HPLC Operator course and course in method and optimising 2004
PC license 2002
Course in life saving first aid 2000
Course in first aid 1980
Certificate in elementary French from the language school of Sorbonne. Paris 1969
Interests:
From 1993 to 1995 I was the Chairman of Nigerwives, Ibadan Branch, an organisation in Nigeria for foreign women married to Nigerians. I am still in close contact with these women and now a co-founder of the Danish branch.
Power-walk
Reading
Photography
Cycling
Swimming
Nigerwives
Nigerwives is a Nigerian organization for foreign women married to Nigerian men. In Nigeria the organization is widespread and have branches in most of the states. Yearly they hold a NGA, normally in Lagos every other year, and otherwise in the different states. Lagos hold the biggest branch, and it is also the place where it started.
In the year of 1995 3 Danish Nigerwives decided to return to Denmark with their families, and comming together in Denmark, we decided, we had to have a branch of Nigerwives in Denmark. We are at present 11 “wives”. All having previous lived in Nigeria. We meet in our homes, about 6-10 times a year, and generally hold a family meeting once a year in August.
We have also been traveling together, and so far we have been visiting Berlin. Pragh and Paris. Also we have had some weekends together.